Bed Bugs

Old Jan 24, 2019, 2:46 pm
  #1  
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Bed Bugs

In my travels last week I stayed at 3 Marriott FL properties, Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday. Three different hotels three different Marriott Brands. On Friday last week I noticed a couple small bite like bumps but thought nothing of it. Through this week they got worse and I looked up BB images and felt pretty sure they had got me. I called the hotel I suspected and left a message for the GM which was returned very quickly.
She and the chief engineer had inspected the room and found nothing but they were having their environmental specialist come in for a more thorough inspection. I received a call back about an hour ago and they did find small bed bugs in the bed, nowhere else in the room and the specialist doubts they would have traveled anywhere else in the room.
The GM has started a claim with Marriott in my behalf and says I should receive a call within 2-3 days. The GM has been very responsive and thanked me for contacting her directly and heading off a larger potential issue at her hotel. They have credited my stay and all in all have been very pleasant.
Does anyone know what happens next with this type of claim? The GM said that Marriott will be responsible for anything I may have to get done but I'm wondering how long this responsibility stands?
My wife is pretty much freaking out and has started washing everything I've come in touch with ( including I fear the dog) , asking if we should get a hotel room.....................
Has anyone gone through this and what was your experience with the bugs and Marriott?

Thanks
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Old Jan 24, 2019, 3:27 pm
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Cant comment on how Marriott handles this as anytime I find bed bugs I deal directly with the hotel. Last time I netted 50,000 points for a one night stay which I was very happy with

for future stays check the bed. Lift up the sheets and pull apart the seems. If you see black dots take a pic and go to reception demanding a new room. Try asking for points too as bed bugs are disgusting and hotels should do a better job checking their rooms

I have to say Im shocked the hotel admitted fault here. On two earlier occasions before I got smart about this issue the hotel staff would pull the we called a specialist and they found nothing line and we never had bed bugs even though I could pick up the shell of the bug pre running away.

Do do yourself a favor now you have suffered this event. Buy a bed bug oven, amazon sells them for about $100. Peace and mind you dont bring them home. If you heat a bed bug to 120 degrees it dies in 60 seconds
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Old Jan 24, 2019, 6:06 pm
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The first thing my wife and I do upon entering a hotel room is a bedbug check with flashlights, stripping the corners of sheets and blankets and mattress covers. We've discovered some gross stuff, and even bugs, but thankfully no bedbugs.

I'm just chiming in on handling the bedbugs. Bag everything you took, clothes, suitcase, books, jackets. This won't kill them but will keep them from spreading. They could die in 5-6 months, but a year is more the outside limit for life in a bag. Heating everything as Nuhusky recommends can kill them, your dryer would work too. You can also bag your mattress, to remove a place where they like to live.

One of my closest friends had a bedbug nightmare, but she didn't bring them home -- her coop building had an infestation, and it appeared the bedbugs were traveling up and down the ventilation system that connected the units. It was horrible.
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Old Jan 24, 2019, 6:46 pm
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Originally Posted by Nuhusky
I have to say Im shocked the hotel admitted fault here. On two earlier occasions before I got smart about this issue the hotel staff would pull the we called a specialist and they found nothing line and we never had bed bugs even though I could pick up the shell of the bug pre running away.
You may be shocked; but I'm quite impressed. This is the kind of GM Marriott needs more of.
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Old Jan 24, 2019, 7:25 pm
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Bagging my clothes and suitcase is going to be difficult as I didnt realize I had been bitten until I returned home and washed some clothes and put some away. The suitcase sat on the bed in the guest room till today since I didnt put it all together until today.
ive checked the suitcase ( shaking and slamming it down on a white sheet) and have seen nothing. My wife has been washing everything since I told her and will probably continue through the weekend.
I guess Im waiting to hear from Marriott claims but plan to pursue some type of compensation. As I said, they credited my room but that only saves my Co. money.
Probably all in my head but man I feel itchy even where Ive not been bitten.
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Old Jan 24, 2019, 7:31 pm
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Bagging my clothes and suitcase is going to be difficult as I didnt realize I had been bitten until I returned home and washed some clothes and put some away. The suitcase sat on the bed in the guest room till today since I didnt put it all together until today.
ive checked the suitcase ( shaking and slamming it down on a white sheet) and have seen nothing. My wife has been washing everything since I told her and will probably continue through the weekend.
I guess Im waiting to hear from Marriott claims but plan to pursue some type of compensation. As I said, they credited my room but that only saves my Co. money.
Probably all in my head but man I feel itchy even where Ive not been bitten.
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Old Jan 24, 2019, 7:31 pm
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BTW. The GM has been very responsive and good to deal with.
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Old Jan 24, 2019, 8:03 pm
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Can I ask what area of FL this was in? I understand not wanting to disclose the exact property but I am curious if it's one in an area where I was staying recently.

