There is a moving company in New York called iMoveGreen who is working hard to make sure that they are doing all they can so their customers do not get bed bugs. This is the first moving company I have heard be this proactive and I applaud them. If you are planning on moving anytime soon, see what they are doing and ask your moving company to follow the same procedures.
The nuts and bolts from the bed bug article are as follows. People moving were finding that they were getting bed bugs after their move. Eventually, I assume after some complaints, the moving company realized that the blankets they were using to move furniture were infested with bed bugs. As you can imagine, every time they wrapped a piece of furniture with these blankets, they were sharing bed bugs with the customer. Not exactly the parting gift current customers were looking for.
So instead of denials and pushing it under the carpet, they did something positive about it. After every move, the blankets are bagged and then taken to a central location where they are dried on hot for 1.5 hours. This step helps ensure that they will not be spreading bed bugs from one client to another. This is the same method we suggest to homeowners who fear they may have picked up bed bugs on a trip.
I hope that other moving companies will follow the example set by iMoveGREEN and do all they can to protect their customers. This will also help reduce the spread of infestations which are very difficult to cure. So next time you move, ask your moving company to either use new blankets or prove that the blankets they are using are bed bug-free.
For more information regarding bed bug detection and eradication, call The Bed Bug Answer at 404-724-8999.