> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://help.immodio.app/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://help.immodio.app/en/anleitung/einnahmen-und-ausgaben/buchhaltung-erweiterung/10128010-kosten-fuer-ungezieferbekaempfung-schaedlingsbekaempfung.md). # Costs for pest and vermin control Help on the Immodio entry item Costs for vermin control / pest control.
Use this category for **regularly recurring and preventive pest control measures** at the selected property. The costs of pest control are expressly listed as operating costs in Section 2 no. 9 BetrKV. Only costs that **arise on a running basis** from the ownership or the intended use of the building are recoverable, however. One-off measures to deal with a specific infestation are generally **not** operating costs but costs of remedying a defect or of maintenance, and are therefore to be borne by the landlord. ### The legal classification For the allocation, what matters is why the measure was carried out: * **Preventive and recurring according to plan:** recoverable in principle. * **Because of a specific acute infestation:** in principle costs for the landlord. * **Demonstrably caused by a particular tenant:** possibly an individual claim for damages against that tenant, but no property-wide allocation of operating costs. Most case law of the lower courts treats only regularly carried out, prophylactic measures as operating costs. The Hamburg Local Court, on the other hand, classified dealing with an existing acute infestation as remedying a defect. There is an older divergent individual decision of the Offenbach Local Court under which a one-off treatment could also be recoverable. For a legally reliable statement, however, this minority view should not be made the basis of general entry practice. ### What can be entered here? Enter here in particular the costs of a **prevention programme provided for contractually or demonstrably carried out regularly**, for example: * regular checks for rats, mice, cockroaches or other pests, * setting up and checking bait stations according to plan, * regularly replacing bait and traps, * preventive treatment of communal areas at risk, * monitoring in cellars, refuse rooms, attics, plant rooms or outdoor facilities, * recurring checks of known entry or infestation areas, * regular documentation of the checking and prevention measures, * the labour, travel and material costs directly necessary, * disposing of used bait and traps, as far as it is part of the running pest control. The measure should be based on a comprehensible maintenance, inspection or control plan and should not have been commissioned only after specific damage occurred. ### What does "regularly" mean? Pest control does not necessarily have to be carried out every year. Operating costs can also arise at intervals of several years where they recur according to plan and are part of a typical, foreseeable operating routine. The Federal Court of Justice has recognised in general terms that a cycle of several years can also be sufficient for "running" operating costs. For pest control, the recurrence should follow from specific circumstances, for example: * a permanently elevated risk of rats at the location, * a refuse area regularly at risk, * recurring checks in a food business, * a documented risk of infestation in cellars or outdoor facilities. Where several call-outs are necessary to deal with the same acute infestation, these form a single connected process of remedying a defect. Examples: * three treatments against bedbugs in the same apartment, * repeatedly replenishing bait after an acute rat infestation, * several inspection appointments to eliminate cockroaches completely, * follow-up treatments after a mouse infestation identified for the first time. {% hint style="info" %} Repeating individual appointments does not automatically make the measure a regularly arising operating cost. What remains decisive is whether there is a **permanent preventive routine** or the **elimination of a specific infestation**. {% endhint %} ### Distinguishing communal areas and individual apartments A property-wide allocation comes into consideration above all with regular measures in areas used communally, for example: * stairwells and entrance areas, * cellars and attics, * communal laundry rooms, * refuse rooms and refuse areas, * plant and storage rooms, * courtyards and outdoor facilities. Where only a single apartment is treated, the costs may not readily be allocated to all tenancies in the building. ### An acute pest infestation The costs of dealing with an acute infestation on a **one-off** basis should generally not be recovered from the tenants in this category. That applies in particular to: * one-off rat or mouse control, * dealing with a cockroach infestation, * treating an apartment infested with bedbugs, * dealing with food or clothes moths, * removing a single wasps' nest, * dealing with an ant infestation, * dealing with wood pests, * the one-off removal of pigeons, martens or other animals, * disinfection and cleaning work after a specific