How can you guarantee that you will have your results in time to travel?

I have written to States of Guernsey Health, travel team and Condor and even phoned the States of Guernsey Covid support team, but cannot get a simple answer to my question.

Since 4 December France has introduced new travel rules, meaning those booked to sail on Condor from Guernsey to France need proof of a negative Covid-19 test result taken within 48 hours before departure (PCR or antigen).

I am fully aware the States’ system was set up in the summer for travellers, however this only has the option of PCR tests, which need to be booked 48 hours before needed, then it is up to 48 hours to get results. So my question is how can you guarantee that you will have your results in time to travel? This also uses a lot of health care and people who are trying hard to stop the spread on island and deal with those with symptoms – not to mention possible changes in ferry time due to our lovely winter weather conditions.

The UK and the rest of the world are now using the antigen tests, which can produce results within 15 minutes, and online certificates. Why has Guernsey not got this option, or perhaps we do but it is not advertised anywhere to help the general public to plan their Christmas activities? Surely information should be available and this should be a simple process adopted by Guernsey States or Condor like airports and ports through the UK are set to do?

I really hope you can help find the answers as with many people wishing to travel to France directly from Guernsey, I hope an easy solution can be found that does not impact on the States health care team, who are doing a fantastic job. But currently I know this issue will grow as people like me will be phoning the helpline due to a lack of information – booking PCRs takes valuable time from the nursing staff, away from those with symptoms who really need them.

Please can you help find out what Condor is doing to help its customers or the States to stop a surge of unnecessary PCRs where antigen testing could be used. Perhaps it is simple and we too can buy the home kits like below, but people just need information.

Example from Dover:

https://www.traveltesting.eurofins.co.uk/test-to-depart?gclid=Cj0KCQiAqbyNBhC2ARIsALDwAsBh0kpz5fiGnYL3g3IhDXipUqXrO2buhEeQ-vaEsAmm5neq4kOTXj0aAsHAEALw_wcB.

Southampton:

https://www.southamptonairport.com/coronavirus/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAqbyNBhC2ARIsALDwAsCX0-miQ2cfzTXri0TXkMZ5HiQOtd_0nc3gjojBdBIADV4cqpjvVlIaAqm5EALw_wcB.

Rachael Wooldridge

Jason Moriarty, strategic lead for operational delivery, responds:

The States of Guernsey has received a number of enquiries from islanders looking to make arrangements for outbound pre-departure tests ahead of travel outside of the Bailiwick for Christmas.

There is a process and online form where people can request an outbound PCR test prior to travelling to a country or region that requires confirmation of a negative test result prior to travel. This can be found at https://www.gov.gg/outboundtraveller-pcr. We kindly ask that travellers submit their online forms at least 48 hours prior to when the test is required to help ensure that an appointment can be made, though please note that this cannot always be guaranteed. Those due to travel close to Christmas in particular should complete their online form at the earliest opportunity.

These tests are charged at £83 per test, payable at time of booking the appointment. As we have always stated, it can take up to 48 hours for you to receive your test result (and very occasionally longer), so you will need to bear that in mind when making arrangements.

All travellers should of course ensure they have fully understood the Covid-19 requirements of the country or region you are travelling to. Different jurisdictions will have their own travel requirements, which means the type of test, required proof and the timeframe in which you might be required to provide proof of a negative result will differ between jurisdictions; and this is not information the States is able to provide.

The services to provide PCR tests for these purposes will not be delivered over the Christmas bank holidays. This is because the response teams need to continue to prioritise testing of arrivals and community testing. It is also necessary for our incredibly dedicated scheduling, testing, laboratory and resulting teams to have a short break over the Christmas period, following an extremely busy year. This means that the last opportunity for outbound PCR tests provided by the States of Guernsey before Christmas is on Christmas Eve (24 December), when there will be a limited amount of appointments. After this date, the next date available for booking an outbound PCR test will be 27 December. Travellers also need to be aware of the small chance that we will be unable to provide a test result in the event of technical difficulties.

If you require an outbound PCR test outside of the times available via the States of Guernsey services, you may wish to enquire with private providers in the primary care sector. This will mean that you will also need to get your result from primary care.

Not all jurisdictions will require a pre-departure PCR test, with many now accepting supervised lateral flow tests (also known as rapid antigen tests). This may also be an option with some private providers locally – the St Martin’s Grande Rue Pharmacy is one that has confirmed to us they provide this service.

Should you find yourself having difficulties sourcing a test locally over the festive period, there are a number of UK providers that offer ‘fit to fly’ lateral flow tests.

Whilst it is the traveller’s responsibility to determine whether a negative test result from a lateral flow test will meet the requirements of the jurisdiction you intend to travel to, it may be possible to arrange for such a provider to send a test to Guernsey prior to your departure, or if you are travelling through the UK, you may be able to arrange a test for when you are transiting. More information on this can be found on the UK Government website: https://www.gov.uk/find-travel-test-provider.