To wonder if anyone is bothering with quarantine?

[Bagelbabies]

Preparing for an absolute flaming for this but...We got caught up whilst in a remote part of France where infection rates are lower than our home town, but now ‘doing the right thing’ and quarantining. I’ve got in trouble at work and now on unpaid leave (can’t work from home effectively) and DD has had to miss her first day of secondary. DS has to miss his favourite sports clubs and best friend’s birthday celebrations. Wondering if I should have just lied as on top of everything so called friends are being very judgey despite going to parties and crowded beaches throughout the summer...Is there anyone out there also being a social pariah and paying the price for attempting to support the tourist industry?? Or just us...? Feels very lonely here with almost everyone I know occupying moral high ground.

I did it for two weeks after returning from Spain. The fear of getting caught and given a hefty fine was the only thing that kept me indoors, or I would have worked etc.

And no way did I go for a run on an empty canal during those two weeks, not a chance. Oh no....

I'm with you...on day 10 of quarantine. We tried to get back from France when quarantine was announced but with our 8m caravan and bikes in the roof there was limited availability to return and the cost was prohibitive.

I'm also in trouble at work but what can I do?? We have stuck to quarantine completely for the first week and taken a couple of remote walks the last couple of days (we live right near some little used footpaths) because I was going crazy so we decided the very small risk was worth it!

Put a bit of a downer on the post holiday period though.

I'm on day 8, haven't left the house at all. I knew there would be a chance France would go on the list, as it was it was announced whilst we were there.
Children are missing school and DH and I are missing work, work have been fine, they have to be, you can't control when the government make these announcements! I couldn't simply not go and lose all the money, there was no option to move the flights unless the quarantine was announced, it wasn't so we went.

We were recently in France, and the rules changed while we were out there- we decided to just continue the holiday rather than join the crazy mad scramble to get home.

Now on Day 7- not heard a peep from anybody to check whether we are in self-isolation. No telephone calls, no texts, no emails, no surprise knock at the door from a mysterious person.

I'll be honest- we've been to the park, out to the supermarket a couple of times (also had a couple of home deliveries too) & also had family members come over to visit & we went over to their home.

So far, we are all fine as are all close family members.

In short, no we are not doing the quarantine.

DC1 is missing the start of school, DH was pushing to just send her back but I don't want to.

Quite a few friends/school mums/other parents know roughly when we returned & quite frankly don't want to someone to complain especially if they missed out on a holiday abroad!

I wouldn’t bother, it’s all absolute nonsense.

I so agree that being able to have a walk/bike ride would make all the difference, would happily do it with a mask on too. I guess it just makes it hard to police with track and trace? I have done a late dog walk twice as my thought was track and trace probably only call between 9 and 5?? I live in the countryside and didn’t meet a single person though.

Johnson and his bunch of bandits told us to use our common sense. You were in a low risk area, you've been tested, common sense would say you don't need to quarantine.

@Janus

I so agree that being able to have a walk/bike ride would make all the difference, would happily do it with a mask on too. I guess it just makes it hard to police with track and trace? I have done a late dog walk twice as my thought was track and trace probably only call between 9 and 5?? I live in the countryside and didn’t meet a single person though.

We went on the eurotunnel and were waved straight through immigration on return so unless they do a trawl of booking data I have no idea how they would contact us? But even if they did, it’s crossed my mind that for all they know we could live on a ten acre estate (we don’t!) and might be out and about on that and unable to take a call. Likewise, DH spends most of the day on Zoom meetings so probably wouldn’t be able to speak to them if they did ring to check...

@ChaChaCha2012

Johnson and his bunch of bandits told us to use our common sense. You were in a low risk area, you've been tested, common sense would say you don't need to quarantine.

I love your thinking! Unfortunately my conscience meant that I fessed up to several people who messaged when the news broke (am useless under pressure) and that’s when the pressure to comply began, even though logic told me it was a nonsense!

A number of my dc's school friends have come back from Spain and France over the last week. It'll be interesting to see how many of them still turn up at school when they go back on Thursday.

I posted on another thread that a relative whose MIL tested positive has been told by their HR ( a college) to get the test and if it is negative then they should go into work as normal and they don't need to isolate.

That is not what the gov website says, but HR are adamant.

We quarantined! First day out today just in time for school. It wasn’t too bad, we played monopoly and camped in the garden. I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself if I passed it to someone because I went on holiday even though we also did tunnel and remote location.

