Covid Testing -Is this a Scam ? The London Medical Laboratory Ltd Post Reply

[forfun]

I was extremely worried by what I saw this weekend off Nightingale Lane. There was a cheap  'tent' [which was something one would buy at B&Q ] erected in a church carpark next to the bins [?! ]  for several hours offering Covid tests to the public who had prepaid . No proper signage, no social distancing markings n the ground, no-one seeing people in and out of the carpark, and kids running around playing in the area.  If this is a private company offering tests outside, then are they profiteering from these vulnerable people who attended?
I suspect so.
This is very worrying that they are doing this on private land and not in a controlled environment. 
This is the company : https://www.londonmedicallaboratory.co.uk
They have a smart website with photos of so called professionals,  and Harley Street 'stock photo shots', although their offices are registered in Stockwell and have nothing to do with Harley Street.
One has to email to get the price list. 
There are now 3 reviews today saying that customers  haven't received their tests, or haven't been offered anything . No-one answers the phone when you call. 
I fear that there could be many of these clinics popping up at present, offering private expensive services that aren't properly regulated as there could be legal loopholes at present? In light of this being such an infectious disease, surely this is alarming that they are practicing in unregulated areas. 
I noticed that at the end of their testing day, the testers unzipped their suits and were drinking water out of bottles-no safe disposal of their testing suits first-totally unbelievable. 
Does anyone know anything about this company or can shed any light  -the reviews aren't great either -I wonder if the company has disappeared already? I hope my fears are unfounded   as this is surely very dangerous in this current climate. 

[chorister]

Almost certainly a scam - their website says they are regulated by the CQC but there doesn't seem to be any reference to them on the CQC website.  I think you should call the police.

[forfun]

Thanks for looking this up-it appears they are in the 'history' and  have been with the CQC since 2017 but haven't been inspected to date, which is strange ? Thankfully I believe they are now not testing at this particular site anymore.  I think they are purporting to trying to help the NHS with some testing
[ which perhaps they are ],  but they certainly don't appear to be doing it in a very safely controlled way, which is worrying. 
I wonder how many of these 'pop up Covid shops' are appearing around the country as I write? 
There most certainly needs to be stricter regulations about where people can go to be tested, with proper signs , markings and regulators - otherwise it is surely preying on the most vulnerable and putting more people at risk? 

[chorister]

Where did you find it on the CQC website re 'history'?  I couldn't find any reference to them.

[forfun]

Here :  https://www.cqc.org.uk/provider/1-4035892777/services

[Thefridge]

I used these guys for an antibody test. Did it via post. The kit was fine. It looked professional and I got a result via email. Their phone and email does indeed work because I had to chase them.

[chorister]

Which antibody test did they offer?  Was it approved by a credible regulator?  Most of them don't work (they return too many false positive / negatives ie their specificity and sensitivity aren't good enough).

[forfun]

Thefridge-thats good to know -thank you for your comments -I am guessing they do this via post or through  private doctors then and are the middle men who supply the kits and deliver samples and results from labs? Not great to hear that you had to chase them for results as that is exactly  what the online bad reviews also said.
I can't imagine they erect tents as normal practice ? This is the part that also worries me as there appears to be no regulators to oversee what they are doing ie. safe surroundings , protection  etc. 
The kits you mention are DIY swab tests and pinprick blood texts from £99 to £149 each and are not [as far as I am aware, but I am happy to be corrected!] ]  the new certified Roche ones -so are they even reliable ? 
More precise info is required which I have asked, but seems hard to get any proper answers from them. 
The tests that the Gov originally said we would all hopefully get through Amazon/Boots [but unfortunately weren't reliable enough] were going to be £6-£10 -so someone is making a huge profit here out of something that perhaps isn't even certified as being 100% reliable yet, and therefore preying on vulnerable people and families, who might not be able to afford these extreme costs but desperate for some sort of answers-this then begs the question -are we putting more people at risk ?  

