A London borough has received the most requests out of anywhere in the UK for help with getting rid of pest infestations, according to new research.

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Wandsworth TOP in London… for pest control call-outs for rats, mice cockroaches and bed bugs

I feel like I constantly hear the phrase, That WOULD happen to you from my most intimate friends. Is it my generally nave demeanor, or am I just a magnet for quasi-unfortunate events? I like to think that it is neither of these things and that I have been chosen to serve honorably as an example to my luckier counterparts, a how-to manual in reverse, if you will. Here are the best of my failures while traveling abroad.

Getting Pick-pocketed

A rite of passage, right? I happened to be walking out of the Barcelona metro looking for Gaudis Park Guell and didnt see any signs pointing me in the right direction. As the only Spanish speaker in my group of traveling companions, I was elected to ask a very, VERY innocuous-looking man for directions. He was old, about five-feet tall, wearing a tweed blazer, a golfing hat, and, I kid you not, holding onto a cane. A CANE! One that was carved out of blonde-colored wood and shellacked with great care, no less. And this charming-looking old man pick pocketed me blind when he pointed towards the park with his cane, reached into my purse with his other hand, and stole my entire walletgetting away with two credit cards, forty Euros, and my dignity. My advice to others? Read Alexandra Rubys blog entry Travel Tips: How to Avoid Getting Pick pocketed in Barcelona, and dont trust anyone to get closer to you than arms length, not even an innocent-looking old man who reminds you of the Spanish grandpa you never had.

Food Poisoning

Yes, food poisoning. It was my first day in London, and I was so excited to do some site-seeing at Camden market, one of Londons notorious centers for casual outdoor shopping. After exploring this market full of vintage clothing and sampling fresh donuts, we decided to stop for lunch where the food stalls were. Two of my friends chose Indian food, one chose falafel, and I chose Chinese. Three hours later I was throwing up in the University College London dorm bathroom, crying via Skype to my American friends on our native soil in an attempt to solicit sympathy, and sipping on English ginger ale to cure bouts of nausea. Word to the wisestick to the falafel.

Bed Bugs

A New Yorkers worst nightmare. After walking into my room in a youth party hostel off of La Rambla in Barcelona, I pulled up the corners of the fitted sheet and checked along the seams of the mattress for these cheeky pests, but lets be honest, I had way too much confidence in this hostel and being on the top bunk made this formality too much of a chore for me to complete it thoroughly enough. Nine days later (it takes nine days for bed bug bites to show up on your skin) I had something close to ten welts all over my arms with the signature sign of bed bugsthree or four bites all in a row colloquially deemed breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The worst part? I had to call all of my friends that I saw between getting bitten and discovering the bites to tell them that I might have brought bed bugs into their rooms. They did not disown mea sign of true friendship, and I am so grateful.

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BEST OF: My Biggest Travel Fails

Americans are the worst tourists in the world.They think so themselves, a study conducted by marketing company Mandala Research showed.

During the study, 5,600 people from five countries were asked to describe their attitudes towards tourists from different countries, the Rossiiskaya Gazeta newspaper wrote.It turned out that every fifth respondent said that U.S. citizens were “the worst tourists.” Interestingly, the majority of those who said so were American citizens themselves.

Russian tourists closed the top five of the worst tourists in the world.Travelers from China took the second place in the ranking of the worst tourists in the world.The third place belongs to tourists from France, whilst the fourth was “awarded” to Japanese tourists.The top ten included citizens of Korea, India, Germany, Spain and the UK.The “black list” ended with tourists from Ireland, Switzerland and Australia.

About 40 percent of American travelers said that they had stolen something from hotel rooms at least once, Firstnews said. In most cases, it goes about towels (28 percent), bathrobes (8 percent), batteries (5 percent), pillows (4 per cent), TV remote controls (3 percent), sheets (3 percent), Bibles (3 percent) and umbrellas (3percent).

As for the incidents, which happen to American tourists in their journeys, most respondents lost luggage (22 percent) and extreme weather (21 percent).Nearly 19 percent of travelers admitted that they happened to get lost, pay extra (16 percent), come late for a flight (16 percent), get injured, fall ill or ask for emergency help from medical specialists (11 percent).

Eight percent of respondents also said that they experienced trouble during their holidays when they ran out of money, or they could not get access to it. Seven percent complained that they had a headache and could not remember what happened to them after a wild party the night before.

