I'm £300 out of pocket for healthcare I can't receive

[ThirteenPicnicBaskets]

I'm in a right state about this, please help.

I decided to book a HPV vaccination via Lloyds Pharmacy Online Doctor. I am not eligible to have it on the NHS as I'm slightly too old, straight and don't identify as a man, but I'd still like to take reasonable steps to protect myself from cervical cancer. It was a bit of a kick in the wallet, but I thought it was something good to do for myself to give me peace of mind.

They accepted my booking, allowed me to select my local pharmacy as venue, did a suitability questionnaire, all good. Payment was taken upfront, paid by credit card.

When I came to book the appointment, my local pharmacy was suddenly not listed as offering the service. I booked one in a pharmacy in the next town over instead. Then, the pharmacy called me to say that all Lloyds pharmacies in Sainsburys are closing in the near future, and since the vaccine is given in 2 doses, they can't do it - you have to have both in the same place.

There are no other pharmacies offering it for miles around. Public transport is unreliable around here and I can't drive, so I'm not sure how I'm supposed to receive what I've paid for. I've contacted them about getting a refund but they don't seem to be responding to messages. The T&Cs say that once you've had the suitability assessment, you have 'no legal right' to a refund - that can't be the case, surely? I haven't received a service, and they advertised it as being available in multiple locations where it clearly isn't.

Do I have any options to get my money back? I can't just write off £300. I wish I'd gone somewhere else.

Trans men are people with XX chromosomes who call themselves by a male name.

So it’s the men with cervixes?

They test for it now at your smear test; started a few years ago.

I had the HPV vaccine in my mid-twenties, several years after I became sexually active. I'm nearly 40 now and have had two HPV-negative results from my smear tests since they started testing for it. PPs saying you need to be a virgin for the vaccine to be worth doing are incorrect. OP do get your money back and then find somewhere else to get the vaccine! Or maybe even ask your GP if they'll do it considering you have HPV-negative results. You never know!

I really hope the NHS / NICE are basing their justification for this policy on sound and thorough medical studies.

Rather than best guesses or ideology.

Just because you've tested negative doesn't mean you don't have it, though.

Sure, but I've had two HPV-negative results. The false rate of HPV negatives is fairly small (and if it wasn't they wouldn't bother using it as a screening method), and so the chances of a false negative are low. Probability-wise, the chances of two false negatives three years apart are even lower.

So yeah, there's an outside chance I may be HPV-positive. But the statistics suggest strongly that a) I am HPV-negative, and b) it was worth me having that vaccine several years after I became sexually active.

Just thought I should mention here, my dd had the vaccinations, I am not in the UK, and if not the in age group 9 - 13 years, we have to do it privately.

As she was 18 when she had it done, she had to have 3 vaccinations to complete the course, not 2.

She had Gardasil, so if this is what you ordered, you will need x 3.

Can you local Lloyds not order in from another branch?

Transmen are women. Women have cervixes.

Damned if I know, but good use of the plural cervices there.

I say ‘cervices’ too. Love a bit of Latin.

Just to update: after a few frustrating interactions, I called customer services again yesterday. today there’s a message in my online account saying they intend to refund me. I’m waiting til the money actually materialises before calling it a good outcome, but things are sounding promising.

Thank you for the level headed advice on the thread, it helped my mental state and credit card awareness considerably. Once I’ve got my refund, going to have a think if it’s worth booking one with Boots - who appear to offer it locally and let you pay at the appointment.