[Thefridge]

So these guys offer the Abbott’s Lab antibody test. Abbott’s is a huge $150bil US pharmaceutical company. I did a little research and btw I’m not a medical person but I wanted either an Abbott’s test or Roche which was the other one you mentioned. Both say they 100% can detect antibodies.
Who knows. I just didn’t want one of the Chinese ones that the government rejected! Good luck in your research.

[forfun]

So a week on and some more investigation- aside from not knowing if the DIY blood test that is being offered is 100% reliable, I am medically informed that the swab test is near on impossible to administer properly to oneself  for a reliable result. Unfortunately the swab has to be taken deep into the throat [causing a gag reaction], so most people will not do it properly as it is very uncomfortable . I can personally report the cries from children saying it hurts. If not done properly , this then would give a false reading , thus a false certificate , potentially going onto infecting the public. 
I have sent several emails to the company asking for more info and they don't reply-I believe this to be totally wrong and unethical. I notice that the several 1 star bad reviews have been taken down now and replaced by 5 stars-that is also worrying ?!
Please beware -get a test done by a properly recognised medical practitioner in a controlled area and don't allow companies such as this, to make a situation even worse by potentially giving false readings and blatant profiteering from the public,  in an already  desperate situation.  Are they licenced properly?  

[chorister]

Home Antibody tests have just been banned by the MHRA (today 27 May) because the pinprick blood taken may give a false reading.  If you have had one of these tests then it may be worth finding out more before you rely on the result.

Graeme Tunbridge, the MHRA's Director of Devices, Graeme Tunbridge, said: “People who have purchased one of these sampling kits, and received an antibody test result, should not consider the result to be reliable and should not take any action on it".

[Theinformer]

London Medical Lab is not a scam but they treat their clients **** and needed chasing up for results or refund. They are not UKAS accredited. The guideline says all labs carrying out test related to Covid-19, this means either PCR or antibody should be UKAS accredited. They are doing things illegally Even if you only based on that guideline and looking at that erected tent doesn’t show a good practice. They have been reported to CQC but if that regulator does Their job well, they would have been inspected by now. One could imagine and supposed that it could be because the founder , Dr Seth Rankin, a former NHS commissioner is well-connected. You just have to google to connect the dots. It is sad that with this covid , healthcare professionals are forgetting their duty of care due to money. Oh and if one research, the Abbott test is never 100% and their accuracy is based on the venous sample. That company and the clinics who work with them mislead people by providing wrong information. London medical lab uses a different website and use other clinics where people buy their kits. My relative was directed to a different website in April ,bought one of their service and never got the results and the refund. It makes me feel so sick what they have been doing to the public. I wish I have seen this post and encouraged you to report to the police on that weekend you’ve seen the funny tent. People have been leaving bad reviews since April but they kept removing it. Look at all the reviews they got now, so many have not been treated right . I believe they do not do the fingerprick antibody test now but they still do the PCR, hopefully not in that tent though!

[tim6789]

The Company have a new testing lab in Putney (Upper Richmond Road) and the operation looks legit. The Abbott Test also is one of the reputable ones. They stressed when I went in that they do the test deep in the throat and high up the nose to ensure accuracy. I’m considering a test with them as they seem real and do have a testing lab. They also referred me to another website of theirs.

My local doctors recommend a testing site in Victoria. The NHS booking site points you to Dalston if you want a test with no symptoms!

[Antonu]

I recently purchased a test kit from this company, when it arrived it was empty? No test kit, I paid £150.
Complete scam, they don't answer emails or the phone.
I will take the matter to trading standards.

SCAM, SCAM , SCAM

[Raluca Sandu]

Yes, it's definitely a scam. I ordered a test, it came through post, seemed very professional. Sent it back and never heard from them again. Tried to contact them, no answer. At this point even if they gave me the result I wouldn't trust it.
AVOID THEM