Third of hospital trusts still don’t let drivers pay when they leave

ONE in three hospital trusts are flouting government guidelines designed to make it easier for patients to pay parking fees, a report claims.

Many hospitals have been accused of adding to the stress of patients and visitors by forcing them to carry bundles of change to park their car, often paying for longer than they actually need.

Information provided by all but 16 hospital trusts in England reveals that 38 per cent offer no option to pay by card at any of their sites.

And 32 per cent do not allow drivers to pay when they leave the car park. This means they risk either paying too much if they overestimate the length of their appointment, or having to run out to buy another ticket.

The RAC, which lodged a freedom of information request, said many trusts were in breach of guidelines issued by Jeremy Hunt in 2014.

The Health Secretary called for hospitals to operate pay-onexit parking regimes – rather than pay-and-display for a fixed period – and said fees for drivers visiting seriously ill patients should be cut or axed. He said hospitals should make parking convenient, and waive fines if visitors or patients overstay through no fault of their own.

Simon Williams of the RAC said: ‘Anyone arriving at hospital ... has far more important things to worry about than paying for parking. It is for that very reason that things should be made as stress-free as possible.

‘These figures show that in many cases it is still too difficult for people to pay to park when they make a visit to a hospital in England, with drivers still expected to carry pocketfuls of change ... despite the advent first of credit and debit card payments, and now contactless and mobile payment technology.’

Among the trusts which do not allow parking payment on exit are Berkshire Healthcare, Dartford and Gravesham, and Greater Manchester West Mental Health, the RAC said.

Hospital parking charges – which brought in £120million in 2015/16 – are hugely unpopular, with critics dubbing them a ‘tax on sick people’. They have been scrapped in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.