Thousands of Americans stay at Marriott hotels each year, whether they be Marriott-branded hotels or one of their many subsidiaries. While the hospitality industry may place guest comfort as one of its top priorities, many hotels make serious mistakes when it comes to warning guests about bed bugs and treating rooms to prevent bed bugs. Visit our results page to read how our law firm has helped real victims of bed bug injuries.
If you or a loved one recently stayed at a Marriott hotel and discovered bed bugs either while staying at the hotel or after you returned home, contact Whitney, LLP today. Our experienced bed bug lawyers handle cases across Maryland to hold hotels and resorts accountable for injuries and damages guests sustained from bed bugs. For a free legal consultation on your case, call our attorneys today at (410) 583-8000.
Attorneys for Injuries from Bed Bugs at Marriott Hotel Properties
If you stayed at a Marriott hotel room and discovered bed bugs, there are several ways that the bed bugs could have gotten there. Typically, guests at hotels find bed bug infestations after another guest brought bed bugs on their clothes or luggage. However, it is typically the hotel’s duty to warn you about bed bugs and to handle infestations to prevent harm to future guests.
If you stayed at a Marriott hotel room that was infested with bed bugs, the infestation and your injuries would have been avoided if the hotel properly inspected the room and treated it for bed bug prevention. If they failed to do so, you may be entitled to sue them for damages with the help of an experienced bed bug injury lawyer.
Damages for Bed Bug Bites
Many injuries and damages from bed bugs go beyond the hotel room. People who are affected by bed bugs at a hotel may have their clothing or luggage infested as well and could bring bed bugs from the hotel back to their homes. This can mean losing not only the clothing and the luggage to damage, but also your bed at home, your pillows and bedding, furniture, carpets, and other fabric surfaces around your house.
If the infestation is severe enough, you will likely need to hire pest control experts, replace damaged or infested furniture, and seek medical attention for bites. While most people are not allergic to bed bugs and do not have severe physical symptoms of bed bug bites, the bites can become infected or lead to emotional trauma.
Talk to a lawyer for help understanding what your case might be worth. Without talking to a lawyer about your case, you may not fully understand what damages you can link to your case and what those damages might be worth. Your lawyer can also help you understand how to file your claim to maximize the damages you are entitled to.
The hotel might work to reduce their liability in your case. Their attorneys might contact you and try to offer you a settlement or other hotel perks in exchange for dropping your case against them. It is vital that you discuss your case with an attorney so you can know if this settlement is too low to cover your needs. It is also important to understand that the hotel’s legal team represents the hotel and does not have your best interests in mind.
The damages in a bed bug lawsuit may also be higher than a settlement because there may be “punitive damages” available. Punitive damages, also called “exemplary damages,” are rare, but they work to punish bad actors who commit repeat errors or especially egregious errors. If the hotel chain knew about the bed bug infestation but allowed you to stay in the room anyway, you could be entitled to additional punitive damages in court. These damages could also come if the hotel had repeat bed bug problems that indicated a serious management issue. These damages are almost impossible to get through a settlement and should be claimed in court.
Where to Check for Bed Bugs
If you were bitten by bed bugs at a hotel, it is important to check your home for bed bugs to ensure that you did not track any back with you. If they did come home, you may be entitled to additional damages and should discuss an infestation of your home with your attorney.
Bed bugs like to stay where their food is. That means they typically live in places that people spend time, such as their beds or couches. Bed bugs often sleep and breed in tucked away areas, such as in the stitching of a mattress or the inside of a box spring, as well as in the stitching or edges of couches or chairs. Bed bugs can also be found in clothes, dressers, suitcases, carpets, and other fabric surfaces near those sites, such as a fabric headboard.
The most telltale sign of bed bugs, other than spotting them directly, is red spots on bedding or furniture. Since bed bugs eat blood, they may track blood or bites might bleed onto the furniture. If you catch a bed bug, you can confirm that it is a bed bug by squishing it against a paper towel to see if it leaves a red mark. You should save at least one bed bug if possible as proof of the infestation.
Call Our Bed Bug Injury Lawyers for a Free Legal Consultation
If you were attacked by bed bugs while staying at a Marriott hotel or brought bed bugs back to your home after a stay at a Marriott, call our us. Our attorneys represent bed bug injury victims and work to get them compensation for the harm they faced because of negligent hotel staff. To schedule a legal consultation on your case, call Whitney, LLP today at (410) 583-8000.