I don’t agree with the poster who said employers “have to be fine with it”- they don’t actually. DH had a member of staff go on a foreign holiday in the knowledge they’d likely have to quarantine on return. They cannot work from home due to the nature of the job. Employee is now very angry that they are on unpaid leave, despite being told that if they went and needed to quarantine on return that the time off would have to be taken as annual leave or unpaid leave. All staff were given this warning, but re-iterated to this employee as it was practically certain that he would have to quarantine on his return, given the destination he was going to. Their reasoning was also that they “couldn’t lose the money” so went anyway. I’ve had his wife complaining and lots of PA posts about employers needing to be understanding.

Of course it was their prerogative to decide to travel abroad, and ultimately their choice. However, if you chose to go on holiday at the moment then you have to be aware of the potential risks (e.g. the risk of having to quarantine on return if required- which can change at little notice) and prepared to take the consequences of the decisions you make.

It’s clearly different if you need time off as you have to isolate due to unwittingly coming into contact with someone who has been infected, or if you/a family member have developed symptoms or tested positive and need to quarantine. That is not predictable or something that can be helped. Choosing to go on holiday knowing you are likely to/may have to quarantine on your return and then expecting to be granted an extra 2 weeks (or however many days) paid leave is unfair.

My DSis is on day 11 and DM is on day 7 (two different hooidays). No phone call, no visit. They are mainly sticking to it, but not religiously so given that DSis was until now doing shopping for shielding DM. Both went Eurotunnel and DM drove 12 hours straight (including UK) to avoid interactions. Petrol was paid for through the window of the car. Wee stops by the roadside etc. She is shielding so definitely took less risk than the idiots in pubs at the moment.

Some will observe for the protection of others, some won't and will never care.

UK to its core.

My colleague claims 3 of his friends have had fines after they were shopped in! I've no idea how you'd even report them - I can't imagine the police care.

OP - of course you must quarantine. It's the right thing to do..

@jacks11

I don’t agree with the poster who said employers “have to be fine with it”- they don’t actually. DH had a member of staff go on a foreign holiday in the knowledge they’d likely have to quarantine on return. They cannot work from home due to the nature of the job. Employee is now very angry that they are on unpaid leave, despite being told that if they went and needed to quarantine on return that the time off would have to be taken as annual leave or unpaid leave. All staff were given this warning, but re-iterated to this employee as it was practically certain that he would have to quarantine on his return, given the destination he was going to. Their reasoning was also that they “couldn’t lose the money” so went anyway. I’ve had his wife complaining and lots of PA posts about employers needing to be understanding.

Of course it was their prerogative to decide to travel abroad, and ultimately their choice. However, if you chose to go on holiday at the moment then you have to be aware of the potential risks (e.g. the risk of having to quarantine on return if required- which can change at little notice) and prepared to take the consequences of the decisions you make.

It’s clearly different if you need time off as you have to isolate due to unwittingly coming into contact with someone who has been infected, or if you/a family member have developed symptoms or tested positive and need to quarantine. That is not predictable or something that can be helped. Choosing to go on holiday knowing you are likely to/may have to quarantine on your return and then expecting to be granted an extra 2 weeks (or however many days) paid leave is unfair.

I completely agree. My employer has changed their policy regarding holidays and employers must now (since mid July) advise management of any foreign travel in writing at least 7 days prior to the leave. Failure to do so may be considered as gross misconduct. The options, which are dependent on work availability are work from home (not available to all) extra holidays to cover the quarantine period or unpaid leave.
Anyone who goes abroad knows there is a risk so cannot be surprised when employers, who have a duty of care to other employees, insist they stay away from the office for the full quarantine period

We have stuck to quarantine completely for the first week and taken a couple of remote walks the last couple of days (we live right near some little used footpaths) because I was going crazy so we decided the very small risk was worth it!

The thing is though, you’re not taking that risk for you, you’re taking it for other people who may really not think the risk is worth it. I’m utterly fed up with restrictions but can’t see a way out for as long as folk decide for whatever reason that the rules don’t apply to them.

If we all just followed the laws and regulations that we feel make sense society wouldn't work very well.

We went to Greece and didn’t need to, but I know people who have been other places and chose not to. A friend came back from France Saturday and asked if we wanted to join them for a meal out yesterday....!

We have 2 days of quarantine left. We haven't left the house at all! We went to Canada and also did 14 days quarantine there too. Im finding it much easier in my own home.