The same number (7 percent) admitted that they could not find a bathroom when they needed it urgently. Five percent of respondents mentioned theft or robbery; the same amount were bitten by bed bugs, or faced large-scale strikes or mass riots during their stay in foreign countries.Nearly 5 percent reported the loss of passports. Three percent fell victims of fraud. The same amount of people said that they were detained by police or had problems with law-enforcement agencies.

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American tourists worst in the world

Our straight talking Lancashire lass takes a sideways look at the daily news.

By Sian Claire Owen on 28 Feb 2012

Today I want to share a personal trauma I have just gone through. Something that has left me scarred. Literally. All over my arms and fingers, to be precise.

You see, over the past four days I have been engaging in a battle of will and stamina against a troupe of indestructible bed bugs. Freaking bed bugs. Dammit.

How did this happen to me? I’ve been to New York where there is a city-wide epidemic, I came back bug-free. I travel widely and frequently, and the worst thing I have ever returned with is jet lag and/or sunburn. Possibly a hangover. I’m careful. I’m also very clean.

But recently, after one of my regular visits to London I came back with a secret stowaway in my luggage, and before I knew it my bed was home to a family of blood-sucking critters.

It started on Friday morning when I woke up with itching arms. The full horror dawned when I saw the 80-ish red bumps rapidly turn angry and start blistering. They were on my fingers, my arms, my face and neck. And nose. The little bastards bit me on my bloody nose! I will never find a husband.

Bed bugs are already a big problem in America. They were nearly wiped out, but recently a DDT-resistant strain helped along nicely by globalisation has made a big come-back. In the US they’re everywhere. Hotels, cinemas, offices, and even in ambulances and fire engines. And thanks to our generation of frequent flyers, bed bugs have crossed the pond and are chomping their way up the UK.

The creepiest thing is, around 60% of people don’t react to bed bug bites. So unless you have a nasty allergic reaction to their blood sucking antics you could be sharing your bed with a bug, and you would never know. It’s only thanks to the angry red wheels of burning pain dotted on my skin that I found my unwanted visitors.

Thankfully for me, after four days of solid hovering of furniture and carpets, boiling bed linen, ironing like a psycho (steam seems to be the only thing that kills them) and sealing all gaps between the carpet and borders I think, I think, I have finally nipped this problem in the bud. Of course I still have to continue the Hoover Holocaust until I’m certain the problem has gone away.

Mind you, after a quick scan of today’s news it seems that I’m not the only person suffering from a type of infestation. Well, not ‘invasion’ as such, but a new iPhone app that encourages you to run faster for longer by making you believe you are being chased by zombies. And not ‘suffering’ as such, more ‘using your imagination and enjoying yourself’. Right now, if I would prefer a iPhone zombie epidemic app to a bed bug infestation. The only way bed bugs can make me lose weight is my putting me off my food. Bleurgh.

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Don’t let the bed bugs bite

With the London Olympics fast approaching, the hotel, hospitality and catering trades have just 150 days before welcoming not only international visitors, but also, any bugs, viruses and bacteria that may hitch a ride with them. Are our establishments ready to deal with this? With their range of UV-C Light products, MBR Imports can help establishments make cleaning and sanitising, easier, faster and cost effective.

London (PRWEB UK) 22 February 2012

Event: Product UK launch – MBR imports UV-C light product range:

Date: 26 February – 1st March – Venue: London Excel Centre – Stand No: s2214

UV-C light product range brings new levels of hygiene to clean the unseen in the hospitality & catering industry

With the London Olympics fast approaching, the hotel, hospitality and catering trades have just 150 days before welcoming not only international visitors, but also, any bugs, viruses and bacteria that may hitch a ride with them. Are our establishments ready to deal with this? With their range of UV-C Light products, MBR Imports can help establishments make cleaning and sanitising, easier, faster and cost effective.

MBR Imports will launch in the UK, a range of UV-C Light Products bringing new standards of cleanliness to the hospitality and catering industry, never achieved before. Using established and proven UV-C germicidal light technology (wavelength 253.7nm), this range kills 99.9% of germs, viruses, bacteria, mould, bed bugs, dust mites, their eggs and toxic faeces in as little as 20 seconds. (Ecoli Outbreak – resistant strains)

This added level of service could put hotels and restaurants using the range ahead of their competitors. UV-C Light Products are currently used in 5 star hotels and commercial kitchens in Park Lane and the West End of London.

