The recent easing of Covid restrictions has led to warnings from experts that bed bug infestations are likely to surge in the coming weeks and months, as cities fully reopen, the weather improves and people start to travel again. This increases the likelihood of bed bugs hitchhiking from hotels and holiday accommodation back to guests’ homes causing domestic infestations which can be difficult, stressful and expensive to eradicate. Guests may also bring bed bugs with them when they travel, infesting their accommodation and potentially spreading the pests to multiple locations.
Bed bugs are adept at stowing away and concealing themselves, and with many people planning holidays in the UK and abroad, and the majority of workers returning to the office, conditions are ripe for a rise in bed bug infestations. There are also concerns that a shortage of staff in the hospitality industry means that some locations are not being checked and monitored sufficiently thoroughly to prevent bed bugs. The pests are usually transported in luggage, clothing, bedding and personal belongings like wallets and purses. Once they infest a room, they commonly hide in mattresses, bed frames, furniture, floorboards, and other suitably obscure cracks and crevices.
Hotels and other providers of holiday accommodation owe their guests a duty of care and must maintain their premises in a safe state, which includes preventing bed bug infestations and guests being injured, both physically and psychologically, by the pests. Our firm has particular expertise in bed bug bite claims, and has successfully represented hundreds of clients in these specialist claims over the years. Contact our specialist bed bug bite injury team for a free consultation if you have been bitten by bed bugs in a hotel or other commercial premises:
https://www.bartlettslaw.co.uk/bed-bug-claims/compensation-for-bed-bug-bites.html