As temperatures rise and restrooms start flying out of the yard with more regularity, you’ll start to experience that most insidious profit killer: Vandalism. For some reason, portable restrooms have become a favorite target of juvenile delinquents and the frequency of incidents and cost of the damage seems to rise every year.

And it’s no longer just annoying graffiti complaints that bring the units back for a scrubbing. Many PROs would yearn for the days when they simply had to remove Sharpie scribblings from their inventory. In recent years, reports of catastrophic damage of restrooms have been on the rise. Arson fires are a constant and growing problem. Vandals who forgot their matches rip off doors and panels, run over units with their trucks and push them over into rivers and lakes.

Contractors are more aggressive about seeking damage waivers to hold their customers responsible for how units are treated when in their possession. The paperwork and preaching about protecting against vandalism on work sites can be a productive solution to reducing your vandalism costs, but I’m sure you also write off plenty of damage to units over the course of a busy season.

Just in the past few months, news stories have been rife with examples of portable sanitation vandalism Consider these recent media accounts:

Rhode Island

Vandals dumped an ADA-compatible portable restroom into Carbuncle Pond and tipped over two others placed at the waterfront, causing an environmental issue and forcing the local town to pay at least $2,500 for the destroyed unit. It was found floating offshore but was a total loss. The vandalism and resulting pollution concerns caused state officials to put off a fish-stocking program at the pond. “Our mission is to maintain these special places for wildlife habitat and for the public — meaning everyone in the public — to enjoy outdoor recreation, Environmental Department spokesman Michael Healey told a local media outlet. He said targeting the restroom for disabled people was “particularly low and mean and we do not accept this behavior.”

Tennessee

Two restrooms on a construction site in Nashville were burned to the ground at a stated loss of $1,300. Fortunately in this case, a witness and a nearby security camera identified 51-year-old Charles Baldon lighting paper and starting the units on fire. Baldon was found carrying two lighters and a torch, and his jacket had burn marks on it from the fire. He was arrested on felony arson and vandalism charges.

Pennsylvania

Vandals cut through the wall of a restroom, punctured the holding tank, spilling its contents where it was placed in Clymer Township near Westfield. Police were looking for anyone who had information about the damaged unit. They reported damage was $2,000.

Wisconsin

Restrooms weren’t damaged by vandals in this case, but a federal crime was committed in units placed in Sun Prairie, near the state capitol of Madison. According to media accounts, a portable sanitation technician found piles of mail discarded in portable restrooms over a two-month period. Investigators traced the mail to U.S. Postal Service employee Steven Rosa, who admitted he went through the mail on his route looking for gift cards and cash, and stole $245. He was convicted on a charge of mail theft and sentenced to two years of probation.

Maryland

In the small town of Woodsboro near Frederick, Maryland, officials fed up with constant vandalism decided to remove two portable restrooms that had been placed at a local park. According to local news accounts, a suspected group of young vandals dumped trash in the restrooms, damaged holding tanks, kicked in doors and tipped over the units. They also pulled toilet paper from the units and threw it into trees at the park. The town was expected to have to pay $1,500 for each of the damaged toilets. In addition to the portable restrooms, vandals had done significant damage to the permanent bathrooms at the park.

THE PROBLEM IS EVERYWHERE

I’m sure you could all add your own stories to the list of vandalism complaints seen here. And It probably offers little comfort to know you are not alone in facing financial losses and spending time cleaning up after vandals. However, I hope we can somehow stem the tide of this epidemic of damages that threaten the livelihood of so many PROs.

Keep working with your customers to find ways to reduce the risk of costly vandalism. That might be through placement of units to discourage people from going on these late-night sprees. Or by utilizing security cameras that are getting better and less expensive all the time. Or by teaming with local law enforcement on more consistent patrolling and tougher enforcement when vandals are captured.

Oregon city will allow long-term restroom placements

Last year I reported on an Albany, Oregon, church that was being forced to remove a restroom it placed in its parking lot for use by homeless people and others passing by. At the time, the city was facing complaints from neighbors who didn’t want to look at the restroom in their neighborhood. Consequently they were exploring ways to restrict a temporary permit to continue offering the restroom. Their strategy was to deny long-term use of a portable restroom if it was placed within 300 feet of access to plumbing and a municipal sewer system, suggesting the church could build a permanent bathroom for the public. We all know that would be impractical, and that for this situation, a portable restroom is a perfect — and economical — solution.

At the time I stated my opinion that the city should opt for less regulation whenever possible and allow the Albany First Christian Church to use the restroom as they see fit. They were providing a necessary portable sanitation service and were monitoring the safety and conditions of the units between services by a local restroom provider. If one community can ban portable restrooms because the neighbors don’t like them, this sort of restriction could spread all over. And this would have an impact on business for all PROs.

I’m happy to report that the city pulled back from its strident position. The city council has unanimously approved an amendment to its code to allow long-term use of portable restrooms with no permit required. It’s an answered prayer for church elder Ethel Ellingson, who had advocated for keeping the portable restroom for months.

“We keep it very clean. I just feel like we have the best toilet in town,” she told the city council during its deliberations.

This may seem like an insignificant issue for PROs across the country. But it validates the importance of your work providing necessary sanitation services. If government officials cave to a few complaints from people who just don’t want to see portable restrooms, many public visitors and construction site workers will not receive necessary relief. And PROs will experience eroding profits as it becomes more difficult to put restrooms where they need to be.