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The NHS website for booking coronavirus tests is struggling to cope with the number of requests, adding more problems to those already accumulated by the government’s test and trace scheme.
People in the UK trying to book a test for Covid-19 online are directed, once they have passed the screening questions to ensure they qualify for the test, to a specially designed website where, in theory, they can reserve a home test kit or a road test or driving test. However, in practice, an increasing number of users report errors on the site itself that prevent them from even trying to book a trial.
Some visitors receive a message saying “this service is currently very busy” and advising them that “more tests should be available later”. There are no more options on that screen.
Other visitors have reported a more pernicious bug. If the website loads correctly initially, users can switch between road tests and road tests. But if it fails during the switchover, no error message will be displayed to users; instead, they will simply be told that no evidence is available. However, the error message can be viewed using web developer tools.
The Department of Health and Social Assistance has not responded to a request for comment.
Since the tests were released in April, the kits have been in short supply, and anyone trying to book a home test is often told that they are not available at all.
Since test drives are also rare, even when the website for booking them works as intended, some families have been informed that they can outperform the system by booking tests hundreds of miles away.
“We got to the testing center and the site staff asked, ‘How many tests do you want?'” Ellie Bell, from southwest London, told The Guardian on Monday. “They got us to get a QR code by booking a trial in Aberdeen, thereby fabricating a zip code to fool the system, and then they used those codes to drive our trials. Negative test results came in the next morning. “
By Wednesday, the government had closed that loophole, with a guide advising test center staff to no longer accept QR codes from other centers. The new guidance from the Department of Health and Social Care issued to the test sites has prohibited staff from “processing assigned appointments on different sites,” according to reports.
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