diff --git a/go/vt/vtorc/inst/instance_dao.go b/go/vt/vtorc/inst/instance_dao.go
index cd0ee89e9c8..45291394c56 100644
--- a/go/vt/vtorc/inst/instance_dao.go
+++ b/go/vt/vtorc/inst/instance_dao.go
@@ -362,7 +362,7 @@ Cleanup:
 		// Add replication group ancestry UUID as well. Otherwise, VTOrc thinks there are errant GTIDs in group
 		// members and its replicas, even though they are not.
 		instance.AncestryUUID = strings.Trim(instance.AncestryUUID, ",")
-		err = detectErrantGTIDs(tabletAlias, instance, tablet)
+		err = detectErrantGTIDs(instance, tablet)
 	}
 
 	latency.Stop("instance")
@@ -390,7 +390,7 @@ Cleanup:
 }
 
 // detectErrantGTIDs detects the errant GTIDs on an instance.
-func detectErrantGTIDs(tabletAlias string, instance *Instance, tablet *topodatapb.Tablet) (err error) {
+func detectErrantGTIDs(instance *Instance, tablet *topodatapb.Tablet) (err error) {
 	// If the tablet is not replicating from anyone, then it could be the previous primary.
 	// We should check for errant GTIDs by finding the difference with the shard's current primary.
 	if instance.primaryExecutedGtidSet == "" && instance.SourceHost == "" {
@@ -399,7 +399,7 @@ func detectErrantGTIDs(tabletAlias string, instance *Instance, tablet *topodatap
 		if primaryAlias != "" {
 			// Check if the current tablet is the primary.
 			// If it is, then we don't need to run errant gtid detection on it.
-			if primaryAlias == tabletAlias {
+			if primaryAlias == instance.InstanceAlias {
 				return nil
 			}
 			primaryInstance, _, _ = ReadInstance(primaryAlias)
@@ -439,7 +439,7 @@ func detectErrantGTIDs(tabletAlias string, instance *Instance, tablet *topodatap
 			if err == nil {
 				var gtidCount int64
 				gtidCount, err = replication.GTIDCount(instance.GtidErrant)
-				currentErrantGTIDCount.Set(tabletAlias, gtidCount)
+				currentErrantGTIDCount.Set(instance.InstanceAlias, gtidCount)
 			}
 		}
 	}
diff --git a/go/vt/vtorc/inst/instance_dao_test.go b/go/vt/vtorc/inst/instance_dao_test.go
index 7cf589100f8..0d59de0588f 100644
--- a/go/vt/vtorc/inst/instance_dao_test.go
+++ b/go/vt/vtorc/inst/instance_dao_test.go
@@ -881,7 +881,8 @@ func TestDetectErrantGTIDs(t *testing.T) {
 				require.NoError(t, err)
 			}
 
-			err = detectErrantGTIDs(topoproto.TabletAliasString(tablet.Alias), tt.instance, tablet)
+			tt.instance.InstanceAlias = topoproto.TabletAliasString(tablet.Alias)
+			err = detectErrantGTIDs(tt.instance, tablet)
 			if tt.wantErr {
 				require.Error(t, err)
 				return
@@ -912,6 +913,7 @@ func TestPrimaryErrantGTIDs(t *testing.T) {
 	instance := &Instance{
 		SourceHost:      "",
 		ExecutedGtidSet: "230ea8ea-81e3-11e4-972a-e25ec4bd140a:1-10589,8bc65c84-3fe4-11ed-a912-257f0fcdd6c9:1-34,316d193c-70e5-11e5-adb2-ecf4bb2262ff:1-341",
+		InstanceAlias:   topoproto.TabletAliasString(tablet.Alias),
 	}
 
 	// Save shard record for the primary tablet.
@@ -921,7 +923,6 @@ func TestPrimaryErrantGTIDs(t *testing.T) {
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 
 	// Store the tablet record and the instance.
-	instance.InstanceAlias = topoproto.TabletAliasString(tablet.Alias)
 	err = SaveTablet(tablet)
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 	err = WriteInstance(instance, true, nil)
@@ -931,7 +932,7 @@ func TestPrimaryErrantGTIDs(t *testing.T) {
 	// gtid set further, we shouldn't be detecting errant GTIDs on it since it is the primary!
 	// We shouldn't be comparing it with a previous version of itself!
 	instance.ExecutedGtidSet = "230ea8ea-81e3-11e4-972a-e25ec4bd140a:1-10589,8bc65c84-3fe4-11ed-a912-257f0fcdd6c9:1-34,316d193c-70e5-11e5-adb2-ecf4bb2262ff:1-351"
-	err = detectErrantGTIDs(topoproto.TabletAliasString(tablet.Alias), instance, tablet)
+	err = detectErrantGTIDs(instance, tablet)
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 	require.EqualValues(t, "", instance.GtidErrant)
 }