Woman who claims she was covered in bed bug bites after being attacked by the critters in Premier Inn hotel room wins £312 in compensation

• Vicky Hills claimed she was bitten by bed bugs at a Premier Inn hotel
• She was covered in bites after she stayed in Hastings, East Sussex, in August

A woman who claims she was left covered in bed bug bites after being attacked by the critters in a Premier Inn hotel room has won £312 in compensation.

Vicky Hills, who was staying in a Premier Inn hotel in Hastings, East Sussex, said she noticed bite marks on her legs that were ‘incredibly itchy’.

Ms Hills, from Dunstable, Bedfordshire, originally thought they were mosquito bites but a GP told her they were from bed bugs and prescribed her antibiotics.

After contacting the hotel, the £78 she paid for her room was refunded within ten days, but compensation for her medication, new bedding and big traps took nearly two months to be paid.

But now Premier Inn has apologised to Ms Hills and repaid her £312.

Vicky Hills claims she was left covered in bed bug bites after being attacked by the critters

Fears in the UK have grown on the back of a reported outbreak of bed bugs in France 

The rise in bed bugs could be due to the increase in travel after the covid-19 lockdowns

Ms Hills said she first noticed the bite marks on her legs when driving home after staying at the hotel on August 10.

‘They were incredibly itchy, incredibly painful. I had two lines up the front of my leg and then I started getting them on my shoulder and arms,’ she told BBC News.

She then went to a pharmacist who told her the bites could be from bed bugs, which a GP confirmed and prescribed her antibiotics.

Ms Hills then threw out her bedding at home and bought bug traps to make sure they didn’t spread in her home.

She said she’s been left with some scarring from the bug bites but she hopes they will soon fade away.

Fears in the UK have grown on the back of a reported outbreak of bed bugs in France.

The French Government has held crisis meetings and are battling to get the bugs under control before it hosts the 2024 Olympics

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said the issue was a ‘real source of concern’ and TfL officials are already in conversation with the Parisian Metro over what ‘lessons could be learnt’. 

Data released by pest-control company Rentokil in September showed that from 2022 to 2023, the UK saw a 65 per cent increase in bed bug infestations.

Experts have warned the rise in bed bugs could be due to the increase in travel after the covid-19 lockdowns. 

Bedbugs had largely disappeared from daily life in developed countries by the 1950s but have made a return in the past 30 years.

The causes include growing resistance to insecticides, an increase in public travel and a rising proclivity for second-hand goods.

Bed bugs spread by making their way into clothing or luggage, meaning people can unwittingly help them hitch-hike between locations and start a fresh outbreak. They can also crawl between rooms in hotels and blocks of flats.

They quickly reproduce, with each female bug laying one to seven eggs per day after feeding and up to 250 in their 10-month lifespan. They can survive for weeks to months without feeding.

Professional help is needed to fully eradicate an infestation, with experts recommending a heat pod treatment that heats infested rooms and belongings to 50C (122F) for a couple of hours.

Pest control firms have reported being inundated with calls about infestations in recent months

A spokesperson for Premier Inn said: ‘We have rigorous processes in place to both react to and prevent issues on the rare occasion they do arise. 

‘As soon as our team were aware of this complaint the room was put on lockdown and independent experts immediately called in to resolve the issue using a specialist treatment, with no further cases reported. 

‘We’ve apologised to the guest and are glad to have been able to resolve the issue to her satisfaction.’

READ MORE: 

Bed bugs may already be in your home – here’s how to check for them

I was covered in a HUNDRED bedbug bites after trip to Benidorm – my doctor had never seen so many on one person 

 Why LOCKDOWNS may be to blame for bed bug plague

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