Is it unusual to have a false hpv result?

No: No laboratory test is perfect. That said, false positive hpv dna test results are very uncommon. Depending upon the type / brand of test used, it is possible that some "low risk" hpv types can be detected by "high risk" probe sets. In this sense, a person may be labeled as being at greater risk for cervical cancer, but the "false positive" is in the type of virus and not the presence of virus.