A Sutton mother has described being "up all night batting bugs off" her 16-month-old son as a persistent bedbug infestation continues to affect their Carshalton home. Kimberley Moore, 37, says the family has endured the problem since October last year, despite receiving 10 pest-control treatments.
Bites found in baby's nappy area
Moore told Your Local Guardian that bugs have been discovered underneath her baby when she turns him over, with visible bites around his nappy area. "I have photos of where I’ve turned my baby over, and they’re all underneath him," she said. "They’ve seen it in his nappy because he’s got bites in his nappy area."
The infestation has left her struggling to sleep while caring for her son. "No parents should be doing that," she added.
Repeated treatments fail to stop return
The family has had to leave their home repeatedly during pest-control treatments. Moore says social services have funded trips to Sussex for her and her baby to escape the property. "Social services actually pay for us to go to Sussex, me and the baby, to get out of there," she said.
She claims she was promised alternative accommodation upon her return, but that promise was not kept. "I then returned home on the promise that I was going to be decanted once I got back. That didn’t happen," she said.
The latest treatment took place last week, but Moore says the bedbugs keep coming back. "I’ve told them time and time again that what they’re doing is not working. It just comes back, but bigger and worse than ever," she said.
Family forced to burn belongings
The family has had to stay with relatives and friends regularly, a situation Moore describes as "degrading." They take precautions to avoid spreading the bugs, such as removing and washing all clothes upon arrival at her partner's mother's house.
Moore says she has had to dispose of thousands of pounds' worth of furniture and possessions, including a £3,000 bed, a corner sofa she estimates was worth £6,000, photographs, canvases, and cots. "I’ve literally had to burn my belongings," she said.
The family is also living in severely overcrowded conditions, with her 17-year-old stepson previously sleeping on the sofa. Moore says she contacted the housing provider numerous times to arrange temporary accommodation during treatments, but claims the provider described her repeated inquiries as harassment.
"I feel like I’m having to beg for a standard of accommodation that I shouldn’t have to," she said. Sutton Housing Partnership was approached for comment but declined.
