Cookie policy

A cookie is a small text file a website stores in your browser. Browser storage (local and session storage) does a similar job without a cookie. The law that covers both in the UK is the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR), which says we need your consent before we store or read anything on your device unless it is strictly necessary for something you have asked for. UK GDPR then governs what we do with any personal data that results.

• The first time you visit, a short notice explains that this shop only uses necessary cookies. Choose OK to close it. There is nothing optional to accept, so nothing optional is set.
• If we ever want to use analytics or advertising cookies here, we will update this page first and ask you, with Reject all and Accept all equally easy to choose.
• If your browser sends the Global Privacy Control signal we treat it as a no to optional cookies and never show the notice.
• Your answer is shared across privatetests.co.uk and your patient account so you are asked once, not on every subdomain. Closing the notice here counts as a no to optional cookies in your patient account too, and you can change that in its cookie settings.
• If we materially change what we set, we ask again rather than relying on an old answer.

Withdrawing is as easy as giving. Use the Cookie settings control in the footer of every page, or here: Cookie settings. It clears your stored answer and shows the notice again. You can also delete cookies through your browser settings.

A page about a specific test or a Journal article says something about what you are worried about. Whatever you choose, we never join a page like that to a stored identifier: our own storefront analytics count actions and broad page groups without a browser identifier, specific test names or search text. Google Analytics, advertising tags and session recording are disabled on this storefront. Our first-party performance measurements do not use analytics cookies.

Always on. Without these the things you asked for cannot work, so no consent is needed.

• pt_analytics_consent

  Set by

  privatetests

  What it does

  Records your answer to the cookie question so we do not ask again.

  Lasts

  12 months

• pt_session_v2

  Set by

  privatetests

  What it does

  Keeps you signed in to your account after you use a sign-in link.

  Lasts

  Until you sign out, or 30 days

• pt_cart_v2, pt_cart_route, pt_checkout_details, pt_checkout_logistics, pt_checkout_email, pt_booking

  Set by

  privatetests (browser storage, not a cookie)

  What it does

  Your basket, the collection method you chose, and the details, email address and appointment or delivery you chose at checkout, so nothing is lost if you refresh or come back from the payment page.

  Lasts

  Basket: until cleared. Checkout details: this browser session

• __stripe_mid, __stripe_sid

  Set by

  Stripe, on the payment page

  What it does

  Fraud prevention while you pay. Set on Stripe's own checkout page, which handles your card details. We never see them.

  Lasts

  1 year / 30 minutes

No optional analytics cookies or persistent analytics identifiers are set by this storefront. Aggregate first-party action counts and performance measurements do not include your search text or specific test names.

• pt_sid

  Set by

  privatetests patient portal (browser storage, not a cookie)

  What it does

  Only if you accept analytics in the patient portal: a random identifier that lets us see where people get stuck across a visit. Never used on results, orders, trends, consent or ID-check pages.

  Lasts

  Until you withdraw consent or clear your browser storage

We do not currently set any advertising cookies. If that changes, this page and the banner will be updated first and you will be asked again.

Write to our data-protection contact at privacy@privatetests.co.uk. You can also complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office at ico.org.uk.