It is every hotelier’s aim to offer the best experience for his or her guests. That includes a healthy experience free of bed bugs. Chances are you have never heard of NOBBEL, Inc. NOBBEL is the National Organization of Bed Bug Education for Lodging. Using guidelines set forth by the National Pest Management Association (NPMA), NOBBEL has created an online training and certification program for the lodging industry to deal with the growing bed bug epidemic. NOBBEL’S mission is two-fold:
1. To educate the public and the lodging industry about the bed bug epidemic.
2. To offer bed bug training and certifications for the lodging industry to build consumer confidence.
Locations can get certified through the NOBBEL website. Training and certification takes about an hour. Each certified location receives a certificate, a standard operating procedure, front desk/door signage stating the level of participation, and recognition on the NOBBEL website. Participation levels are based on the percentage of full time front desk and housekeeping staff that have been certified. There are 4 levels of participation: Platinum—100 percent; Gold—50 percent to 99 percent; Silver—25 percent to 49 percent; and Bronze—under 25 percent.
Consumers can access the site to find hotels with bed bug issues and hotels that have gone through the certification process. Consumers can also report on certified properties that are not doing a good enough job inspecting for bed bugs.
While no system is perfect, especially if detection checks are not conducted frequently, the NOBBEL certification program does add one extra layer of confidence for consumers and hoteliers—two groups that both have huge concerns if bed bugs are found.
