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DD has Covid, due to fly to the States

40 replies

TangointhePark · 12/05/2022 15:03

My DD10 has Covid, she’s been poorly and I did an LFT which was positive. I’m due to fly to the States on Tuesday and have a supervised LFT booked for Monday - what are the chances it’ll be ok? I’m fucked aren’t I?

OP posts:
Pennox · 13/05/2022 13:43

We didn't have to provide any evidence of any testing to check in with BA the week before last?

VeganVampire · 13/05/2022 23:27

Which airport did you fly into?

Pennox · 14/05/2022 00:41

LAX

VeganVampire · 14/05/2022 08:40

That seems so odd, I understand how the occasional one might possibly get missed, but when we left Heathrow a couple of weeks ago there was very obvious queues for those who had completed Verifly to check in quickly and those that hadn't were filling in the paperwork and proving they had negative tests. I don't understand why you chose not to take the tests required and then also managed to get 'missed' at check in when everyone else has been getting tested, even at the airport.

Did you lie on your attestation form and give false details of a negative test? Or did you not need one of those either?

Pennox · 14/05/2022 16:59

We did take the tests required. We checked in online like we always do. The check in process didn't require a completed verifly. The verifly app wasn't working properly on our phones and kept erroring so we couldn't complete it in parallel. As we understood its optional anyway to speed things up, we assumed they'd do a manual check at LHR. When we got to LHR, already checked in, we went to bag drop, left luggage and went through security. The only things anyone wanted to see were the passport and boarding cards, which we printed out the night before.

When we got to the gate (Sunday 1st May) we were a bit worried as no one had asked to see our certificates (test or vax) and we were worried it would be an issue when we got to the US. So we asked the BA person at the gate whilst waiting for the flight to be called. We told her we can't get your recommended verifly app to work, what should we do, do we show you our certificates? (One certified negative lat flow from Express Tests from 3pm the day before and one certified Recovery Certificate from Online Covid Tests). She said, and I quote - "oh don't worry about it, the verifly app is no longer is use and isn't being updated so we know it doesn't currently work properly on Android. All you need to do is fill in the US attestation form here" - and she showed me a link and QR code on her iPad which we scanned and it took us to the US attestation form site (which we didn't even know about depsite research as everything had told us on the BA website etc to use verifly!).

I was a bit surprised so I double checked with her, something like, really? We don't need verifly? And she said, and again I quote, "no, it's obsolete now". I also said do you want to see our certificates? And she said no, no need, just fill in the US attestation form now before you get to the US.

So we filled it in, answering whatever it asked truthfully. I can't remember now what it says but we would have said yes we are fully vaccinated, as we are, and yes we've done negative antigen test in last 24 hours/or have a recovery cert, because we had. But you definitely weren't required to prove that on the attestation form by scanning the vaccine/test/recovery certs like you used to be on the UK passenger locator form.

Then we flew to LAX. Border control, who presumably can see your attestation linked to your passport (along with your ESTA status I presume as no one asks to see that either), then let us through with the usual why are you traveling to the US questions and did not ask to see any certificates. We flew from LAX to Maui the next day, again checking in online with a different airline, and again nobody at either end asked to see any evidence of vaccine status, or recent testing (which wouldn't have been required at that point anyway as domestic flight). We then moved around the islands and again nobody ever asked about covid vaccine status or testing.

My point is perhaps they will also relax the requirements, in the near future, like we have, because they don't seem bothered about checking/evidencing it, like the UK also stopped caring in the weeks before it dropped the testing/passenger locator requirements (I was traveling back from Europe the week before that Friday when all our requirements ended and nobody asked me anything about covid. You were still required to technically do a 2 day test as we returned on the day before requirements were dropped. I did a Radox one. None of my colleagues bothered. No one cared).

SheWoreYellow · 14/05/2022 17:03

Sorry, when you say you did a LFT, was that on you or your daughter?

TangointhePark · 14/05/2022 17:14

On my daughter, but I’ve been doing them on myself since hers was positive - mine have been negative so far.

OP posts:
Pennox · 14/05/2022 17:20

Have you already had covid in the last 90 days? You can apply for a recovery cert as well which would cover you for the trip instead of a lateral flow test the day before?

Coord · 15/05/2022 10:56

Pennox · 14/05/2022 17:20

Have you already had covid in the last 90 days? You can apply for a recovery cert as well which would cover you for the trip instead of a lateral flow test the day before?

Can I ask where you got the recovery cert from please? Glad to hear I can get one of these for a trip to the US I've got coming up.

TangointhePark · 15/05/2022 11:27

Nope I had Covid back in September so out of date for a recovery certificate. DD is fine now was I’ll for 24 hours and DS the same. I’ve been fine and still testing negative so hopefully it’ll be ok.

OP posts:
Pennox · 15/05/2022 21:50

There's lots of providers that do recovery certs, often the same companies that do the testing. The one I used was called C19 testing. You buy it then send them your evidence that's you've had it which is your email or text from the NHS that you get when you got either a positive result from a PCR test, from when they were doing them, or reported a positive LFT on the gov.uk website. Has to be in the last 90 days. Problem of course is if you got a positive LFT and didn't officially report it, which they didn't make clear did they once we stopped bothering ... because then you have no evidence that you had it. After a couple of hours or whatever turnaround time you paid for, you get doctor signed certificate that you've had covid and recovered. I also asked the test centre to send me their official certification as a place that can certify covid recovery, which they did. Then nobody looked at any of it! I also did the certified lateral flow test which was neagtive. I wasn't taking any chance as I'd been positive a few weeks before and was worried someone might make me do a PCR test at some point, which might well have still been positive.

Coord · 16/05/2022 08:29

thanks Pennox, that's really helpful.

TangointhePark · 16/05/2022 10:16

Yay, supervised Covid test is clear thank fuck - can now finish packing!

OP posts:
Pennox · 16/05/2022 10:20

Excellent news!! Have a great trip

worriedatthistime · 17/05/2022 13:44

Ds2 had iT in oct none of us caught it then ds1 had it end of jan and I caught it but dh and ds2 didn't , then dh caught it april and I caught of him again but Both ds never .
It seems very very random

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