Some of the damages that a tenant may be entitled to if he or she is injured because of wrongful exposure to toxic mold, including: medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost wages, and rent abatement. However, before an injured party can state a valid claim for personal injury damages, it must be determined that the mold found in the property is pathogenic (harmful to humans).
Toxic molds are sometimes referred to by environmental and medical professionals as “pathogenic fungi.” Of the thousands of identified molds, there are only about 25-50 that are consistently referred to as toxic or pathogenic. Among those are:
- Penicillium notatum
- Cladosporium herbarum
- Aspergillus fumigatus
- Candida albicans
- Botrytis cinerea
- Aspergillus versicolor
- Penicillium roqueforti
- Aspergillus flavus
- Aspergillus niger
- Chaetomium globosum
- Stachybotrys chartarum
