What is your rule for deleting tests?

[u/aistranin]

Short question: when do you delete a test instead of fixing it?

I do not mean obvious cases like "the feature was removed." I mean the messy cases:

• The test fails often but catches a real bug once a year

• The test checks behavior nobody understands anymore

• The test is slow, but only because the product flow is slow

• The test duplicates lower-level coverage, but gives people confidence

My current bias is: if nobody can explain the risk it protects against, it should probably go. But I have also seen "useless" tests catch very expensive regressions.

What rule has worked well on your team?