Families going on holiday face an 'unaffordable' £1,000 bill for coronavirus testing, research reveals
Families given the green light to go on holiday face paying £1,000 for coronavirus testing, research reveals.
Consumer champion Which? found that the cost of tests for holidaymakers is unaffordable for many families.
An unvaccinated traveller on a return trip to Spain currently requires four tests totalling an estimated £233 per person – or £932 for a family of four.
Families given the green light to go on holiday face paying £1,000 for coronavirus testing
It comes as Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced fully vaccinated travellers and under-18s will not be required to quarantine on return to the UK from July 19.
Under the new rules, vaccinated travellers to green and amber list destinations need to pay for a lateral flow test before travelling home and a PCR test on or before day two of return. Children aged five and over will also need to be tested.
The cost to a fully vaccinated family of four travelling to France would be £532. For an unvaccinated traveller to Italy, tests would cost £177 – £708 for a family of four, according to Which?.
Mr Shapps yesterday warned that people should ‘expect more disruption than usual’ due to Covid-related inspections after the easing on July 19.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced fully vaccinated travellers and under-18s will not be required to quarantine on return to the UK from July 19. Pictured: Barcelona on Friday
He said most of the queuing will be before departure back to England, with checks on passenger locator forms, pre-departure tests and a booked post-arrival test.
‘The place to expect queues is the airport you are coming from,’ he told BBC Breakfast. But Lucy Moreton, spokesman for Immigration Services Union said peak UK border queues could be up to six hours with Covid inspections.
n Officials are ‘actively working’ on ways to help expats by accepting jab certificates from other countries, the Transport Secretary said last night, after it emerged the new quarantine rules would only apply to NHS jabs.
