BA Passenger Claims Airline Knew His Seat Was Bedbug-Infested

A passenger on a recent British Airways flight told a tabloid newspaper that he suffered hundreds of bedbug bites after switching seats to watch the landing with his young son.

Nearby passengers reportedly had some bad news for British Airways flyer Paul Standerwick at the end of a recent transatlantic flight from London Heathrow Airport (LHR) to Logan International Airport (BOS). He learned that there was an unfortunate reason the empty window seat he relocated to just before landing was sitting vacant.

“It wasn’t until after we landed, actually, that someone tapped me on the shoulder and said the people sitting in the seats were moved on after they complained about bed bugs,” the 36-year-old recounted to The Sun. “I thought nothing of it at the time. But about an hour later, at our hotel, these horrible, itchy bites started to appear.”

The father of two young children says he relocated so that his son could have a better view as the plane approached Boston. Standerwick says the decision to change seats caused lingering regret.

“They got really infected. Lots of pus. They were everywhere. On my neck, my back, shoulders and legs,” Standerwick said of the unpleasant and visible reaction to the bites. “Where I was bitten lots of times in one place there was what looked like large bites the size of a 50 pence piece. If I had to guess I would say I was bitten well over a hundred times. I’m still scarred. It’s horrible.”

To make matters worse, the bedbug-savaged flyer says British Airways offered only a voucher worth less than $75. Standerwick says he only contacted the newspaper after the airline declined to even apologize for his suffering.

This isn’t the first time British Airways has been accused of knowingly exposing passengers to bedbugs. In February, news broke that the airline had reportedly kept planes in service despite written crew reports of bedbug infestations.

“We have said sorry to our customers for their experience and appreciate it must have been upsetting,” British Airways officials told the newspaper in a statement. “We work hard to provide the best possible experience for customers on our flights and we’re sorry that on this occasion we haven’t met our customer’s expectations. The aircraft was taken out of service and thoroughly fumigated and checked before it was put back into service. There have been no further reports of this nature.”

[Photo: WIKIMEDIA COMMONS]