Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 2 - Agriculture and Commerce › Part 1 - Rules of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce › Subpart 3 - Bureau of Plant Industry › Chapter 11 - Regulation of Professional Services › Subchapter 01 - Regulations Governing Commercial Insect, Rodent, Plant Disease, and Weed Control Work › Identification; Operators; Employees; Equipment › Section 2-1-3-11-01-115 - Contracts

Current through June 25, 2024
1. Persons holding a license in the category
						"Wood destroying insect control" as covered by subsection 104.04(1) of this
						chapter shall enter into a written contract with the person employing him. Work
						performed under the contract shall comply with the regulations set forth in
						subchapter 01 of this chapter.
2. A
						contract shall not be issued unless an approved termite treatment is performed,
						except as covered in subsection 115(15) of this chapter.
3. Said contract for control of and
						protection from termites and/or other structural pests shall guarantee the
						performance of the work to the original owner and subsequent owners for at
						least one year after initial date of contract to the original owner and that
						said property meets the minimum standards set forth in these regulations for
						such work, unless an exception of the minimum standards is clearly set forth in
						a separate statement on the face of the contract. Exceptions of the minimum
						standards shall not exclude treatment requirements, as stated on the product
						use label, of the pesticide being used. Exceptions of the minimum standards for
						such work are limited to structures where treatment is not possible because an
						area of the structure is inaccessible and/or treatment will result in
						defacement to the actual structure that is unacceptable to the owner of the
						property. Exceptions of the minimum standards for such work shall not be
						allowed unless the owner of the property signs in a space next to each
						exception on the face of the contract acknowledging that the work is not being
						performed to minimum standards. Exceptions of the minimum standards do not
						eliminate the requirement for termite treatment to be performed.
4. A copy of a work order covering a complete
						plot or diagram showing the location of visible damage and an outline of the
						work to be carried out shall be given to the property owner and one copy shall
						be maintained by the operator with a copy of the contract for as long as the
						contract is in force.
5. The
						contract must clearly state in bold letters on the face of the contract if
						damage repairs are included or if only retreatment is provided.
6. The contract issued for pretreatment for
						termite control, as covered by subsection 118.05 of this chapter, shall clearly
						state in bold letters on the face of the contract that damage repairs are
						included and the perimeter treatment, as covered by subsection 118.05(1) of
						this chapter, is required to be completed within one (1) year of completion of
						the horizontal barrier treatment.
7. Before the expiration date of said
						contract and annually thereafter, the operator shall re-examine the property
						treated for termites and/or beetles and a written report of the reexamination
						showing the condition of the property with respect to the presence or absence
						of termites and/or beetles shall be filed with the owner of the property and a
						copy maintained in the operator's file.
8. The annual reexamination must include an
						exterior inspection and interior inspection of the structure. However, where
						the efforts of the pest control operator to schedule an inspection have been
						unsuccessful because the customer has failed to respond to the pest control
						operator or to make their premises available for an inspection, the pest
						control operator shall be relieved of the responsibility to perform the
						inspection provided the pest control operator has made reasonable efforts to
						perform the inspection and notified the customer in writing the inspection was
						not performed. A copy of this notification shall be maintained in the pest
						control operator's customer file.
9. All subsequent inspections, as provided by
						the terms of the contract, shall be regularly made by the operator who shall
						report the results to the homeowner and make them available to the Bureau if
						such information shall be requested.
10. When a termite control pretreat contract
						is issued, an inspection before the contract expires is required.
11. A complete plot or diagram giving the
						dimensions and shape of the property pretreated shall be given to the structure
						owner and one copy shall be maintained by the licensee.
12. Annual re-treatment of a structure,
						covered by a contract, is prohibited unless there is clear documented site
						evidence that re-infestation and/or treatment zone disruption has
						occurred.
13. When a pest control
						operator elects not to renew a structural contract, the owner must be notified
						in writing at least thirty (30) days prior to the contract expiration date. A
						copy of this notification shall be maintained in the pest control operator's
						customer file.
14. For control
						systems other than a soil barrier, a contract must be issued at the time of
						initial installation of the system and reported to the Bureau on the monthly
						report. The contract must specify product, the procedure, a graph of sites of
						infestation and damage, placement, and frequency of inspections to be
						performed. This contract must be in force to the original owner and subsequent
						owners for at least one (1) year after initial date of contract to the original
						owner.
15. Licensed companies
						acquiring a termite control and protection soil barrier contract from another
						company must honor the terms of the acquired contract, whether or not a new
						contract is issued, until the acquired contract expiration date and are
						required, at no cost to the property owner, to treat the structure identified
						in the contract to Mississippi's minimum requirements, if there is evidence
						this was not done. Upon expiration of an acquired soil barrier contract, a new
						soil barrier contract may be issued. To avoid over-treatment of a previously
						treated structure, it is prohibited to apply a new soil barrier treatment to
						the structure named in the acquired contract, unless at least one of the
						following occurs: there is clear documented site evidence that re-infestation
						has occurred; there is clear documented site evidence of treatment zone
						disruption; there is clear documented evidence of pesticide degradation below
						acceptable efficacy levels; there is relevant published research data that the
						pesticide may have degraded below acceptable efficacy levels.
Miss. Code Ann.
						  §
													69-19-1
						  & Miss Code Ann. §
													69-23-109.