[Travel] Travellers heading to the UK will now have to have a Covid test before their departure

[dazzer6666]

Can someone explain.
For those that have returned and were allowed 2 days to take a test, what happened if you couldn't be bothered?
Did you get a knock on the door in the middle of the night?
Were you dragged off and publicly flogged?
Were you given a Crystal Palace season ticket?
Do the Government actually have the means to ensure these people were doing the right thing?

You need the code for the test you’ve purchased to complete the passenger locator form…..so you have to actually buy the test, even if you don’t take it. No idea if there’s any follow-up if you don’t take the test but presumably someone, somewhere is supposed to be picking up those that haven’t been done

 

[murciagull]

Apparently some people are using the pcr test codes on their locater forms from previous trips.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Apparently some people are using the pcr test codes on their locater forms from previous trips.

Wouldn't take THAT smart a computer program to catch them out tho eh? Same name, same passport number, same PCR ref, significantly different date. Good luck trying to defend that one

 

[Raleigh Chopper]

The reality is that people will probably get away with cheating the process. Technically, the authorities will know from the data exactly who purchased tests, who submitted tests, etc., so there is a residual risk of getting caught at some point down the line. The government would need to spend further millions to try to make the testing process watertight. Would we rather have that, with no guarantee of success, or a process that the vast majority will comply with?

It just strengthens the need to test before returning, which, yet again, we have failed to do even with past experiences and the potential that this new variant is more dangerous than previous ones.
I can't belive we have gone and done it again.

 

[SeagullDubai]

Makes sense. My trip home for Christmas is getting more expensive by the day though.

As is mine. Where are you planning to get your day2 test as a matter of interest?


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[MTSeagulls]

What about caravan travellers

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That would be problematic for the annual exodus from Rathkeale in Limerick.

 

[Marty___Mcfly]

I suppose there is a risk your pre-departure test is positive, then you would need to self-isolate under whatever the rules are in the country you are in- E.g. for 10 days, where? In a hotel? Would they let you stay with active covid?

And you need that extra time off work unless you can work remotely whilst abroad.

I guess that is a worry that could put some people off travelling..

Plus the expense. And the hassle. Of all the tests, paperwork etc.

Plus the restrictions in the country you visit, needing to register for their vaccine passport, mask rules etc.

And the chance that the country you are visiting gets put in the red zone while you are there meaning a potential £2k 10 day hotel quarantine on return.

I guess it comes down to how resilient you are to all the hassles and worries and inconvenience, and the potential of being stuck isolating abroad, and the risk of hotel quarantine, vs the benefits and positives of getting away.

 

[dazzer6666]

I suppose there is a risk your pre-departure test is positive, then you would need to self-isolate under whatever the rules are in the country you are in- E.g. for 10 days, where? In a hotel? Would they let you stay with active covid?

And you need that extra time off work unless you can work remotely whilst abroad.

I guess that is a worry that could put some people off travelling..

Plus the expense. And the hassle. Of all the tests, paperwork etc.

Plus the restrictions in the country you visit, needing to register for their vaccine passport, mask rules etc.

And the chance that the country you are visiting gets put in the red zone while you are there meaning a potential £2k 10 day hotel quarantine on return.

I guess it comes down to how resilient you are to all the hassles and worries and inconvenience, and the potential of being stuck isolating abroad, and the risk of hotel quarantine, vs the benefits and positives of getting away.

Exactly this (particularly the last paragraph). I’ve done three trips in the last couple of months and all went fine, but accepted there were risks with all of them - not being able to go due to testing beforehand (2 out of 3), getting stuck if tested positive to return (1 out of 3) etc. The least concerning was testing positive after coming home (day 2 test) as isolation at home wouldn’t be such a big deal obviously. The last place we stayed in of the three had designated rooms where people were able to isolate if they had to test to return and tested positive (at their own expense obviously) and this was allowable under local regulations- in some places it isn’t and you’d have to go to a government facility. One of the staff told me they had been used a few times. Given where we were, the protocols in place and what we were doing the chances of catching it was pretty low and we didn’t have to test to return, and balancing that against the ‘worst case’ (staying for another 10 days I guess if we displayed symptoms and had to get tested) we went ahead. For me personally having to ‘test to return’ does however up the stakes quite significantly of things going tits up and being awkward.