First HIV 'home testing' kit goes on sale in UK

The kit is 99.7% accurate and doesn't require a laboratory to process results

The kit is delivered by post (BioSURE UK / Youtube)

The first HIV home testing kit to be approved for use in the UK has gone on sale today.

The kit, made by the company BioSure UK, can provide results within 15 minutes and does not require a laboratory to check results.

Available online for £29.95, the package includes a syringe and other equipment and requires a single drop of blood to operate.

The test administrated by the kit is 99.7% accurate and is the first to bear the European ‘CE’ mark of regulatory approval.

The company warns on its website however that the kit may not detect HIV infections that have been contracted in the past three months.

“BioSure HIV Self Test has gone through extensive scrutiny and is the only product approved for sale in the UK,” the company says on its website.

“It is the only self testing device to legally carry the CE mark. This means you can have complete confidence and trust in your test and your result.”

People who test positive with the kit are directed to a doctor who will then conduct a follow-up test to confirm the result.

The product is not available in Northern Ireland, where such home kits are outlawed.

Free HIV tests can be obtained on the NHS across the UK.