Currently, the UK government (MHRA) have ordered a pause on all laboratories processing samples taken from a self-administered finger prick test while further validation is carried out.

Although our lab partner has processed thousands of self-administered blood samples for other types of tests, they must follow this instruction from MHRA and stop processing self-administered samples for the time being.

As a result we're not currently able to offer our usual home kit method. However we're pleased to be able to send one of our highly skilled nurses to your home to take the blood sample for you, to enable us to continue offering this service. Our nurses are provided with appropriate PPE to carry out your visit safely. The nurse visit costs £45, which takes the total cost of the test to £114 (the rest of the testing process costs £69). As soon as we are allowed to, we will resume offering a home kit collection method.

Sorry we cannot currently offer you a home visit from one of our nurses if you or anyone you live with is following shielding advice as a result of a health condition. We are reviewing the government guidance regarding shielding regularly and will update this as we can.

Once your order is processed, our nurse network will receive your booking and a nurse local to you will be in touch to arrange their visit at a time that suits you. Please be aware that we are seeing delays in nurse availability in certain areas of the country. If you have not received a booking confirmation within 10 days, please contact us.

In the meantime, we will send you in the post all the kit the nurse will need to take your sample. You don't need to do anything with this, except keep it safe and then provide it to the nurse when they arrive. Please make absolutely sure you provide us with correct contact details so the nurse can contact you to arrange their visit.

Our nurses are following a covid-19 protocol and are provided with PPE to carry out the visit and procedure as safely as possible.

The covid-19 antibody test is a finger-prick blood test which looks for the presence of IgG antibodies. These antibodies are produced by your immune system in response to having the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the virus which causes covid-19 in humans. It can therefore provide evidence that a person has been exposed to the virus.

The results will either be positive to the IgG antibodies - indicating you’ve had covid-19; or negative to them - indicating you haven’t. A very small percentage of results are classed as borderline . A borderline result means the test picked up a very low level of antibodies in your blood, but not enough to give a positive result. It may mean that you took the test too soon after infection, you may choose to purchase another test and repeat it.

LiveSmart provides more than just a positive or negative result. When you purchase our covid-19 IgG antibody test you will also receive a comprehensive health report which is tailored to your unique circumstances; written by our dietitians. This is packed with evidence based suggestions and ideas to support your health, whether that's how to improve your diet or exercise levels, or support to manage stress or sleep. We know that both long and short term health is impacted by our every day lifestyle choices and we want to support you in becoming the healthiest version of yourself.

You also have the option to upgrade your order once you have your results to include a telephone call with one of our GPs. That way, if you have any further questions or concerns, we can put your mind at ease.

This test is not for people who currently have symptoms of covid-19. You should take this test 21 days after your suspected exposure to the virus. This is because in the early days of infection the body’s immune response is still building and so antibodies may not yet be present to be detected.

Remember if you currently have symptoms of covid-19 such as a high temperature or a new, continuous cough - the advice is to stay at home and self-isolate for 7 days. All members of your household should remain at home for 14 days. If you are currently unwell and need medical advice, you should contact your GP or NHS111. This test is not an emergency service.

The test is not suitable for people who have low immunity or a health condition which affects their immune health. It is also not suitable for people currently taking medication which suppresses immune function.

Symptoms of covid-19 vary from person to person, but include the following:

• Raised temperature or fever
• Cough
• Muscle pains and aches
• More breathless than usual
• More confused than usual
• Unusual fatigue or tiredness
• Problems with sense of smell or taste
• Diarrhoea
• Sore throat
• Runny or blocked nose
• Some individuals are asymptomatic - that is they have had covid-19 without any symptoms of the virus

You’ll start by answering some pre-screening questions to make sure that it’s appropriate for you to take the test right now. Then you’ll purchase/order the test and answer a detailed online health questionnaire which helps our clinical team to interpret your results.

You’ll be sent your home kit test by first class post and take the sample from the comfort of your home. There's a video below which explains how to take the sample via a finger-prick - it's not as scary as it sounds! Post your sample back to our lab using the packaging provided.

Once your results are returned to us our clinical team will review the results and write your report. Posting your sample to getting your results should take 7-10 working days at most, but we will work hard to get your results to you sooner if possible.

You’ll get an email telling you when your report is ready and you’ll be able to log in to your account to view the results. You can then purchase and book a results consultation call with one of our doctors if you’d still like further information, no matter the result of the test.

