To ask guests to take a test

[tocancel]

Supposed to be getting married next spring, who knows if we can go ahead as planned.

Assuming we can, would you be happy to take a covid test before attending?

If it's feasible we would like to ask all guests (and pay for them) to take test pre attending.

If it's negative obviously you can't come.

Would you think that was too much of an ask / bride and groom - zilla?

You should elope! No chance I would be attending any weddings anytime in the next year or two. You shouldn't force people to put their lives in danger just because you want to get married.

It would cost you a bomb and be pointless because a negative result only means negative at the time the swab is taken.

@OverTheRainbow88

I wouldn’t mind taking a test... especially if it means everyone know everyone else is healthy so can party away! You wouldn’t need to pay everyone could just book a test online and say they have a symptom?

So you're recommending lying to scam free tests from the NHS so someone can have a party?!

Way too controlling.

Is there another way to make shielding relative feel involved? Zoom call at ceremony?

Or a separate blessing with just official, them and you at 2 metres?

Stop by for a glass of champagne after ceremony and before reception?

how is it controlling to not want people to have a virus that could kill one of the bride or grooms parents?

It's controlling to demand they undergo an unpleasant test before they're allowed to attend. The results of which may not be wholly reliable depending on how far in advance it was taken.

As pp said - where do you get the idea we're all going to be tested more often / routinely tested?

@sanityisamyth

Well they do keep saying they want to do random testing to see how many people are asymptomatic- this could boost that!!

How else do you think everyone is getting the tests which some countries require you to have 72 hours before entry?

Apart from anything else. The test has an 80% + validity for positive results and 99.9% for not giving false positives. This sounds great - and is when there is a lot of infection about.
As things are currently it means for every 10,000 people tested, 10 will have Covid but only 8 of those will test positive. 10 people who haven't got it will also get positive tests. (Prof Carl Heneghan. Oxford University)

Those kind of odd are excellent when there is a high rate of infection but really skew the results when the infection rate is low as it is currently.

Glad you’re not doing it as it’s not even logical. How far in advance do they need to get the test and then do they need to isolate before the wedding to make sure they don’t catch it? What if folks are busy and need do it it a week before? Two weeks? Should they stay home and isolate themselves in advance of the wedding

Ah, @tocancel, we considered this.

In the end, there's no safe way for anyone who wouldn't survive Covid to come to the wedding. We have a few people in similar situations, and they just can't safely come. We've left it up to them to decide if they want to risk it, but we're trying to do everything we can to make it clear that they don't have to - we're looking into live-streaming the wedding to them, giving them a sneak peak of our wedding photos, that kinda thing. I might go see them in my dress.

There's no way that you can make it safe for someone to be in a crowd. Tests just aren't that good.

If other people wouldn't and would continue to mix with people knowing they had covid but they thought their event was too important to miss, we are in big trouble.

Sadly that is definitely the case. There's news story after news story about people who go to group events despite knowing they have it, or get a haircut or their eyebrows done and then message to say they tested positive before but really needed it done... it's sad, but it's simply the way that the world is right now. Some people just see their own needs. It's not even that they've decided that their right to attend is worth the risk to other people... they've just not thought about other people at all.

@ShellsAndSunrises thanks - it's really sad as it's my dad that wouldn't be able to come - we could have a much smaller wedding but we've already paid for a larger one so would lose a lot of money (for us anyway).

Rubbish time all round!