Tom Kyle and Des Hinault flew from Jersey to Guernsey yesterday morning, but were told on arrival that they did not have the necessary test result to be allowed to enter the island without isolating.
The two men, who travelled independently on the 7.30am flight with Blue Islands, said that details about the requirements for arriving passengers were not adequately spelled out.
Currently, people travelling from Jersey to Guernsey must provide evidence on arrival of a negative result from a PCR test or supervised lateral-flow test.
Mr Kyle, an engineer who travels regularly to Guernsey to conduct health-and-safety inspections, and Mr Hinault, who was due to be taking part in agricultural and horticultural event the West Show, were told that because they had not taken a test, they could only enter the island after isolating for 14 days.
Mr Kyle said: ‘It needs to be made clearer and I wouldn’t want anyone else finding themselves in the same situation – it would be horrendous if it was a family with kids who were treated like this.’
After being given the option of returning to Jersey, the men – who are both fully vaccinated – were told that there were no flights until tomorrow, and subsequently booked onto yesterday afternoon’s 4.30pm Commodore Clipper sailing.
Mr Kyle was critical of the ‘confusing’ information provided to passengers by the Guernsey authorities. He also said that Blue Islands did not spell out the entry protocols to passengers before they left Jersey.
‘They don’t seem to have a protocol in place [in Guernsey] for this type of situation,’ he said, adding: ‘The whole process needs to be made a lot clearer.’
Although he admitted not having the necessary pre-travel test, Mr Kyle said this was as a result of confusing information on the States of Guernsey website.
‘The Customs people were waiting for advice from public health, and the police didn’t seem sure either. People were trying to show us the information online but even then they were clicking on the wrong section because there were so many different links and it was hard to navigate,’ he said.
A spokesperson for Blue Islands said the airline regretted any inconvenience suffered by passengers, but pointed out that information regarding border protocols was available on the home page of its website and was regularly updated.
A States of Guernsey spokesperson said there was a requirement for inbound travellers from Jersey to provide evidence on arrival of a negative result from a PCR test or supervised lateral-flow test.
They said: ‘This regulation is widely publicised and full details can be found on the States of Guernsey website.
‘Guernsey Airport has a temporary facility where inbound travellers can choose to isolate if they are required to do so. There are a number of separate booths for this purpose, with access to toilet facilities and drinking water, and food provided on request.
‘Anyone having to isolate in this manner is also given the opportunity to transfer to a hotel to see out their isolation if they wish.’