I have stayed at the same property twice in the last two weeks, also in Florida. I too noticed I had a few very small bites in the time between the first and second stays that I couldn't identify and I too thought nothing of it. That is until last night when I found a bed bug on the edge of my bed at home. I immediately sealed it in a sample bottle, removed all of the bedding and washed and dried at the highest possible temperatures for both. Same with all of my clothes that I had worn in that time frame. Today I tore apart the room and sprayed Ortho in all of the places recommended in the directions and have searched the entire room for any sign of any infestation or any other bug and have turned up nothing at all. Additionally I completely emptied and sprayed the exterior of both pieces of luggage I had on both trips and set them outside to dry. I have yet to find any other indication that there are any more than the single one I found, however for the time being I am sleeping in a different room.

My theory is that the one bug hitched a ride back home with me on one of my pieces of luggage after the first stay and then exited onto my bed or floor nearby at some point before the second stay (I often place the bags on or near the bed and slowly unpack/wear the things I didn't use on the trip). In all the decades I have traveled and the many years I've lived where I do, I have never had any experience with bed bugs so I'm not really sure how realistic this possibly is. I suppose it's also possible that I could have picked it up in the rental car on that first trip, though I feel like that's considerably less likely. I find it very hard to believe it would have originated from my own home though, given the timeline and the fact that I've never had a bed bug here before.
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Old Jan 24, 2019, 9:13 pm
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There have been some reports of bedbug infestation on aircraft.
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Old Jan 24, 2019, 9:26 pm
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Originally Posted by tuono07
Has anyone gone through this and what was your experience with the bugs and Marriott?
Thanks
With Starwood I did. Got in late and went right to bed. Woke up with 2 baby bed bugs on the pillow next to me, but luckily I hadn't unpacked and wasn't bitten.

Hotel had Orkin confirm that day. They then dry cleaned all my stuff at their cost and steamed all my suitcases.

They gave me 90,000 SPG points in lieu of refunding the stay (but offered that first).

When I found a brown bug on my home mattress, I reached back out and they paid for Orrin to treat my home for bed bugs.

Having said that, I had stayed at this hotel for months for work and brought multiple co-workers with me. Easily brought in tens of thousands for the property by the time this happened - so this could have affected how they handled me.

Given how responsible and accommodating they were I continued staying with them and didn't have any other problems at home or at that hotel, but falling asleep for a few weeks after wasn't the easiest.
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Old Jan 24, 2019, 11:15 pm
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Originally Posted by btonkid12345
Given how responsible and accommodating they were I continued staying with them and didn't have any other problems at home or at that hotel, but falling asleep for a few weeks after wasn't the easiest.
Which hotel?
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Old Jan 24, 2019, 11:50 pm
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Ive seen kits you can buy online, with special lights and bedbug magnifiers. I've never purchased one, but I've been tempted as the thought of bedbugs terrifies me.
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Old Jan 25, 2019, 12:03 am
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I had the pleasure of being bitten by bedbugs in January 2015 at a Novotel in France. I didn't realize it immediately and the little .......s hitched a ride home with me back to Switzerland.
They infested my bed and I needed to hire a professional exterminator to eliminate the problem. After spending 2500 CHF plus the cost of a new bed and mattress, the problem went away.
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Old Jan 25, 2019, 1:09 am
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I went through the process with Marriott about two years ago and have nothing but positive things to say about how their central insurance/risk management team handled the situation. As you said, they confirmed within 24 hours that the bedbugs were present - although in my case I had photographic evidence and checked out of the hotel as a result, so it wasnt exactly controversial.

Compensation (other than obviously comping the stay) will be a negotiation, but I feel I was treated fairly in the final reckoning. If you feel your bites are bad enough to warrant medical care, seeking that ASAP will be a good idea so you have documentation of that. Pest control for your home, if necessary, will also likely be on offer. Once all the expenses are known they will move on to figuring out numbers. Points and cash are both possible, so if you value one more than the other, think about that in advance.

I suspect they are generous and fair in this process because treating a guest well beats getting lawyers involved for everyone. Still, I was impressed by the professionalism.

On a practical level, the best way to deal with possibly brining bedbugs home is not dry cleaning or other surface cleanings, its heat treatment. I bought a ZappBug oven and it works well, although their stock thermometer is junk and you should buy your own. Bury it deep in your stuff and make sure the whole object gets up to 130 degrees as per the manual, not just the exterior. Great peace of mind though, and not even very expensive... combine that with the bed leg bug traps that elevate your bed using a platform they cant climb and you should be home free. Of bugs.
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Old Jan 25, 2019, 7:06 am
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Their are attorneys that also specialize in these types of cases, just in case you feel you are t being treated fairly. Youll find a few with a google search.
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