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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Travel
Rebecca Smithers

We’re bugged by a hotel chain’s response to our complaint

OYO offers budget deals … but two customers didn’t bargain for bed bugs.
OYO offers budget deals … but two customers didn’t bargain for bed bugs. Photograph: M4OS Photos/Alamy

In August my daughter and a friend stayed at an OYO hotel in Belgravia. On the second day they noticed bites and saw little bugs on the floor, wall and on their pillow, which appeared to be bed bugs. They went to the front desk to notify them and get a different room. The staff member said they couldn’t do anything and gave them a clean set of sheets. My daughter said the sheets would not change the issue as the bugs were in the room. They got no help and the person did not go upstairs to see the bugs.

We have been trying to get a refund, and even have pictures of the bugs and bites, with time and location stamps to prove they were at the Belgravia hotel. They say they would only give us a 30% refund. They boast that they are the fastest growing hotel chain in the world. What a farce!

LT, Rochester, Kent

OYO is an Indian-owned budget brand gradually taking over B&Bs and independent hotels in the UK and is now the second largest in the world. It says: “LT’s complaint was subsequently approved for a full refund – and she has been fully reimbursed.”

It says it investigated the initial complaint, but neither hotel staff nor the contractor it called in found evidence of infestation. But it applied a silicon seal treatment as a precaution.

It added: “OYO strives for high levels of customer service, so we apologise to them both for falling short in this instance.”

We welcome letters but cannot answer individually. Email us at consumer.champions@theguardian.com or write to Consumer Champions, Money, the Guardian, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Please include a daytime phone number. Submission and publication of all letters is subject to our terms and conditions

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