James Alexander claims he suffered an allergic reaction after being bitten by fleas during the night at a Newcastle city centre hotel
The Premier Inn hotel on Newgate Street in Newcastle city centre, where James Alexander stayed was bitten by fleas(Image: Chronicle Live/James Alexander)
A man has vowed to never return to a Newcastle Premier Inn hotel again after his stay was ‘ruined’ when he woke up covered in what he believes to be flea bites. James Alexander travelled up to Newcastle from York with his two children on December 29 last year, and stayed at the hotel chain’s Newgate Street location.
The family, who had travelled up to the North East for a day at the Metrocentre as a post-Christmas treat, settled in for their one-night stay at the hotel near The Gate, which they had stayed in just 12 months previously.
In the early hours of the morning, James woke up to find several bites on his body, which he had scratched off and caused to bleed while asleep, with him claiming to have suffered an allergic reaction. On closer inspection, the 43-year-old found insects that he believes to be fleas in his bed, as well as the bed of his nine-year-old daughter, with his 12-year-old son also in the room.
Within the terms of Premier Inn’s Good Night Guarantee, a guest who has had their slumber interrupted must report the issue to the 24/7 reception team who can attempt to solve the problem. However, in this instance, James claims he was asked to come back later when a manager was available.
A flea which was photographed by James Alexander after he found them in his hotel room bed(Image: James Alexander)
On January 2, James made an official complaint after being told that this would be the best course of action by the manager at the hotel. Then, on January 9, after James sent photos of the bugs and bites, he was initially informed that he could have a partial refund of £23 as a gesture ‘good will’ for his experience. James also found the general cleanliness to not be up to scratch in the room, saying he found tissues and toenails behind the bed.
James claims he was then told that “mosquitos/ spiders and other naturally occurring bugs unless they infest a room are largely outside of our control”, but James says he is convinced that they were fleas.
James said: “Premier Inn initially refused to honour their Good Night Guarantee, and this experience ruined the trip I arranged with my young children. They are not expensive hotels, but you do expect minimum level of service.
“Not only is the service at The Gate Premier Inn poor, but you find used tissues and cut toe nails on the floor and the rooms are flea ridden. They say they have to be fair to all customers, but this is shocking and I wouldn’t want to stay there again.”
The flea bites sustained by James Alexander during his stay at the hotel(Image: James Alexander)
Premier Inn says a thorough check by an independent supplier was carried out following the claims made by James and confirmed no evidence of bed bugs in the room. However, the hotel chain has apologised and stated a full refund will be offered.
A Premier Inn UK spokesperson said: “Thank you for bringing this to our attention. At Premier Inn we pride ourselves on our excellent standards of cleanliness and we are sorry this experience didn’t meet the high standards our guests rightly expect.
“Despite a thorough inspection by our independent supplier who confirmed there were no bedbugs present in the bedroom, we appreciate the overall room cleanliness of the room was lacking and as such we will be providing a full refund for the cost of Mr Alexander’s room”.
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