Residents of a Liverpool city centre block of flats say they are losing sleep after being driven to distraction by an infestation of cockroaches. People living in The Overhead on Sefton Street say conditions in the building have been crumbling for ages.
Residents describe decline in management
Niamh Daly, 28, who has lived in the block for three years, said: "When we first moved in it was a really decent accommodation. Management has shifted in the last two years and we've noticed a real decline in how things are run.
"There's residents who have been here as long as five years and have never seen the building being kept this bad. One lady has a premature baby, and she's having to set off smoke bombs in her house to keep the cockroaches away because she's terrified for her child."
She said she first noticed the cockroaches around a year ago and contacted HCGB Service, which manages The Overhead on behalf of the landlord. She said all complaints to the company had to be submitted via an online portal - and that residents did not even have a phone number to get in touch.
Complaints go unanswered
She said: "I'm a teacher and my flatmate is a nurse, and we're not sleeping properly. I've woken up to her screaming because there's been one on the wall beside her bed.
"We've tried to highlight this to the landlord multiple times and were just given a ticket. We don't even have access to a phone number to contact the business.
"We made complaints over a year ago, and there were about three or four put in at the time. We were promised they would send pest control out on Monday. We waited all day and nobody ever came. The only pest control that was ever done was the handyman hoovering up a lot of them and putting some bug spray down."
She added: "Everyone is tired and fed up. The cockroaches have been spotted in multiple apartments across the building. We've spotted about four last week between the kitchens and the bedrooms.
"It causes fear and the embarrassment because they're such a filthy bug, and the connotations between having them in your apartment and being really unsanitary is just very embarrassing.
"We've had to put all of our belongings, all of our foodstuffs into safe containers. We have to wipe down every surface with bleach every day. But there's nothing we can do with our clothes or our beds. There's always the fear that they're going to contaminate something and make us really ill.
"We're absolutely terrified. The screams that come from the apartment you can hear from West Kirby."
Health risks and rent increases
She said she had received a text from HCGB saying the infestation was being treated as a communal issue, and that they will be looking into fumigation of the building.
The UK is home to several different types of cockroach. German cockroaches thrive in higher temperatures and humidities, while oriental cockroaches love cool, damp areas such as basements and drains.
All cockroaches pose a health risk to humans, as they are known to carry the organisms which cause food poisoning and other bacteria, such as salmonella, staphylococcus and streptococcus.
Lucy Antell, who has lived at the flats for three years, said: "The landlord has known for months about the cockroach infestation and has done nothing about it. I've seen cockroaches in the past month and I was scared it was just my flat, but now I know other people have reported it and nothing has happened.
"There's been no steps to try and improve the situation. It seems like we're constantly complaining and there's nothing ever being done about it."
She added that despite the deteriorating conditions, the rent on her apartment had been increased year on year, going from around £770 to £975 per month.
Communal bin area blamed
Another resident, who did not want to be named, said she believed the sanitation problems were coming from the flats' communal bin area, which had become a target for fly-tipping.
She said: "I moved in quite a while ago now and the first couple of years it was fine. There was never any maintenance issues and nothing was wrong with the building. But towards the back end of 2024, early 2025 it just took a nosedive.
"The bin store has been in decline with rubbish everywhere, fly-tipping constantly. The back gates were insecure for so long and the only way we finally got a lock back on was when a homeless person actually started living in there.
"There are signs up saying 'fly-tippers will be prosecuted', but nothing gets done. As you come into the bin store the bin bags are dumped on the floor and piled high.
"At one point they put a coded lock on the door, but didn't tell all the residents so people were just piling their rubbish up outside.
"The flats either side of mine have both seen cockroaches, so obviously I'm terrified. I've gone out and bought spray just in case I see anything. I've seen pictures of it and it's just disgusting."
HCGB Services was approached by the ECHO for comment.
