Increased international travel volumes have seen hotel bedbug infestations in the UK skyrocket by a whopping 278% over the last few years.
The unwelcome creatures have targeted not just hotels, though. The BBC News website recently reported on a whole block of flats in Brighton where people’s homes had become infested with bedbugs.
Bedbugs were reportedly found at the Westminster headquarters of the Home Office, too, whilst an article in the Metro claims NHS trusts across London had to call in pest control experts to deal with bed bug infestations no less than 500 times over the last 7 years.
Bedbugs come out at night to feast on the blood of their chosen victims, who are, more often than not, humans, leaving painful bites in their wake.
If you have suffered bedbug bite injuries through no fault of your own, you may be entitled to bring a bedbug bite claim to recover compensation for pain, suffering, and loss of amenity and to cover any financial losses.
What are the symptoms of bedbug bites?
The mere mention of bedbugs has most of us scratching ourselves silly (and there’s a scientific term for that – it’s called ‘psychogenic itching’). However, bedbug bites can sometimes have more severe consequences than making the victim itch for a while. Some bite victims end up requiring hospital treatment in the form of corticosteroids, antibiotics and antihistamine injections.
Examples of the types of issues bedbug bites cause include the following:
- Severe and persistent itching.
- Swelling and inflammation
- Infection
- Allergic reactions may manifest themselves in hives or blisters.
- Psychological harm, such as extreme embarrassment over scarring or an inability to get to sleep through fear of being bitten again
When should you see a doctor if bedbugs have bitten you?
The medical advice is to see a healthcare professional if:
- There are signs of infection: If the bites become tender, ooze pus, or show signs of infection, contact your GP’s surgery.
- You suffer an allergic reaction: Get immediate medical attention if you experience difficulty breathing, throat or mouth swelling, or widespread hives.
What warning signs indicate that bedbugs may be present in hotels, B&Bs, or holiday rental apartments?
Here are the common signs of bedbugs to look for in hotels, B&Bs, or holiday rental apartments:
- Blood Stains: Look for small reddish-brown stains on sheets or mattresses, which may occur when bedbugs are crushed after feeding.
- Faecal Matter: Small black dots or smears on bedding, mattresses, or nearby furniture indicate bedbug droppings.
- Shed Skins: Bedbugs shed their skins as they grow, so finding these casings suggests an infestation.
- Live Bugs: Spotting actual bedbugs, which are small, wingless, and reddish-brown in colour, is a clear indication of an infestation.
- Bite Marks: Bedbug bites often appear as tiny red welts on the skin, typically in a line or cluster, and can be itchy.
What should you do if you suspect your room may be infested by bedbugs?
You can sometimes prevent being affected by bedbugs when you visit a hotel or other types of overnight accommodation by carrying out a few checks before you unpack
- Unpleasant Odour: A musty or sweet odour in the room may indicate the room is infested with bedbugs.
- Hiding Places: Check common hiding spots for bedbugs, such as:
- Folds and seams of mattresses
- Bed frames and headboards
- Behind wallpaper or in cracks and crevices
- Upholstered furniture and bedside tables
- Skirting boards
Even if you don’t get bitten by bedbugs during your stay, before leaving the accommodation, inspect your luggage and personal items for any signs of bedbugs so you don’t take any of these unwanted visitors home with you.
Am I eligible to make a bedbug bite claim?
You may be eligible to bring a bedbug bite claim if you received bedbug bites during a stay at a hotel, B&B, Airbnb or other holiday rental apartment or house.
Equally, if you are a tenant living in council or privately owned property and have sustained bedbug bite injuries because of bedbugs in the building, you could have a bedbug bite claim.
Hotel owners, landlords, and private property owners have a duty to ensure their buildings are bedbug-free. Should evidence of bedbugs be found on their property, the owners must call in pest control experts urgently.
To do this, you need to prove bedbugs infested the property you stayed in and that the injuries you suffered from being bitten were due to someone else’s negligence, i.e., the property owners or management.
If the incident occurred at any of these types of accommodation whilst you were on a package holiday abroad, you may be able to claim against the travel company.
The other party must have breached their duty of care to you whilst you stayed at the accommodation.
The accommodation owners owe you a duty of care to take reasonable precautions against a bedbug infestation. They may have breached their duty of care if they fail to regularly hoover the room, change the bed linen, and implement pest control measures. If you suffer bed bites due to this breach of duty, you will have reasonable chances of successfully bringing a personal injury claim for bed bug bites.
