Kilter Termite and Pest Control Review

Weights add to 100% without the factors marked N/A. How the adjustments work

How we review companies Handshake Score v1.5.0 (rules v1.0.7, confidence v1.2.1)

“In score” marks the profiles counted in the customer-satisfaction factor.

In reviewers’ words

Quoted verbatim, up to 300 characters, as recorded by our researchers with the reviewer’s first name and last initial at most. Low and high ratings are shown alternately.

Profile scope: CA only: headquarters file for Kilter Termite & Pest Control (Temecula, California), covering the headquarters and its corporate-owned locations (BBB: “corporate-owned locations”); every office on the company’s own locations page is in California

Scored: Complaint record

Complaint themes

• Inspection paid for ($399) but not carried out; slow call-backs (1 complaint, April 7, 2025, resolved with a business response)

BBB profiles

• Main profile · A+View

• Branch profile · not accredited · 1 complaint in 3 yearsView

  Long Beach file (“View Headquarters” link; BBB rating A+, “BBB Accreditation: None”; managers listed as Aaron Cunningham, Owner, and William Doval, Advertising Manager; “Will D., Manager” signs Kilter’s own review replies). It shows the same 1 complaint / 0 in 12 months and the same 3.4 from 5 reviews as the headquarters file, but lists no complaint or review text (“There are no matching results”), so it is read as mirroring the headquarters file and counted once, not added. Whether the one complaint is the same as the headquarters one is not shown.

Door-to-door sales: N/A

N/A: the research didn’t establish door-to-door selling. It isn’t proof that the company never knocks.

No door-to-door evidence found. The company careers page lists a licensed termite inspector, rodent crew technician, customer service representative, applicator trainee and carpenter and no commission sales or canvassing role; no BBB or Angi/HomeAdvisor review describes a rep at the door; the d2d search returned no Kilter hit. Customers describe a free-inspection, inspector-quoted model (a testimonial on the company site mentions “our salesman”). A snippet-only Indeed result lists an “Appointment Generator” job title page for the company; no posting was read. Not enough to call it either way, so “unknown”.

Contract terms and pricing

• Pest Shield plan (monthly billing, $52/month after a $156 initial charge): “Can I really cancel my service anytime? Yes.” The company says a signed agreement is on file only for the recurring auto pay and that every Kilter Pest Control agreement says you may cancel anytime.⁹

  “Can I really cancel my service anytime? Yes. We want to earn your long-term business, not use a contract to force you to stay. The only reason we require a signed agreement on file is the recurring auto pay. We need the agreement to show you approved the charges, but every Kilter Pest Control agreement says you may cancel anytime.”

• Pest Shield “Are there any other charges I should be aware of?”: “No, our pricing is completely transparent.” Initial charge $156, monthly cost $52.⁹

  “Are there any other charges I should be aware of? No, our pricing is completely transparent. Your initial charge is based on your needs. If it just standard pest control, then your initial charge is $156, and your monthly cost is $52.”

• Standard residential pest control is quoted as $95 every 3 months “with an annual agreement”; a one-time service is $199; a monthly service plan is $69/month.⁹

  “Generally, our standard residential pest control is $95 every 3 months with an annual agreement, we also offer a one time pest blast for $199”

• Monthly service plan is $69/month.⁹

  “you’d need to sign up for our Monthly service plan, which is $69/month.”

• Termite treatments carry a 2-year warranty that covers the whole home, not only the treated area.⁹

  “YOUR WHOLE HOME IS UNDER WARRANTY FOR 2 FULL YEARS!!”

• Termite warranty renewal is an optional annual extension (generally $325-$500); the company calls, texts and emails starting 45 days before the due date, and the warranty extends 1 year once the renewal fee is processed. No automatic renewal or automatic charge is stated.¹⁰

  “A: It varies depending on your original treatment and coverage but generally $325 - $500.”

• Rodent work is under a 2-year warranty, extendable through the “Pest + plan”.⁹

  “We have the best rodent warranty in the business: YOUR HOME IS UNDER WARRANTY FOR 2 FULL YEARS!”

• Free termite and rodent inspections; the company site describes a signed agreement for services. No full service agreement, terms of service, arbitration clause or cancellation-channel text is published (the site privacy policy has no arbitration language).¹¹

  “FREE INSPECTION With our free Home Inspection*, our licensed inspectors will fully inspect your home and make recommendations for service.”

Status and expiry dates are shown exactly as the issuing agency’s record showed them on the date retrieved.

Only resolved government actions count toward the score. Pending lawsuits, allegations and private matters are listed here but marked “N/A” (not counted in the score). Summaries are our researchers’ wording of the source; allegations are allegations, not findings.

