Bedbugs, aaaaah!

[conuly]

DEAR ABBY: Recently, a good friend invited me along on a six-night trip to Waikiki. We shared the same hotel room. He slept in the king-size bed; I slept on the pull-out sofa in the living room area.

I ended up getting bed bugs and figured out where I got them from when I got back to my apartment in Los Angeles. When I told my friend what happened, he immediately said he didn't want to be involved or be a part of this. Then he began emailing and texting me saying that if I filed a claim, he would be banned by the hotel chain and lose his gold member points. Then he began blaming me and asked how I knew I didn't get them from a movie theater or maybe the airplane or even a well-known coffee chain I go to. Now he won't return my phone calls, emails or text messages. I am shocked and feel hurt and confused. -- BITTEN IN CALIFORNIA

DEAR BITTEN: I understand why you are shocked and hurt, but please don't be confused. Your former good friend values his gold membership status more than he does your friendship, which speaks volumes about his priorities. While he isn't wrong that you could have picked up the bedbugs on the plane or in a movie theater -- bedbugs are all over the place and hard to get rid of -- if he was a true friend, he wouldn't be ghosting you now.

Call the hotel and explain what happened. Give them the room number so they can investigate and possibly prevent another guest from having the same experience you did.

Comments

[cereta]

Christ on a pony, if I were the friend, I'd be falling all over myself to apologize. And why would you want a good membership at a place that would cancel it for telling them something they really need to know?

[eleanorjane]

The advice is pretty naive, though -- given the corners hotels cut when it comes to cleaning, they clearly cannot give a shit about whether they have bedbugs or not. Complaining to or about the hotel, filing a travel insurance claim, or reporting them to a health authority? Sure, that might accomplish something. Politely telling them about bedbugs? They're gonna make all the right noises on the phone, hang up, and continue not caring.

Also, yeah, terrible friend is terrible.

[minoanmiss]

Agreed and also AGREED.