You must have suffered harm as a result.
The harm caused by bedbug bites can be both physical, such as painful welts, or scars and psychological, such as a fear of staying in hotels in the future.
Against whom can I bring a bedbug bite claim against?
Most bedbug bite claims are brought against the owners of hotels and other holiday accommodations but claims against private or social housing landlords are not uncommon.
As already mentioned, if the accident happened overseas at a hotel or other accommodation as part of a travel holiday package, you may be able to bring a claim against the holiday travel company.
What evidence do I need to prove my bedbug bite claim?
Bedbug bite claims can be tricky to prove. For example, when you claim against a hotel, the management might argue that the bugs found their way into the affected room in your luggage and that the hotel is not at fault. So, the more evidence you can gather to support your case, the stronger it will be.
Examples of the types of evidence that can assist you in proving your bedbug bite claim include the following:
- Dated photographs of your bites and any blood or droppings on the bedsheets. Severe bites obtained early in your stay may support the assertion that the bedbugs were already in the bedlinen when you arrived since even if you were carrying a rogue bug in your luggage, a lone creature is unlikely to cause severe injury in a short timeframe. Even if that bedbug laid an egg, the baby bugs wouldn’t hatch for 6-10 days. Dated photographs (such as those taken on your phone) will show the extent of your bites and prove the date you sustained them.
- Details of your complaint to the hotel or whoever else was responsible. You should immediately make those accountable for bedbugs in your room aware of the issue. If you are at a hotel, speak to the front desk receptionist or other staff member, ask to fill in an incident form, and keep a copy. It’s a good idea to make a note of any conversations you have with hotel staff as soon after they take place as possible since memories fade over time. A contemporary record can be invaluable in jogging your memory and will support your case.
- Medical records Should your bites have been severe enough to warrant medical attention, there will be a written record of your attendance, what symptoms were apparent, and any advice or treatment provided or recommended. If you later decide to bring a personal injury claim, ask the GP surgery or hospital where you were examined for a copy of the medical records.
If you don’t have all the evidence listed above, don’t worry. Your personal injury solicitor will assist in gathering the evidence required. If your claim has reasonable prospects of success, they will also arrange a medical examination with an appropriate medical professional.
What compensation am I entitled to if my bedbug claim succeeds?
With personal injury cases like bedbug bite claims, the amount of compensation you can expect to recover from the insurers of the hotel or other establishment where the bedbug bites took place will vary, often significantly.
In more minor injury personal injury claims for bedbug bites, the injuries might bring short-term irritation and discomfort. However, the discomfort may have been enough to ruin your holiday or stay.
In such cases, you can expect to recover in the region of several thousand pounds in compensation to include damages for your injury plus an amount to cover the loss of enjoyment of your holiday, possibly several thousand pounds.
Where the bites result in more serious injuries, which may include, in worst-case scenarios, lasting, visible scarring and ensuing psychological issues, compensation recovered at court or by negotiation can run into tens of thousands of pounds.
It is hard to generalise how much compensation you will get if you suffer bedbug bite injuries. Only when your solicitor has received a full medical report from a medical expert will they be able to start advising you on how much you could receive.
To speak to one of Mooneerams Solicitors experienced team about making a personal injury claim for bedbug bites, call us, obligation-free, on 029 2048 3615. They will advise you about the claims process and how we can help. If you then decide you would like us to start a bedbug injury claim for you, we can, in most cases, handle bedbug claims on a No Win No Fee basis.
Is there a time limit for bringing my bedbug claim?
There is a time limit for bringing a bedbug bite injury claim. The time limit is known as the ‘limitation period’. The limitation period for personal injury claims is three years from the date of the incident in which you sustained the injury or the date you became aware of it.
In the case of bedbug bite claims, these two dates are likely to be the same or, at most, within a couple of days of each other since the bites are immediately apparent.
However, psychological injuries may manifest themselves sometime later, so it is not always straightforward to work out when the limitation period starts.
Regardless of the merits of your case, you cannot pursue a claim if it isn’t started in time, so it’s vital you get in touch with an experienced firm of personal injury solicitors such as Mooneerams as soon as possible.
At Mooneerams, we specialise in acting for personal injury claimants. It’s all we do, so our experience and expertise are second to none.
We act for most of our clients on a No Win No Fee basis, so you can pursue the compensation you are entitled to without worrying about legal costs.
