A 'smart' gadget that helped solve the bed bug crisis in Paris is now being rolled out in UK hotels desperate for a bite-free festive season.

The device, made by Cambridge-based firm Spotta, is a 'detection pod' that's installed discreetly under the mattress – and lures in creepy crawlies. The system takes a picture of any visitors, with bed bugs identified using 'advanced image recognition algorithms'.

After a positive ID, an email is sent to hotel staff alerting them to the unwanted guest, giving them a chance to tackle the issue before anyone gets bitten.

Spotta explains that its pods are not visible to guests and that there are no wires, sounds or smells from them.

Spotta revealed that it has tripled its annual sales in just two months and landed a £3million investment after helping to tackle the Paris bed bug crisis. +5 View gallery

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A 'smart' gadget made by Cambridge-based firm Spotta that helped solve the bed bug crisis in Paris is now being rolled out in UK hotels desperate for a bite-free festive season +5 View gallery

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Spotta CEO Robert Fryers said: 'There's nothing hotel operators can do to prevent bed bugs arriving' ... 'Smart' bed bug detection gadget is being rolled out in UK hotels Loaded: 0%Progress: 0%0:00PreviousPlaySkipLIVEMute00:00Current Time 0:00/Duration Time 0:14FullscreenNeed TextVideo Quality576p540p360p270pForeground---WhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyan---OpaqueSemi-OpaqueBackground---WhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyan---OpaqueSemi-TransparentTransparentWindow---WhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyan---OpaqueSemi-TransparentTransparentFont Size50%75%100%125%150%175%200%300%400%Text Edge StyleNoneRaisedDepressedUniformDropshadowFont FamilyDefaultMonospace SerifProportional SerifMonospace Sans-SerifProportional Sans-SerifCasualScriptSmall CapsDefaultsDoneMinimizeExpandClose TRENDING The world's top 100 cities for 2023 RANKED - and Paris is top again 6.1k viewing now HARDCASTLE: Might William return separate travel for heirs? 14.9k viewing now Renaissance painting of nude women shown in French class sparks anger 70.6k viewing now

The firm said: 'Our rate of enquiries and sales within the hospitality and transport industry has skyrocketed. 

'Spotta has protected over three million room nights – and its subscriptions have multiplied threefold since October, due to its unique capability to prevent an outbreak, as opposed to the costly nature of dealing with the aftermath.'

Impressed with the Spotta solution, five-star London property Bankside Hotel – in the Marriott Autograph Collection – has installed 225 Spotta 'bed pods'. +5 View gallery

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Spotta's 'detection pod' is installed discreetly under the mattress – and lures in creepy crawlies +5 View gallery

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After a positive ID, an email is sent to hotel staff alerting them to the unwanted guest

Andras Goldsbrough, Maintenance Manager, Bankside Hotel, said: 'We have a duty of care to our guests. It's imperative that we are ahead of the game and make sure our rooms don't cause any alarm or discomfort.

'Customer satisfaction, comfort and safety is paramount and Spotta's devices are the only way we can monitor the situation 24/7 and reassure our guests by publicly declaring that we are completely bed bug free.

'Bankside Hotel is proactively dealing with the increasing number of bed bugs being detected here in London - and Spotta is an excellent product for doing so.'

Spotta CEO Robert Fryers said: 'There's nothing hotel operators can do to prevent bed bugs arriving because they come in with guests and for almost all hotels it's simply a case of when, not if, they next have to deal with them. The financial drain caused by bed bugs varies greatly depending on the size, location and nature of the hotel.'

Spotta calculated that the annual cost of dealing with bed bugs is around £55,000 per hotel in the UK and $111,000 in the U.S.