Is it OK to Sell Paternity Tests Out of the Back of a Van?

Photo via A bloke in New York has turned a van into a mobile paternity clinic. Jared Rosenthal is selling DNA tests for 200 quid to anyone who flags down his van and happens to have a sneaking suspicion they’re wrongly being charged for some little shit's education. With his company, "Who's Your Daddy?", Rosenthal has evidently found a niche in the market, undercutting the conventional places you’d go for this sort of thing (you know, like hospitals or chat shows).

But is the back of a van the ideal environment for medical practice? What other non-traditionally road-bound services could be flogged out the back of Ford Transit?

A man is selling paternity tests out the back of his van, is that OK with you?
Mathew, 23, plumber: Yeah, I suppose so. It costs 200 quid. Is that a bit of a rip-off?
Nah, that’s alright. I suppose the back of vans is a regular place of commerce for you.
Yeah, for tools. But not for paternity testing?
Nah. Hacksaws, mainly. Dan, 24 (left) and James, 28, both finance workers. You work in finance, would you invest in a man selling paternity tests out the back of his van?
Dan: I think it has potential. I’d certainly be up for hearing what other ideas he has. What about kidney transplants?
James: This is definitely the future of medicine, especially if you can make a quick buck. I think that’s the general thing driving these bastards. Do you have his number? No, and I'm kind of glad I don't.
That's a shame. Do you need help?
Sarah, 26: No. I’ve just been running, I was meant to do 4k but I got lost. So I think I did about 5k by mistake. I’m still alive, call the ambulance! Well, it’s funny you should say that because there's a man in a van roaming the streets of New York reuniting father and son through the miracles of modern medicine. But is that OK, Sarah?
Yeah, why not? I mean people do all sorts in the streets these days. I’ve bought a few CDs and things. I’m fairly sure that’s illegal. Anna, 28, (left) and Laura, 28, both work for the NSPCC. A guy is offering paternity tests in his van. What do you think about that?
Anna: Hold on. It seems a little bit unreal that this is just something you can walk up and do. This is happening, right now, in our shared experience of reality.
I would rather just walk up and get a hotdog. But then I’m fairly sure my dad is my dad. Fair enough. What do you think about the idea?
It’s exciting because it brings us closer to things like Total Recall and Blade Runner. Does it?
Just the idea of science available to you on the street. Splicing, reaping, all that kind of stuff. I’m sorry, I play a lot of video games. What do you think, Laura?
Laura: I’m horrified. What do you think about mixing paternity tests and vans?
Paul, 39: What the hell is going on? A man in New York is selling paternity tests out of a van.
Ohhh, I thought you said they do a DNA test on a van. Vans don’t have DNA, what are you talking about?
This has totally thrown me off course. This all sounds very enabling. I’m all for it. I’m very late, I have to go now. Is offering a paternity test out of a van OK?
Brent, handyman: No, I'm not interested in that sort of thing at all. Wagner, 24: A van? Yeah a van. Like that one [pointing at a passing van]. You could turn it into your place of business.
Ah yeah, a van. Going around doing DNA tests? It costs £200.
Two hundred pounds, for a DNA test in the street? I’m guessing that’s less expensive than going to a clinic or something. You guess or know?
Hahahahaha. OK, so have you ever bought anything from a van?
I guess the only experiences I’ve had are like, ice-cream and stuff.

It's not quite the same, is it? Previously – What's the Strangest Thing You've Ever Put in Your Mouth?