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AIBU?

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Original poster

Sister not wanting to self isolate

113 replies

1234Julia · 31/08/2020 23:07

My sister has just returned from a two month holiday in Bulgaria (her husband is Bulgarian) but is refusing to self isolate for 14d. Bulgaria is on the list of countries that you need to self isolate. I’m so angry at the moment at her selfish attitude. She says she need to pop out for food... my argument is she can buy it online and get it delivered the same day/ she should have thought about this before going on her holiday ! She could have put a few pizzas, bread and milk in the freezer. Anyway I’m not on talking terms right now and she’s telling me I’m over reacting and insecure for feeling like this !
Surely I’m not !

OP posts:
yoyo1234 · 31/08/2020 23:22

Personally I would be furious with her as well. It seems so much has become a farce with Covid 19, it seems rules are made but seldom followed or checked on .

Toothsil · 31/08/2020 23:24

I'm with you on this, BIL and his family have just come back from a country where quarantining is necessary on return but they're not, and they're of the attitude of "who's going to know?" Makes me furious!

Florencex · 31/08/2020 23:35

No you are not over reacting. Does she understand there could be some hefty fines for not following the rules? Maybe that would be a deterrent.

I agree she could have made sure she had some food in, but if she didn’t she didn’t. If she cannot get food any other way, she is allowed to go out for some. However she should really only need to do this once and after that get a delivery slot.

Torvean32 · 01/09/2020 00:29

I'd have no issue reporting somebody flaunting quarantine. We went through a local lockdown due to this.

Dinnerisburnt · 01/09/2020 00:46

I am in a similar situation with a family member who came home from holidaying in a country that is on the quarantine list a week ago, the child is going back to school on Wednesday this week (day 9). Having had a COVID test since the holiday which is negative it is apparently ok. It just doesn’t sit right with me.

Loveden · 01/09/2020 00:49

@Dinnerisburnt

I am in a similar situation with a family member who came home from holidaying in a country that is on the quarantine list a week ago, the child is going back to school on Wednesday this week (day 9). Having had a COVID test since the holiday which is negative it is apparently ok. It just doesn’t sit right with me.
I would tell the school. It's not fair on the 29 other families in the class, or their teacher.
SimonJT · 01/09/2020 00:51

People quarantining are allowed to leave their home under certain circumstances, including to buy food.

Itsatoughgig · 01/09/2020 00:55

@SimonJT

People quarantining are allowed to leave their home under certain circumstances, including to buy food.
No they are not. Only exemption is for medical care
SimonJT · 01/09/2020 00:57

@Itsatoughgig

Yes they are

Sister not wanting to self isolate
Itsatoughgig · 01/09/2020 00:58

@SimonJT thanks for the info.

ineedaholidaynow · 01/09/2020 01:01

You can go shopping but only if you can’t get it delivered. Don’t know why they couldn’t organise a delivery for when they got back.

I would tell a school if someone was breaking quarantine. Schools are going to struggle as it is, they don’t need that added risk

BluebellsGreenbells · 01/09/2020 01:03

No they aren’t

Sister not wanting to self isolate
MrsClatterbuck · 01/09/2020 02:35

I was discussing this with my sister who lives abroad. She told me that the police do checks on people.
There was a lady from NI who got permission to go to the Isle of Man to wind up her mother's estate. She was to self isolate in her late mother's home. She decided to get a bus to visit a locksmith to get help to open the safe. She was reported to police who were waiting for her when she returned. She is now serving a one month jail term. No mucking around there.

MrsClatterbuck · 01/09/2020 02:37

She is married to a solicitor but said that she didn't realise the rules or the penalties involved. She signed a form I believe on application to enter the island which made everything very clear. Obviously thought they didn't apply to her.

seayork2020 · 01/09/2020 02:37

Is she legally allowed to go and buy food? if so then it is allowed

IvyLovesWales · 01/09/2020 02:43

She's an idiot, My DD is only 13, she's in her second week of quarantine after returning from France (I didn't go). She hasn't left the house, she knows the rules and is happy to stick to them. If a 13 year old can do it, your sister can to!

stardust40 · 01/09/2020 02:44

We got caught returning from the Canary Islands in early August and had to isolate for 14 days. There's no reason not too but equally nobody checks! No one asked/checked we'd completed the forms before entering the U.K., no one checked during the 14 days either. The most they do is ring you to check you know what you should do. Unfortunately therefore there's going to be lots who didn't complete a form or choose to ignore it. The whole thing was a waste of time. Just stay away from your sister for the 14 days.

lyralalala · 01/09/2020 02:53

@seayork2020

Is she legally allowed to go and buy food? if so then it is allowed
Only if she cannot get it delivered. It’s an exemption to stop people starving, not to let Mary and Billy wander round Tesco rather than paying £3 for delivery.
fallfallfall · 01/09/2020 04:15

the list seems more politically aligned than based on cases and risk.

SimonJT · 01/09/2020 06:40

@fallfallfall

the list seems more politically aligned than based on cases and risk.
It is, my boyfriend is in quarantine, he is staying in my room (has its own bathroom) entirely and I’m not going in there. But if we carried on as normal I could expose myself to him by kissing etc and I wouldn’t need to isolate at all.

Certain people are also exempt due to their job.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-travellers-exempt-from-uk-border-rules/coronavirus-covid-19-travellers-exempt-from-uk-border-rules

022828MAN · 01/09/2020 06:46

I've reached a point where I just can't get wound up about people not following 'the rules'.

People are meeting up left right and centre, having people round houses, not following distancing, not wearing masks. The number of deaths is absolutely minimal at this point.

I totally understood the lockdown at the beginning when deaths were in their thousands a day, but at this point I really think we need to be moving on and getting back to normal.

NailsNeedDoing · 01/09/2020 07:53

I don’t see a huge problem with someone in her position popping to the supermarket, they’ll be wearing a mask and as long as they distance and don’t stand and chat for 15 minutes it’s going to affect no one.

YABU to expect that she should have stocked her freezer 2 months ago and should be able to live entirely off that. If you’re worried, why aren’t you offering to go shopping for her?

Pobblebonk · 01/09/2020 08:27

Given that the average of new cases in Bulgaria is currently around 140 a day against our 1300, I'm not sure how worked up I can get about this.

LadyGAgain · 01/09/2020 08:30

It's not illegal to not quarantine. That said, she's irresponsible and I wouldn't be on speaking terms with her either.

Porcupineinwaiting · 01/09/2020 08:31

@Pobblebonk same.

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