10 Paternity Test Mistakes to Avoid
Published February 13, 2026 · Medically reviewed by the partner laboratory's medical director, AABB-accredited relationship-testing laboratory
The most common paternity test mistakes are: eating within 30 minutes of swabbing, cross-contaminating samples, using an unaccredited lab, choosing a kit with fewer than 30 markers, sealing wet swabs, mislabeling samples, testing without all participants consenting, and treating a home test as court-admissible.
Sample-side mistakes
1) Eating, drinking, or brushing within 30 minutes. 2) Not air-drying the swab before sealing. 3) Cross-contaminating by handling multiple swabs at once. 4) Mislabeling the envelopes.
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Provider-side mistakes
5) Using an unaccredited lab. 6) Choosing a kit with fewer than 30 STR markers. 7) Believing a $15 drugstore price is the total cost.
Process mistakes
8) Testing without all adults' consent. 9) Assuming a home test is court-admissible (it isn't — use the $249 legal test). 10) Not keeping a backup swab in case of a re-run.