Tampa Tribune, The (FL)

July 9, 2004

Orkin Faces Scrutiny In Florida
IT DENIES WRONGDOING, WANTS RECORDS PRIVATE

Author: RANDY DIAMOND; rdiamond@tampatrib.com

Edition: FINAL
Section: NATION/WORLD
Page: 1
Dateline: TAMPA

Article Text:

By RANDY DIAMOND

rdiamond@tampatrib.com

TAMPA — The Florida attorney general's office is conducting a statewide investigation into the business practices of Orkin Inc., the giant Atlanta-based termite and pest control company.

Bob Sparks, a spokesman for the attorney general's office, declined to disclose details of the probe.

Orkin acknowledged the investigation Thursday but denied wrongdoing. The company said it was seeking a court order blocking public disclosure of documents state investigators have subpoenaed.

The investigation is the latest in a string of legal troubles for the company in Florida. Those include a $3 million arbitration judgment awarded last August to a Jacksonville couple who said the company did not do repair work promised under a lifetime guarantee. Orkin customers must agree to settle any claims through arbitration, rather than suing.

The couple's case may shed light on the state's investigation.

Collier Black, a Jacksonville newspaper consultant, said an assistant attorney general and an office investigator spent two days interviewing him and his wife, Peggie, in January about their case and their experience with Orkin. They ! also sifted through 2,000 pages of legal documents and testimony taken during the arbitration case and copied records.

Black said the questions asked by the assistant attorney general and investigator focused on how Orkin was able to proceed with termite repair work on the house without required government building permits.

Black said he told investigators that during the arbitration hearing, Orkin employees testified that subcontractors hired for termite remediation work in Jacksonville and Orlando routinely did not obtain necessary building permits.

The couple paid Orkin $3,335 for a lifetime repair contract after termites were discovered in their home in 1996. They contended in their arbitration claim that parts of their house were never treated.

"It was a brutal, horrible ordeal," Black said.

He said state investigators questioned him extensively on whether Orkin did not seek building permits to avoid discovery of faulty work! .

Martha Craft, an Orkin spokeswoman, said the company denies wrongdoing in the Black case and is appealing the $3 million arbitration judgment in court. She said the company in the past left it up to local subcontractors to get necessary permits but has changed that practice to ensure that required permits are obtained.

Wayne Cowart was head of Orkin's Southeast claims office from 1999 to 2001 and now serves as a paid expert witness for customers suing Orkin and other termite exterminators.

Cowart said in an interview Thursday that it was common while he worked for Orkin for the company not to obtain building permits before conducting termite repair work. He said Orkin discouraged customers from filing claims under their lifetime contracts, arguing other factors, such as dampness, contributed to the termite condition.

Orkin, which had $558 million in sales during a 12-month period ended March 31, has 1.6 million commercial and residential customers in the United States, Canada and Mexico. One of its top mar! kets is Florida, Cowart said.

The company is the subject of numerous lawsuits accusing it of deceptive and fraudulent practices throughout Florida and the Southeast.

RELATED STORY, Page 4:

Use caution in hiring exterminators.

Reporter Jerome Stockfish and Tribune researchers Angela D. Holan and Diane K. Grey contributed to this report. Reporter Randy Diamond can be reached at (813) 259-8144.

Copyright (c) 2004 The Tribune Co.
Record Number: MERLIN_3596507