‘I’m scared rats are going to eat my Christmas dinner’

James Solan, 63, has barely been sleeping.

He wakes up to bangs in the night, claiming to hear noise from his attic. 

“I’m on edge all the time,” the Oldhamer says.

“It’s absolutely horrendous.” 

Mr Solan says he’s had from a rat infestation in his housing association property on Terrace Street for months.

He’s worried he’ll have to spend Christmas in a household ‘overrun’ by rodents.

He said: “I’m worried they’re going to get to my food. If they’ve nibbled at it, you can’t eat it.

"I can’t afford to replace it, so I’d starve.” 

Mr Solan, who has lived in the property for around 47 years, says he first noticed rats just under a year ago. 

“If you look through the window at night, you can see them outside,” he added.

First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO), which manages the property, said  a member of staff visited in October.

An environmental officer from Oldham council has also put down poison and traps, the body added.

The problem, FCHO said, relates to another property. 

Bosses said the first correspondence they received was in October. Mr Solan says he’s made dozens of complaints. 

“I’m not a well man,” he added.

“I could do without all the stress.

"I feel sick all the time. I’m not sleeping. I just want it to stop.

“They’ve been in my kitchen.

"All my cereal boxes were on the floor the other day.

An FCHO spokesperson said: “At First Choice Homes Oldham the welfare of our customers is of utmost importance, and we share Mr Solan’s concerns relating to the neighbouring property in this case.

“Whilst we do make it clear to our customers that they are responsible for maintaining their gardens to a reasonable and tidy standard, on occasion, cases such as this do arise and we endeavour to work with our customers to address any issues.

“In this particular instance, we have taken several steps to resolve the problem since it was first reported to us by Mr Solan in October.

“As we do with all cases like this, we are working hard to negotiate a speedy solution and if that does not work, we issue written warnings, which are required before we pursue legal action.

"Meanwhile, we have funded pest control treatments to address some of the issues.

“We are committed to working with Mr Solan to ensure the problem is concluded as quickly as possible and we will keep in contact to update him on our progress.”

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