The UV-C Product range comprises:

    The UV-C Miracle Wand– a hand held, 20 inch “wand” containing a powerful but entirely safe UV-C germicidal light. Its use can be incorporated into daily cleansing routines within guest rooms and bathrooms for use on hard and soft surfaces, taps, desks, toilets remote controls, phones and light switches. The UV-C Miracle Wand has undergone rigorous scientific laboratory tests worldwide, including Campden BRI in the UK. (Appendix Ref: EN 13697:2001 Chemical Disinfectants and Antiseptics)     The UV-C Bed Vac- which combines powerful suction, UV-C light and patented spinning vibration punches to remove and control dust mites, bed bugs, mould and dirt while eliminating up to 99.9% of viruses, bacteria and allergens from mattresses, pillows and bedding.     UV-C Medical Air Purifier – air purification without the need for chemicals this portable unit can cleanse the air in an area of 45 square meters, killing 99.9% of all airborne viruses and bacteria, including H1N1 (Swine Flu).

UV-C lamps produce ultraviolet germicidal energy (253.7nm) in the form of light which kills all micro-organisms it comes into contact with by denaturing their DNA. Hard surfaces and soft furnishings in hotels, kitchens, restaurants, and other catering areas are made sterile, adding an additional level of re-assurance and potentially prolonging the life of soft furnishings and bedding.

Trade Contact: Rose Latchman-Bloom on 07932 647 805, or 020 8408 7173, or email enquiries@mbr-imports.com

    Historical evidence: UVC light is not a new technique for sanitising and killing germs. In fact it has been used since the late 1880s to kill micro-organisms. It was used extensively after World War 11 for sterilising air in hospitals, food storage areas and pharmaceutical plants. It was then used in the 1950s in the war against Tuberculosis. In the 1960s concerns about microbes lessened with the introduction of new drugs and sterilising cleaners. More recently UV-C light has been trialled as the new tool to combat superbugs in healthcare settings – where it is used to continuously disinfect wards and isolation rooms.

Media:    Pictures, trials, demonstrations and interviews with Rose Latchman-Bloom please contact Yvonne Thompson 07842 936 303 or email yvonne.thompson(at)asapcomms(dot)co(dot)uk

To visit us at Hotelympia or to book a demonstration after the show – Register Here

More Information Website: http://www.mbr-imports.com

###

yvonne thompson

07482 936404
Email Information

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With London 2012 Olympics on the Doorstep of the Hotel, Hospitality and Catering Industries, It Is Time to Clean the …

08-01-2012 14:08 www.aardvarkpest.co.uk Aardvark Pest Control 57 Runshaw Avenue Appley Bridge Wigan WN6 9JP 0800 644 0134 Aardvark Pest Control is THE company providing expert services for controlling pests in North-West England, including rats, mice, birds, moles and insect pests such as ants, wasps, bed bugs cockroaches and fleas. Treatments of vermin infestations are performed by BPCA certified pest controllers which have the expertise to protect households, businesses and farms from pests. Our exterminators use a spectum of integrated pest management techniques for the removal of pest problems, efficiently and at a reasonable price. We are located in Appley Bridge near Wigan, Bolton, Preston, Chorley, Ormskirk, Skelmersdale and St Helens and provide pest control services for Greater Manchester, Liverpool, Lancashire, Merseyside and Cheshire.

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Pest-Control-Aardvark.mov – Video

TripAdvisor has changed some of the wording on its UK site in response to a complaint filed with an ad regulator.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

“Reviews you can trust” claim is misleading, UK ad regulator says TripAdvisor has changed marketing messaging on its site Growing number of TripAdvisor users indicates trust, company says

(CNN) — Phrases such as “reviews you can trust” and “reviews from real travelers” have misled TripAdvisor users in the United Kingdom, according to a judgment issued Wednesday by the Advertising Standards Authority in Britain.

The decision comes in response to a complaint filed by a reputation management firm and two hotels, claiming that some of the claims of trustworthiness and authenticity on the very popular user-generated review site are misleading and can't be substantiated, since the site doesn't verify reviews.

“We told TripAdvisor not to claim or imply that all the reviews that appeared on the website were from real travelers, or were honest, real or trusted,” the ASA wrote in its decision.

The issue is overblown, TripAdvisor indicates in its response to the ruling, saying the requested changes have already been made to the marketing copy on its website.

“We have confidence that the 50 million users who come to our site every month trust the reviews they read on TripAdvisor, which is why they keep coming back to us in increasingly larger numbers to plan and have the perfect trip,” the company said in a statement, noting that the ASA's “highly technical view” relates to two marketing phrases used “in limited capacity.”

The ASA's decision affects only TripAdvisor's operations in the United Kingdom, where the company has been under pressure from businesses that say some of the site's reviews are fake or defamatory.

