I used Booking.com to book a bed at Safestay Holland Park hostel on a work trip to London this month. Arriving at midnight, I discovered bedbugs crawling on the mattress, pillow and walls. Staff moved me to another building, which was also infested. I spent the night awake at reception.
Exhaustion forced me to take a dawn train home, costing a new ticket and my freelance fee as I was unable to work. I also had to buy new clothes and do multiple wash cycles to avoid bringing the infestation back with me.
My expenses came to £265. I’ve since read dozens of comments on review websites reporting bedbugs at the same hostel and similar complaints about three of the other five UK Safestay hostels.
After I filed a formal report, Kensington and Chelsea council enforced pest control treatment. The hostel manager offered £250 compensation but I’m still waiting, while Booking.com has not replied to my complaint. There were other guests left in my infested room without any action taken. There seems a systemic failure of safety and corporate responsibility.
MF, Exeter
There are graphic reports on review websites going back to 2022, including from guests who stayed at the Holland Park hostel before and after you did. Accommodation providers are legally required to ensure rooms are safe and hygienic, which means infestations must be dealt with as soon as they are discovered.
I asked Safestay why the bugs, clearly visible when you arrived, had not been spotted by housekeeping. It insists daily inspections are made and a pest control company treats outbreaks.
“We apologise,” it says. “Once notified, we scheduled treatment, and affected rooms were blocked off. Environmental health visited and is satisfied with the actions.”
I asked Booking.com why, given the significance of the issue, it had not promptly responded to your complaint. It didn’t answer that but did, immediately, issue a refund and suspended the hostel from its platform. It says: “We have contacted the partner to ensure the issue is promptly addressed.”
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