• April 7, 2025 · BBB (headquarters file, Temecula, California) · Complaint summaryScored: Complaint record

  One BBB complaint in the last 3 years (0 in the last 12 months): a customer paid $399 for a warranty inspection that she says was not performed, and said call-backs were not returned for three months; the business replied that it was a miscommunication and completed the inspection and a service call. Status: Resolved. The Long Beach branch file shows the same totals and no complaint text.^{25, 27}

• December 16, 2015 · California Structural Pest Control Board (Department of Consumer Affairs) · EnforcementN/A

  Accusation, Case No. 2016-3, filed July 13, 2015 by the SPCB Registrar against Kilter Termite and Pest Control (company registration PR 2272, branch offices BR 4912, 4962 and 5284) and qualifying manager Gregory S. McKendall (OPR 10496). Alleged: failure to file wood-destroying-organism (WDO) inspection and completion reports (the Board’s audit counted 7,707 activities not submitted), failure to submit monthly pesticide-use reports and to register with the Orange, San Bernardino, Los Angeles and Riverside county agricultural commissioners, and failure to supervise the branches. Outcome: on December 16, 2015 the Board adopted a Stipulated Settlement and Disciplinary Order as its Decision and Order, effective January 15, 2016. The respondents admitted the truth of each charge; the registrations and operator license were revoked, the revocation stayed, and the respondents placed on probation for three years (quarterly reports, random inspections at the respondents’ cost, a 4-hour rules-and-regulations course for the qualifying manager), with a five-day suspension unless a $1,000 civil penalty was paid before the effective date, a $2,000 surety bond as a condition of restoration, and $3,196.58 in cost recovery. Whether the penalty was paid, and whether probation was completed or extended, is not shown. The decision is more than 10 years old, so it is recorded but not scored.^{6, 29}

  Dates: accusation filed July 13, 2015, stipulation signed September 15, 2015, decision ordered December 16, 2015, effective January 15, 2016. Measured from any of these dates the matter is more than 10 years before October 28, 2026, so it falls outside both legal and regulatory record windows (5 and 10 years) and nothing is scored. The 3-year probation ran from January 15, 2016 (to about January 2019 unless extended); the registrations and the operator license are Active in the October 1, 2026 file, and the DCA detail page that would show discipline status is behind a Turnstile check, so completion of probation is not confirmed. The PDF text shows the cost figure as “$3, 196.58” (a text-layer spacing artifact). In 2015 BR 4912 was at 10148 Artesia Place, Bellflower and BR 4962 and BR 5284 were in Temecula; the 2026 file lists BR 4912 and BR 4962 at the Temecula address (BR 5284 is not in the file).

• May 22, 2014 · California Structural Pest Control Board and county agricultural commissioners (Los Angeles, San Diego, Riverside, Orange) · EnforcementN/A

  The same accusation lists 15 earlier citations to the company between 2006 and 2014, each recorded as complied with: SPCB citations for false advertising ($2,500, March 7, 2006; $750 in 2007; $3,500 in 2009), performing or soliciting beyond scope of license, failure to exterminate a drywood infestation ($200, 2007), and failure to file WDO inspection reports ($2,813 in 2007, $2,500 in 2010 and 2012), plus county agricultural commissioner citations for pesticide-use report and county-notification failures ($50 to $1,100). The latest, an Orange County $50 citation, is dated May 22, 2014.⁶

  Context only. 15 citations counted in paragraphs 25-39 of the accusation, each stated as complied with.

Workplace score: N/A. It carries 10% of the Handshake Score when at least 20 employee reviews are on file (otherwise excluded and remaining weights renormalized).

Awards and certifications

• BBB Accredited Business (headquarters file; accredited since 6/11/2025), Better Business Bureau, 2025³

  Source shown; issuer check not recorded

What the company says about itself

These are the company’s own claims, quoted from its materials. We haven’t verified them.

• Operating since 1992 in Southern California; “start-up garage in Tustin” grew into a company the site says is recognized as one of the top 100 termite and pest control companies in the United States.⁵

• Awards and accolades page shows badges labeled “Angi 2025”, “Google Guaranteed”, “Best of OC 2025”, “Blue seal”, “Escondido Chamber of Commerce” and “2-year warranty”. Not verified on any issuer’s site.³⁷

• “Our company and all technicians are licensed and insured in CA.”⁹

• Every Kilguard service comes with a two-year warranty.⁵

• Footprint: the company serves Orange, Los Angeles, San Diego and Riverside counties in California only (no office outside CA found).⁸

• “One of the highest rated and fastest growing pest control companies in the USA.”⁹

Mentions

• Kilter Termite and Pest Control blog (company-authored) · Award · February 16, 2016 · Positive toneRead

  Super Service Award Winner 2015 – Kilter Termite and Pest Control

  The company announces that Angie’s List gave it its 2015 Super Service Award, quoting Angie Hicks that only about 5 percent of Los Angeles termite and pest companies earn it. Company-authored; not checked on Angi’s own site.

  “Kilter Termite and Pest Control has earned the service industry’s coveted Angie’s List Super Service Award, reflecting an exemplary year of service”

• Pest Control Technology (PCT) · Trade press · May 23, 2016 · Positive toneRead

  New to the List: Customer Service Award Validates Kilter's Hard Work

  PCT profile of the company’s service award, naming Greg McKendall as president and founder. The article body did not load in the capture, so the item rests on the search snippet.

