A man who has endured a bedbug infestation for a shocking two years says it has cost more than £1,000 trying to get rid of the tiny terrors.
Mike Jones, from Sheffield, South Yorkshire, revealed he as become a “reluctant authority” on the blood-sucking insects after his home has been blighted by them.
Mr Jones said his own case started when he took in some second-hand furniture from a neighbour and then found some small insects in his bed days later.
And what Mr Jones thought were specks of mould on the wooden bed frame turned out to be “faeces” left by the bugs.
Mr Jones told the BBC he had watched over 100 hours of online videos for tips to eradicate the pests and spent an eye-watering amount of money.
He told the broadcaster: “I’ve got an exterminator coming in tomorrow to do another set of sprays.
“You’re probably looking at over £1,000. No-one wants bugs crawling all over them – it’s a bit weird, especially if they’re crawling on your face. And bite marks aren’t nice. They don’t look nice, they don’t feel nice.”
Mr Jones said he’s taken to quarantining himself from staying at people’s houses and if he visits a hotel he puts his items in thick plastic bags.
Bedbugs hit the headlines this week after officials in Paris announced the city was in the grips of a pandemic of the tiny nighttime invaders.
Other reports over the weekend said the insects had been spotted on the Underground in London travelling on a commuter’s leg on the Victoria Line.
But in reality bedbugs have been around in the UK for thousands of years, but modern pesticides had helped lower their numbers in recent years.
Adults grow around 5mm long and according to the NHS bedbugs can “hide in many places, including on bed frames, mattresses, clothing, furniture, behind pictures and under loose wallpaper”.
The health body said clues you might have bedbugs include “bites, often on skin exposed while sleeping, like the face, neck and arms” and “spots of blood on bedding” and “small brown spots on bedding (bedbug poo)”.
Natalie Bungay, from the British Pest Control Association, told the BBC: “Some people react to the bites, which can be very itchy, and there may be painful swelling.
“A severe allergic reaction (anaphylaxis) is also possible but rare. Bed bugs can harbour various pathogens but transmissions to humans has not been proven and is believed to be unlikely.”
