Fantastic Services pest control contracts rise 45%, company says
Fantastic Services says preventive commercial pest-control contracts rose 45% in early 2026, based on its own data.
By Maya Lindqvist · Senior Technology Correspondent
2 min read
Fantastic Services says its preventive commercial pest-control contracts rose 45% year on year in the first five months of 2026. The company’s figure, which includes both new and renewed agreements, is a measure of its own business rather than of pest activity or demand across London.
The announcement points to a shift toward planned pest management among the company’s commercial customers, although the data does not show why customers chose those contracts or how many were food businesses. Fantastic Services said the comparison covers its internal contract and enquiry records from January through May 2026 against the same period a year earlier.
What do Fantastic Services pest control contracts figures show?
Separate from the contract increase, Fantastic Services reported that 48% of its commercial pest-control enquiries concerned ongoing prevention. It described those enquiries as relating to annual plans, scheduled inspections and longer-term monitoring; the rest were mainly tied to existing infestations.
The two measures cover different things. The 45% figure counts preventive contracts, including renewals, while the 48% figure is the share of enquiries concerning prevention. Neither figure provides total contract numbers, the size of the prior-year base, conversion rates or a London-wide market estimate.
Rune Sovndahl, the company’s chief executive, said more operators were asking for monitoring, inspections and preventive measures before an environmental-health visit. That is the company’s interpretation of its customer activity, rather than evidence establishing a broader change in food-business behaviour.
Why does the company link the trend to redevelopment?
Fantastic Services said it records its highest volume of commercial pest-control work around Stratford, Newham, Wembley Park and Brent, with Canary Wharf, Barking Riverside and Canning Town next. It said construction, excavation and redevelopment can disturb underground pest harbourage and move rodents and other pests into nearby properties, but it did not provide area-by-area contract data connecting that explanation to the reported increase.
The company also cited reported food-hygiene enforcement cases, including a bakery penalty above £34,000 and a pub-operator penalty above £52,000. The announcement did not identify the businesses, dates, courts or enforcement records for those cases, so the figures cannot be assessed from the material released.
According to Fantastic Services, its commercial pest-control prevention services can include inspections, monitoring, treatment, proofing and written reports. The company said such reports may record findings, treatments, products used and preventive recommendations.
The item was distributed as an announcement, according to Yahoo Finance, and syndicated copies reproduce the same company announcement. Its figures therefore offer a view of one provider’s contracts and enquiries, not an independently measured indicator of hygiene enforcement, pest pressure or commercial demand in London.