The test can only show the presence or absence of IgG antibodies produced in response to exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus (the virus which causes covid-19). It cannot show any other details such as exactly when you were exposed to it, or if you are immune to future infection with covid-19.

If your IgG test is positive it means you have had covid-19 and made antibodies to the virus. There is currently no scientific evidence confirming if the presence of antibodies correlates to immunity.

If your IgG test is negative, it means you have not had covid-19 or been exposed sufficiently to make an antibody response.

A very small percentage of results are classed as borderline . A borderline result means the test picked up a very low level of antibodies in your blood, but not enough to give a positive result. It may mean that you took the test too soon after infection, you may choose to purchase another test and repeat it.

Either way, you can purchase a telephone consultation with one of our doctors to discuss your results further if you’d like. This is arranged once you have your results.

There are still a lot of unknowns about how the body’s production of antibodies translates to immunity to the disease, or for how long. Therefore it is not possible to say that a positive result to the antibody test means you are immune to covid-19.

Research is currently underway to determine how the immune system responds to covid-19. We will update our guidance accordingly as scientific understanding of immunity develops.

Whatever the results of your antibody test, you must continue to follow the government guidance for managing the covid-19 pandemic, including all current social distancing instructions. You may wish to share your result with your employer but you are under no obligation to. Your employer should also follow current government guidance regarding attending workplaces.

Covid-19 is termed a ‘notifiable disease’ by Public Health England (PHE). This means that the lab may be required to report positive cases to PHE in order to support the efforts to monitor the spread of covid-19 and bring the disease under control. There are currently no requirements to report individual results of IgG antibody testing to PHE, but we are monitoring this closely.

The test kit we are using is manufactured by Abbott and has been reported to be 100% sensitive and 99.9% specific; this meets (and exceeds) the approval criteria from the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). This validation was carried out on over 1,000 samples to date.

Our laboratory partner has also carried out their own validation and reports 98.5% sensitivity and 99.5% specificity. This means that among 100 people who have had covid-19, 1.5 of these people will get a negative result to the antibodies (called a false negative). Out of 100 people who have not had covid-19, 0.5 of these people will get a positive result to the antibodies (a false positive)

The test is analysed at our laboratory partner who are UKAS and CQC accredited. Laboratory testing such as this is the gold standard vs the rapid home test kits that have had accuracy problems. We are confident that we are offering a high quality, accurate test that is fit for purpose and is clearly superior to other covid-19 tests available.

The IgG antibody test detects antibodies to covid-19, which develop following the onset of symptoms. This test is a finger prick blood test which is analysed at our laboratory and can tell you whether you’ve had covid-19 in the past (as it is performed 21 days after the onset of symptoms). The test and our laboratory partner report very high levels of accuracy (see ‘What is the accuracy of LiveSmart’s covid-19 antibody test?’ above) and we are confident that this provides our customers with one of the most accurate and reliable results currently available on the market.

The nose/throat swab (called the PCR RNA test) will show you if you currently have covid-19 and is the test being performed by the NHS in hospitals and at drive through test centres. LiveSmart are not currently providing this test because it's very difficult to self-administer so providing it via a home kit for customers to perform themselves is not ideal. If you would like to learn more about getting and taking a PCR test, visit the UK government website.

The rapid antibody tests (that provide a quick result at the point of taking the blood sample) are not yet providing an accurate enough result for us to rely on them. Estimates suggest they achieve a sensitivity of only 30% in some cases. These tests are not yet approved for use in the UK.

We only provide this test alongside our comprehensive lifestyle analysis. Answering our short questionnaire allows us to provide you with the very best current guidance to maintain your health throughout what is an uncertain and anxious time. The information you give us allows our clinical team to give you tailored advice to support your health both long and short term, whether or not you find you have had covid-19. Data already shows that people with certain pre-existing health conditions are more vulnerable to serious complications from covid-19. It is reasonable to assume that taking care of your health as best as you can, and modifying your lifestyle to manage health conditions where that’s possible, may go some way to reduce the risk of this in future.

No, all individuals should register for an account and purchase a test separately, so they can read all the relevant information themselves and make an informed decision to take the test. It is not possible to order a test for a child under the age of 18.

We are not taking away capacity from the NHS, we are using private laboratory capacity, which is not currently being used by the NHS. Furthermore, in a clinical environment, the most useful clinical test is the PCR RNA test which tests ‘do I currently have covid-19’. This is the test being used primarily by the NHS to support key workers returning to work, not the IgG antibody test. (See the FAQ above on different types of testing for more information).