Traveling and staying in a hotel sounds great until you come home with an unwanted hitchhiker. Waldorf-Astoria hotel is defending itself against a lawsuit filed by a Michigan couple. Christine and David Drabicki sued the Hilton Worldwide chain, claiming emotional and financial damages, after the couple had to evacuate their house for six weeks due to a bedbug infestation. The couple claims bedbugs came home from New York and specifically from Waldorf-Astoria.
Drabickis stayed at the hotel from May 24-27 and awoke with bedbug bites after the first night. The hotel accommodated the couple and provided a different room but failed to inform the couple that bedbugs may have infected their luggage.
The couple returned to their Michigan home and found bedbugs in their children’s bedrooms, causing one of their daughters to suffer a severe allergic reaction to the parasite. The family evacuated for six weeks while the home extermination processed, costing the family $4,500. In addition, clothing needed disinfection and some items were beyond salvage.
The lawsuit is asking for reasonable compensation as well as compensation for emotional distress. The couple is seeking unspecified damages. A Hilton World Wide representative stated both rooms tested negative for bedbugs. The initial room the couple stayed in, as well as the room hotel provided for relocation, showed no signs of bedbugs during inspection.