  “Greg McKendall, president and founder of Kilter Termite and Pest Control, a 25-year-old company based in the city of Orange, Calif., is”

• r/longbeach · Reddit · Date not shown · Negative toneRead

  Experience with Kilter? Feel like we got scammed…

  A Long Beach thread whose title alleges a scam after a Kilter termite treatment. Only the title and a fragment appear in the search result; the thread and comments were not read, so no claim in it is relied on.

  “Experience with Kilter termite treatment.”

• r/Termites · Reddit · Date not shown · Positive toneRead

  Kilter Termite and Pest Control, Southern California

  A commenter says they use Kilter for termites and quarterly pest control and that it shows up. Search-snippet only.

  “I love Kilter Termite. We use them for termites and quarterly pest control. Good prices and always show up which is rare for companies these”

Reddit hasn’t been searched for this company yet.

7 locations on file in California (7).

Overall confidence in this score: Medium, 6 of 11 points.

What keeps it from rating higher:

• 2,337 western US Google reviews behind customer satisfaction (3,000 or more earns a point; 10,000 or more earns full points).
• 13 independent websites cited (25 or more earns a point).
• Verifier rated the customer reviews medium (high earns a point).

How confidence is set

Gaps in the record

• All the same business (name, website, address). A Los Angeles listing (5405 Wilshire Blvd, 4.0 from 4, unclaimed) was added because the company lists that office.
• Newport Beach (260 Newport Center Dr, Ste 100) is on the company’s locations page (re-read live October 28, 2026) but not on its footer office list, and has no Google listing found; a Yelp search snippet labels it CLOSED.
• Yelp (San Diego 166 reviews, plus Orange, Escondido, Temecula, Los Angeles, Torrance, Huntington Beach and Newport Beach pages), Facebook (kilterpest), Indeed and Glassdoor were not fetched because their terms forbid automated access. Only search snippets exist; nothing from them is scored. Indeed 3.4 from 50 reviews and Glassdoor 10 reviews are snippet-only, so Workplace has no scored input.
• Mirrored ratings (MapQuest, Yahoo Local, pestcontrolreviews.com, Customer Lobby solicited reviews) were seen in search results only and are not used.
• Angi shows a Huntington Beach profile (4.4, 235 per an Angi list page) and a Yucca Valley profile; both profile pages timed out three times, so they were not read. Huntington Beach, Torrance and a Sepulveda Blvd Los Angeles address appear only on Yelp/MapQuest snippets and not on the company’s current office list.
• Trustpilot, Thumbtack, Porch and Nextdoor: no Kilter profile found in the searches run.
• BBB: the headquarters file (Temecula) and the Long Beach branch file (separate local BBB: Los Angeles & Silicon Valley; ‘View Headquarters’ link; not accredited) both show 1 complaint in 3 years / 0 in 12 months and 3.4 from 5 reviews (re-read October 28, 2026); the Long Beach file lists no complaint or review text, so whether its complaint is the same one is not shown (counted once; a second complaint would leave complaint record in the same band). BBB branch pages for San Diego and Escondido (snippets) were not opened. The headquarters main-profile page timed out twice on the October 28, 2026 re-read.
• California Secretary of State entity status for “Kilter Home Services Inc”: bizfile Online and OpenCorporates are behind human-verification checks (OpenCorporates served a “Checking your browser” page), so the registry status is not verified. The legal name comes from the FMCSA record (USDOT 2763404) and the BBB alternate name.
• SPCB: the DCA license search is blocked, so licensing is from the October 1, 2026 bulk file (no discipline column, no insurance field). Whether probation was completed is not shown. The SPCB was not contacted. CSLB: the contractor-license name search could not be read (the page redirected to the form), so no CSLB license for the company (Angi lists the Contractors State License Board as a trade affiliation) was verified; the company site advertises no CSLB number.
• The company’s county registrations (Food and Agricultural Code 15204) were not looked up.
• Litigation and regulators: CourtListener (“Kilter Termite”) returned no results; the California Attorney General news search (body_value=Kilter) returned nothing; searches for lawsuits, settlements, district attorney and OSHA/wage matters returned no Kilter result. State superior-court dockets and Cal/OSHA (human-check) were not searched.
• Contract terms: the company publishes FAQ statements only; the signed service agreement, terms of service and cancellation channel are not published. Arbitration, auto-renewal and the cancellation channel are unknown.
• Door-to-door: no evidence found either way (see the sales notes).
• No office outside California found: the company site lists only California offices, and the search for Kilter with Arizona, Nevada or Texas returned no Kilter result.
• Reviews beyond the first 25 on either page were not read.

Open questions

• Whether the 2016-2019 probation was completed or extended, and whether the $1,000 civil penalty was paid before January 15, 2016 (the DCA detail page is behind a Turnstile check).
• Why HomeAdvisor shows 200 reviews against Angi Escondido 192 (reviews past the first 25 were not compared; Angi and HomeAdvisor terms restrict automated access).
• Yelp, Indeed and Glassdoor ratings (automated tools forbidden) and the Newport Beach status (Yelp snippet says closed) remain unconfirmed.