By: Max Cao

Many pesky rats have been discovered nesting in car hoods in the Big Apple. The rats need the warmth in under the hood, costing the owners a few hundred dollars, or even thousands to clean up. The pests may just have left some feces and food scraps, or they may have wrecked havoc by chewing through wires, wriggling into tight spaces, and more. This used to be a minor issue for most New Yorkers, but over the last two years, many of the city’s auto body shops are seeing an increasing amount of drivers coming in with rat related problems.

The recent trend of New Yorkers buy more cars may have something to do with the rats found. Between 2019 and 2021, new car registrations increased by 19 percent, the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles reported. And with more places rats could nest in, the more rat families there are.

Jenna Carpenter-Moyes, a design strategist in Brooklyn, once bought a car as a way to pilot in the city. The same year, she realized her engine was struggling to drive up a hill. “The ‘check engine’ light came on, and I brought it to my mechanic, who popped the hood and found chicken bones, some bread and part of a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich sitting there,” Ms. Carpenter-Moyes said. She had to pay $1,200 in order to repair the car.

How can New York solve this furry problem? Dr. Parsons, a research scholar at Fordham University and an urban rat expert, says, “It’s about social urban hygiene. We have to change the way we think about how we take care of our neighborhoods, and we’ll be able to get rid of the rats.”

Links:

https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1659884374596x191782835133899940/Why So Many Cars Have Rats in Them Now – The New York Times.pdf

https://topcarnews.net/rats-in-cars-why-have-reports-increased-s140233.html