infestation. The landlord is in principle obliged to keep the rented property in a condition suitable for use in accordance with the contract. A considerable pest infestation can also be a defect in the rented property and lead to a reduction in rent. ### An infestation caused by the tenant Where a particular tenant caused the pest infestation through a culpable breach of duty, there may be an individual claim for damages. This requires a breach of duty, damage caused by it and legal responsibility on the tenant's part. Cases come into consideration, for example, where it is demonstrable that: * food was stored permanently in the open or improperly, * waste was collected in the apartment for a longer period despite requests, * a considerable unhygienic state caused the infestation, * pests were brought in with items introduced and the tenant then failed to report the infestation despite being aware of it, * necessary control measures were culpably prevented. A mere suspicion, a generally untidy impression or the fact that the infestation was first discovered in a particular apartment is not automatically sufficient to charge the costs. Structural causes, service shafts, cracks, damp, waste water pipes, refuse areas and spread from other units also have to be checked. Such an amount should **not be allocated across the entire property as an operating cost entry** but assigned as a separate claim to the tenancy specifically responsible. ### Structural causes and consequential costs Work to remedy structural causes of entry or infestation is not recoverable, for example: * sealing cracks, joints and wall openings, * repairing damaged waste water pipes, * closing access points in the roof or facade, * renewing defective cellar windows or doors, * repairing refuse rooms, * dealing with damp damage, * replacing infested insulation or timber components, * renewing pipes, shafts or cladding. {% hint style="warning" %} Such work is **repair or refurbishment cost** and remains non-recoverable even where it is carried out in connection with pest control. {% endhint %} ### Assignment For the assignment select **"Property"** and then the building for which the regularly recurring preventive measure was carried out. Where no other effective allocation key was agreed, operating costs for residential space are generally allocated according to the share of the living space. ### Mixed-use buildings Particular care is needed with buildings containing both apartments and commercial premises. Where regular pest checks are carried out exclusively because of a: * restaurant, * bakery, * butcher's, * food shop, * communal kitchen or * other food-processing use the additional costs arising from it should generally be assigned to the commercial unit concerned or to the group of users actually affected. Residential tenants may not be charged with costs caused exclusively by a particular commercial use. ### Splitting mixed contracts and invoices Pest control contracts can contain different services: * regular monitoring, * preventive bait checks, * acute control of an existing infestation, * emergency call-outs, * disinfection and special cleaning, * sealing and repair work, * replacing damaged parts of the building. Such an invoice may not be entered in full as an operating cost item. Have the following shown separately if possible: 1. regularly recurring preventive services, 2. acute control of an infestation, 3. special and emergency call-outs, 4. cleaning and disinfection, 5. repairs and structural measures, 6. spare parts and other materials. Only the share clearly attributable to the running, preventive pest checks belongs in this category. ### When this category should not be used The following in particular do not belong here: * the one-off control of an acute pest infestation, * the treatment of only one apartment, * several follow-up treatments of the same infestation, * removing a single wasps' or bees' nest, * repairing and sealing entry points, * replacing infested or damaged components, * special cleaning and disinfection after an infestation, * the costs of expert reports on structural defects, * the costs of damage caused by the tenant, * control measures in the landlord's private rooms, * measures for a vacant unit, as far as they do not serve the running operation of the entire property. ### Economic efficiency and documents With pest control too, the landlord has to observe the requirement of economic efficiency. A running prevention contract should be objectively justified by the location, the use or the infestation risk of the building. Unnecessary or disproportionately frequent treatments may not be passed on to the tenants. Keep in particular: * the rental agreement and the operating cost agreement, * the prevention or maintenance contract, * the inspection and bait plan, * call-out and infestation reports, * invoices and proof of payment, * the split between prevention and acute control, * documentation of the regular cycle, * the assignment of the areas of the building concerned, * the calculation where there are several buildings or commercial units.