Checking we’ve got it right and when we’re allowed out.

[nameychange]

So, we went out for a meal on Saturday the 10th with friends. No one had any of three main symptoms. One of the friends then took a test on Tuesday 13th which came back positive on the Wednesday. T&T email on the 14th stated to self isolate until 26th. Household starts to self isolate. Wednesday I developed temp and cough and managed to get a test that day, results came back negative on Friday. So therefore no addition isolation for my household.

So we think we are free to go out on the 26th as per the T&T although we think is in a error anyway as our T&T contact date is the 10th meaning our 14 isolation would be up on the 24th!

Really don’t want to risk a fine but equally have some important to go on the 26th which we think were ok to go to,

Well 24 days from th 10th does seem to be the 24th.

I personally feel that your negative test is wrong if you've been around someone with symptoms and you then have the exact same ones. It seems a bit weird that it's something else ?! But you have a negative test so I guess you go with that.
I know am entire family who had it with all the symtoms and only one of them got a positive test (the one with the least symptoms as well!) So 4 out of 5 were most likely wrong.

Anyway you seem to be right with your dates but I'm not sure where you'd stand If you went against t&t but I mean also...who's actually checking?!

I'm glad you're well now and your time would indeed be up on 24th either way (14 days from seeing your friend, 10 days post-symptoms), though legally 26th as that's the date you've been given. 20% false negatives and 21-32 times more likely to have covid if you've had contact with someone else who's had it; there is a chance that you've had it and your household should be isolating because of close contact with you. Others in your household could develop symptoms / be infectious up until 28th. So theoretically you can go out on 24th, legally you can go out on 26th and morally your household members would be doing anyone they might otherwise meet a favour if they stayed in the couple of extra days to 28th.

Glad that others think it’s not clear. It’s driving me mad trying to rationalise that I’m not doing anything legally wrong by going to the apt we have on the 26th, just feels slightly morally wrong that my test may have been incorrect and therefore whilst I’d be free on the 24th my household would have to isolate until the 28th.

Your household might not have been infected, or might have had it asymptomatically and not over it. I guess the thing to consider is who you're meeting. If they knew, would they want you taking that small risk with their health or not?

The issue is based on my test result we have no justifiable reason to cancel. I agree that there is the small risk but the apt will have been COVID checked too so that will be minimised risk.

Why is this so hard!

@nameychange

The issue is based on my test result we have no justifiable reason to cancel. I agree that there is the small risk but the apt will have been COVID checked too so that will be minimised risk.

Why is this so hard!

Oh if you'll be covid tested again for your appointment then I'd go by the 14 days I guess.

Sorry, wasn’t clear we wouldn’t be COVID tested again for the apt but the set up at the apt would be done to minimise the risk. So 2m apart, no face to face, masks etc

I guess my feeling is that is we weren’t on annual leave next week (prebooked ages ago) then DH and myself would be be in work as again no justifiable reason not to and work wouldn’t take the we’re being extra careful just in case the test was wrong.

Is it a medical or dental appt? I'd let them know and offer to come a couple of days later, they might prefer to accommodate it. It's fairly low risk by that stage if everyone's being careful with PPE anyway, but it's good that you're being thoughtful.

Have you been told to isolate 'until' 26th, which means you can go to your appointment or 'up to and including 26th' which would mean you would have to reschedule.?

It’s not med/dent and whilst it could be rearranged would be easier not too but would if we had too.

The messages says stay at home until the 26th, have equally agonised about what this means too!

I’m a bit of a worrier!

26th is correct. It's 14 days from the start of the person symptoms, not the test or contact.

If the test was on the Tuesday the symptoms probably started Monday.

12 + 14 =26th

My daughter got symptoms and a test on the 12th and our isolation ends 26th, to be allowed out again 27th.

The first of many text messages from T&T says the isolation is 14 days from the date of your contact. A later one gave the date which then had no bearing on the contact date, but the T&T contacts test date.

Should add we don’t live with the positive tester.

It sounds most likely that the date of the contact was wrong in the T&T people, and that's why they think the 26th date is the relevant one, ie some confusion/mistake in entering the date of your contact when the positive person was informing them of their contacts.

Generally I agree with MREX, and you could possibly clarify the date of contacts with T&T if you really needed to the legality between the 24th and 26th,

I think that might be the case - the wrong date somewhere in the system. I know who the contact is so I know when we saw them and all the texts have the same ref code. It’s not helped that the wording isn’t clear either. Does ‘until’ mean including or up to? Is it any wonder people aren't complying!

I’m just worried about a fine if I get it wrong.