Bed bugs land in London as Underground commuter says ‘its over’

Callum Boyle

The bed bug scare has arrived in London

The bed bug epidemic sweeping Paris has seemingly reached the UK after a commuter found one while travelling on the London Underground.

The French capital is at war with the small insects that often live in furniture and bedding and feed on blood, with the city’s deputy mayor, Emmanuel Gregoire, describing them as a “scourge” and a “public health problem”.

According to the French health and safety agency ANSES, one in 10 households in France has had a bedbug infestation between 2017 and 2022.

It now looks like the creepy crawlies have reached UK shores after an eight-second TikTok clip was uploaded with one commuter finding one on their leg while travelling on the Victoria Line, captioning the post: “It’s true, they’re thriving on the Vicky Line.’

Another clip on the social media platform, which has over one million views said: “Minding my own business on the Victoria line, a f**king bed bug is on my leg. Said he’d got a great deal on the eurostar and wondered if I could take him home. No!! Sort it out @Transport for London.”

@lassogold Minding my own business on the victoria line, a f**king bed bug is on my leg. Said he’d got a great deal on the eurostar and wondered if I could take him home. No!! Sort it out @Transport for London #bedbugs #bedbugslondon #bedbugsparis #tube #infestation ♬ original sound – Lasso Gold

In a report bed bug threat to London Underground in MyLondon, before the viral videos were released, it claimed that the national service who run the London Underground were monitoring then situation and were cleaning the lines constantly however were unaware of any bedbug sightings.

A TfL spokesperson said: “We are not aware of any outbreaks in London, but we will monitor our network and continue our rigorous and thorough cleaning measures which have been proven to keep both the interior and exterior of our trains clean.

“We are committed to providing a clean and safe environment on the Tube for our customers and staff, and we would like to reassure our customers that we continue to maintain our already high standards of cleanliness, so our staff and customers can use the network safely and with confidence.”