Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Covid

Mumsnet doesn't verify the qualifications of users. If you have medical concerns, please consult a healthcare professional.

Original poster

In a really horrible situation here

129 replies

Realitea · 20/07/2021 20:50

I was asked if I could let in a repairman tomorrow to a friends house. They have Airbnb guests there but they have to go early due to the appliance breaking down
I was told they’d gone though
Went past there earlier and the guests were still there. After talking to them it turns out they’re leaving early because they’ve tested positive for covid. Wtf! I wasn’t warned and I was standing right there talking to them!
I told my friend and they apologised but they really want the appliance fixed and know the repairman won’t go in if there’s been covid in the house.
So I’m still expected to go in and this poor guy is too.
At the time I just said I will but I’m getting more and more annoyed about this. I don’t want to be part of this and put myself at risk.
Would it be wrong to just say tonight that actually I’m not ok with this?
I’ve been very anxious about getting covid and now feel like I’ve been tricked almost. Also if I have to isolate I’ll lose a lot of money as my job can’t be done from home and I’m self employed.

OP posts:
spinachandchickpea · 20/07/2021 23:01

So your ‘friend’ is willing for you and the repair guy to catch covid? That’s no friend. I hope you didn’t go in and told your ‘friend’ where to go. Some people are horrendous.

WingingItSince1973 · 20/07/2021 23:08

Never in a million years would any friend of mine do this to me and visa versa. Its absolutely disgusting! What a selfish person! Knowing her guests has covid and expecting you and a tradesman have contact with them. Its mind blowing!

DancyNancy · 20/07/2021 23:11

Really shitty thing to do. If she had just told you the real situation you could have made the decision yourself and gone in all masked and suited etc if you wished to go ahead with the job. I'm not crazy insane about covid and wouldn't mind cleaning once I knew about it and could act accordingly. but I would never take that decision away from someone else.

ThumbWitchesAbroad · 20/07/2021 23:16

Yes, you have done the right thing and I hope you know the repairman to let him know too!

littlefireseverywhere · 20/07/2021 23:26

That’s just not on. Friend is selfish. You’re right to stay away.

canary1 · 20/07/2021 23:33

This person is no friend to you. What an outrageous thing to do to you. You should absolutely not help, and I cannot even think of what sort of apology could be accepted in this scenario. Unbelievable.i hope you are ok. Take care of yourself.

Lalliella · 20/07/2021 23:33

This is dreadful OP. Your friend has knowingly put you at risk. She is no friend. Don’t tell her you’re not letting the repairman in just don’t do it. Tell him when he turns up, unless you’re able to cancel him in advance.

Lalliella · 20/07/2021 23:36

Sorry didn’t rtft. Well done OP, you look after yourself and your friend can do one.

Lemonmelonsun · 21/07/2021 00:04

Op well done, I hope its a misunderstanding of some sort but imagine how you would have felt to yourself, not saying anything, this feeling you have now is worth more than than ££

GreenFingersWouldBeHandy · 21/07/2021 00:10

She is not your friend.

PrettyLittleFlies · 21/07/2021 00:31

I agree that the woman's conduct was appalling. In some countries it would be deemed criminal.

What strikes me though is your fear in standing up to her. You did it so well done but please don't ever be afraid to do whatever it takes to keep yourself safe. Any decent person will respect this. If they don't then that's your signal to exclude them from your life.

victoriaspongecake · 21/07/2021 00:38

How are you going to catch covid if the guests have left?
Presumably they will have been clean and cleaned up themselves ready for leaving?
Are you planning on licking all the surfaces they may have touched?
Surely just use common sense and sensible hand washing precautions as you would normally?

PrettyLittleFlies · 21/07/2021 00:43

@victoriaspongecake

How are you going to catch covid if the guests have left? Presumably they will have been clean and cleaned up themselves ready for leaving? Are you planning on licking all the surfaces they may have touched? Surely just use common sense and sensible hand washing precautions as you would normally?
You can catch it from surfaces. If the OP went in right after guests had left she is very much exposed. Surface infection is not at all uncommon especially with the delta variant.
victoriaspongecake · 21/07/2021 00:57

You can catch it from surfaces. If the OP went in right after guests had left she is very much exposed. Surface infection is not at all uncommon especially with the delta variant.

Well don’t put your hands in your mouth and wash your hands when you come out???

beautifullymad · 21/07/2021 01:29

It's airborne firstly. Your biggest risk was being in close proximity talking to the guests.

