Two women have told the BBC they felt forced to use unregulated Facebook groups to find sperm donors because they could not afford fertility treatment. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) warns that such practices carry significant risks and may be illegal.
Chloe, whose name has been changed, and her partner struggled to conceive for a year before being referred to an NHS fertility clinic. Tests revealed a problem with her partner's sperm, requiring a donor. The clinic offered only one donor from their ethnic group, and their first round of IVF in October 2017 failed. The clinic then recommended ICSI, a more expensive treatment, but since they had already used NHS funding, they would have to pay privately.
Unable to afford the thousands of pounds needed, Chloe battled the clinical commissioning group for a year to secure further NHS treatment, but was refused. Her husband then suggested finding a donor online. Using a fake name, she joined Facebook groups and found a donor. After receiving his medical history and STI test results, she met him in a car park to collect the sperm sample, paying £50 per donation plus £10 travel expenses. She became pregnant once but miscarried.
The HFEA states that regulated clinics can only compensate donors up to £35 for travel, and paying for sperm is illegal. However, the law is unclear when individuals provide 'non-medical fertility services', and no court cases have tested this. During the pandemic, Chloe found another donor via Facebook who visited her home, making the process more comfortable. She is now pregnant and plans to list her husband on the birth certificate, believing the donor has no parental rights.
Chloe's donor had previously donated through a regulated clinic but reached the limit of 10 families. He has since fathered three more children through social media contacts. The HFEA advises that using unregulated donors can lead to legal and health complications, including unknown genetic risks.