Chris Emmins, co-founder of KwikChex, the reputation management company that filed the complaint, said it receives regular inquiries and complaints from hoteliers who say that false TripAdvisor reviews are hurting their business.

Unsubstantiated claims of bed bugs or food poisoning follow properties in online search results, and negative reviews are particularly damaging to small businesses since they don't receive a high volume of reviews and negative accounts tend to linger longer near the top of a company's listing, Emmins said.

TripAdvisor's claims of trustworthiness are misleading, he said.

“Patently, that just can't be true when you don't verify the fact that it's even a customer making the comments,” he said.

TripAdvisor has changed course recently, replacing a “Reviews you can trust” tagline last year with “Reviews from our community.”

“As with all marketing messaging, the wording used on the TripAdvisor site is constantly evolving to reflect different aspects of the business, which was the rationale behind a change back in June 2011 to put more focus on the TripAdvisor community,” the company said.

While TripAdvisor doesn't claim to be 100% free of fraud, according to the ASA ruling, the company told the ASA it uses advanced fraud detection systems and substantial resources to combat fraud.

Emmins said it needs to do more.

“They could easily, with their resources, put in a tiered system which says 'this review has been authenticated,' ” he said.

TripAdvisor points out that as a reputation management company, KwikChex has “an obvious commercial interest in undermining people's confidence in user content-generated review platforms.”

The question of verifying reviews is far from resolved. In addition to damaging negative reviews, false positive reviews are used by some companies to bolster their rankings on review sites.

KwikChex has filed complaints with the Federal Trade Commission in the U.S., Emmins said. The agency said it could not comment on individual complaints.

Verified reviews or not, TripAdvisor's community is growing.

“It is very much business as usual,” TripAdvisor said in its response to the ASA ruling.

“TripAdvisor was founded on a core set of principles — to give travelers a voice to share their experiences, promote consumer choice and encourage a level playing field for everyone in the industry — all within a free forum for sharing open and honest opinions.”

See more here:
TripAdvisor scolded by UK ad regulator for 'trust' claims

LONDON – Travel planning website TripAdvisor must stop claiming that all the reviews on its British site were written by independent travellers — and therefore reliable — a U.K. regulator said Wednesday.

The Advertising Standards Authority said the claims on TripAdvisor.co.uk, including “reviews you can trust” and “more than 50 million honest travel reviews and opinions from real travellers”, were misleading.

The agency said it was possible that some reviews on the website could easily have been submitted by people who were not real travellers but just trying to influence customers' choices.

TripAdvisor, based in Newton, Massachusetts, claimed it had invested in systems, processes and resources to identify and minimize fraudulent content.

It said the number of fraudulent reviews was negligible, that research showed the average traveller read dozens of reviews before making a booking and tended to discount reviews that were significantly out of line with others.

But the U.K. advertising agency indicated that even the risk of a small number of fraudulent reviews means the website cannot claim they are all trustworthy.

“Because we considered that the claims implied that consumers could be assured that all review content on the TripAdvisor site was genuine, when we understood that might not be the case, we concluded that the claims were misleading,” the agency's ruling said.

The ruling came in response to complaints from two hotels which were not identified and KwikChex Ltd., based in Bournemouth, England, which offers services to companies for protecting their reputations.

In a statement on its website, KwikChex said TripAdvisor does have the capability of authenticating reviews but that a “substantial number” of reviews on the site, both positive and negative, are fraudulent.

“It is small businesses that suffer most as they tend to have few reviews and so the impact is much greater,” KwikChex said, “although any business with a recent very bad review does suffer, particularly if it is for example a false accusation of something such as food poisoning, bed bugs or criminality.”

TripAdvisor was set up by Expedia, Inc., but was spun off as a separate NASDAQ-listed company in December.

Read more from the original source:
UK agency tells TripAdvisor not to claim all reviews are by independent, reliable travellers

LONDON (AP) — Travel planning website TripAdvisor must stop claiming that all the reviews on its British site were written by independent travelers — and therefore reliable — a U.K. regulator said Wednesday.

The Advertising Standards Authority said the claims on TripAdvisor.co.uk, including “reviews you can trust” and “more than 50 million honest travel reviews and opinions from real travelers”, were misleading.

The agency said it was possible that some reviews on the website could easily have been submitted by people who were not real travelers but just trying to influence customers' choices.

TripAdvisor, based in Newton, Massachusetts, claimed it had invested in systems, processes and resources to identify and minimize fraudulent content.

It said the number of fraudulent reviews was negligible, that research showed the average traveler read dozens of reviews before making a booking and tended to discount reviews that were significantly out of line with others.