I wouldn't be letting a repair man into the property until it's fully aired and surfaces wiped down. If you have a decent PP3 mask I'd dash in and open all windows and doors for a few hours. Then Go back and close them later.
I'd then go in to do the cleaning for the handover on the Thursday and get the engineer in on that Thursday too. You've minimised risk by doing this. The virus will be pretty inactive by then.

They really needed to have warned you so you weren't standby chatting to them too closely. I'm just hoping the guests who knew they were covid positive took mitigating steps to protect you.

PrettyLittleFlies · 21/07/2021 01:35

@victoriaspongecake

You can catch it from surfaces. If the OP went in right after guests had left she is very much exposed. Surface infection is not at all uncommon especially with the delta variant.

Well don’t put your hands in your mouth and wash your hands when you come out???

Sure, because that advice has worked so well. You must be an epidemiologist.
Original poster
Realitea · 21/07/2021 05:37

It’s in the air so obviously there’ll be a risk
We also touched the gate a few times that they would’ve used as we didn’t know
The biggest risk was when we spoke to them (by ‘we’ I mean me and my dc’s)
I can’t believe i was put at risk like this. Couldn’t sleep at all last night.

OP posts:
squiglet111 · 21/07/2021 05:54

I'd be very angry op. Definitely refuse to clean at weekend. Your friend was out of order to not tell you and letting you risk yourself. Why aren't they risking themselves? I'd also tell them you'd report them to the police for not telling the workman that covid has been in the house. What she's done is immoral.

Hopefully you will be ok. But with Delta it's hard to know as it's quite transmissable.

The main concern is that she gets someone else to let workman in or someone else to clean that doesn't know. The cleaning might be ok on weekend as the people would have left by now right? So that's about 3 days for the virus to dissipate. Even so, not sure how long the virus can remain on surfaces for.

junebirthdaygirl · 21/07/2021 06:33

Most of us have spent the past year trying to protect total strangers and you have someone who knows you well throw you into an infectious situation deliberately. The selfishness is unreal. I hope you feel well today and your children too.

Dontjudgeme101 · 21/07/2021 06:45

I am really sorry to hear this op. She is not your friend. Your a good person. I really hope that you and the children don’t get Covid. Definitely, do not clean the property and the worker/company need to know about the Covid situation and they need to do a risk assessment before he potentially comes to work there.

Eddielzzard · 21/07/2021 06:56

Wow that's really not on. I wouldn't have anything to do with your friend anymore. That's really unacceptable. Good luck Flowers

WeRTheOnesWeHaveBeenWaitingFor · 21/07/2021 07:01

You are very unlikely to have caught covid if you were outside and only had a brief conversation. It’s not impossible but it’s unlikely. That’s not the point though. Your friend lied to you because they knew you’d be uncomfortable with the truth. She cares more about her profit than her friends and people she works with. I’d be seriously reconsidering this friendship.

BrightYellowDaffodil · 21/07/2021 07:10

@PrettyLittleFlies You can catch it from surfaces. If the OP went in right after guests had left she is very much exposed. Surface infection is not at all uncommon especially with the delta variant.

Do you want to quote some research for that? Because all the research I’ve read shows that there is very little, if no, chance of surface transmission in a real life situation. As far as I’m aware from said research, instances of surface infection are vanishingly rare.

Santastealer · 21/07/2021 07:15

@Realitea

I’m also supposed to be cleaning this place at the weekend. Not sure now if I want to or feel safe doing that after having been duped today. However I do clean these types of places for a living. For all I know I could’ve come into contact with lots of covid positive people having stayed at holiday homes and not known it.
Put on some good quality PPE and I’m sure you will be fine. If possible get the windows open and leave the property for a good few hours to air out before you spend a longer period of time there.

If you are already the cleaner then I would let the workman in, but with a full disclosure that the last residents tested positive. He can then make his own informed decision. I would put PPE on and give the appliance a wipe down too.

As you say you’ve likely cleaned other places with asymptomatic cases in.

LIZS · 21/07/2021 07:26

Your chances of catching it via touching a gate or speaking in passing outdoors is very low. Not worth losing sleep over. You cannot change this but you can minimise future exposure. Why were they returning home anyway, should they not have been isolating in the accommodation? Agree chances are you have unwittingly cleaned similar before now.