But the U.K. advertising agency indicated that even the risk of a small number of fraudulent reviews means the website cannot claim they are all trustworthy.

“Because we considered that the claims implied that consumers could be assured that all review content on the TripAdvisor site was genuine, when we understood that might not be the case, we concluded that the claims were misleading,” the agency's ruling said.

The ruling came in response to complaints from two hotels which were not identified and KwikChex Ltd., based in Bournemouth, England, which offers services to companies for protecting their reputations.

In a statement on its website, KwikChex said TripAdvisor does have the capability of authenticating reviews but that a “substantial number” of reviews on the site, both positive and negative, are fraudulent.

“It is small businesses that suffer most as they tend to have few reviews and so the impact is much greater,” KwikChex said, “although any business with a recent very bad review does suffer, particularly if it is for example a false accusation of something such as food poisoning, bed bugs or criminality.”

TripAdvisor was set up by Expedia, Inc., but was spun off as a separate NASDAQ-listed company in December.

See the rest here:
TripAdvisor can't claim UK reviews are reliable

TripAdvisor has changed some of the wording on its UK site in response to a complaint filed with an ad regulator.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

“Reviews you can trust” claim is misleading, UK ad regulator says TripAdvisor has changed marketing messaging on its site Growing number of TripAdvisor users indicates trust, company says

(CNN) — Phrases such as “reviews you can trust” and “reviews from real travelers” have misled TripAdvisor users in the United Kingdom, according to a judgment issued Wednesday by the Advertising Standards Authority in Britain.

The decision comes in response to a complaint filed by a reputation management firm and two hotels, claiming that some of the claims of trustworthiness and authenticity on the very popular user-generated review site are misleading and can't be substantiated, since the site doesn't verify reviews.

“We told TripAdvisor not to claim or imply that all the reviews that appeared on the website were from real travelers, or were honest, real or trusted,” the ASA wrote in its decision.

The issue is overblown, TripAdvisor indicates in its response to the ruling, saying the requested changes have already been made to the marketing copy on its website.

“We have confidence that the 50 million users who come to our site every month trust the reviews they read on TripAdvisor, which is why they keep coming back to us in increasingly larger numbers to plan and have the perfect trip,” the company said in a statement, noting that the ASA's “highly technical view” relates to two marketing phrases used “in limited capacity.”

The ASA's decision affects only TripAdvisor's operations in the United Kingdom, where the company has been under pressure from businesses that say some of the site's reviews are fake or defamatory.

Chris Emmins, co-founder of KwikChex, the reputation management company that filed the complaint, said it receives regular inquiries and complaints from hoteliers who say that false TripAdvisor reviews are hurting their business.

Unsubstantiated claims of bed bugs or food poisoning follow properties in online search results, and negative reviews are particularly damaging to small businesses since they don't receive a high volume of reviews and negative accounts tend to linger longer near the top of a company's listing, Emmins said.

TripAdvisor's claims of trustworthiness are misleading, he said.

“Patently, that just can't be true when you don't verify the fact that it's even a customer making the comments,” he said.

TripAdvisor has changed course recently, replacing a “Reviews you can trust” tagline last year with “Reviews from our community.”

“As with all marketing messaging, the wording used on the TripAdvisor site is constantly evolving to reflect different aspects of the business, which was the rationale behind a change back in June 2011 to put more focus on the TripAdvisor community,” the company said.

While TripAdvisor doesn't claim to be 100% free of fraud, according to the ASA ruling, the company told the ASA it uses advanced fraud detection systems and substantial resources to combat fraud.

Emmins said it needs to do more.

“They could easily, with their resources, put in a tiered system which says 'this review has been authenticated,' ” he said.

TripAdvisor points out that as a reputation management company, KwikChex has “an obvious commercial interest in undermining people's confidence in user content-generated review platforms.”

The question of verifying reviews is far from resolved. In addition to damaging negative reviews, false positive reviews are used by some companies to bolster their rankings on review sites.

KwikChex has filed complaints with the Federal Trade Commission in the U.S., Emmins said. The agency said it could not comment on individual complaints.

Verified reviews or not, TripAdvisor's community is growing.

“It is very much business as usual,” TripAdvisor said in its response to the ASA ruling.

“TripAdvisor was founded on a core set of principles — to give travelers a voice to share their experiences, promote consumer choice and encourage a level playing field for everyone in the industry — all within a free forum for sharing open and honest opinions.”

Go here to read the rest:
TripAdvisor scolded in UK for 'trust' claims