‘Hospital parking needs reviewing’
A man hit with a parking fine while collecting medication for his wife who was recovering from major surgery says a Bath hospital’s parking system must be reviewed.
Frank Cottle, of Richmond Heights in Lansdown, wants his £80 fine from Parking Eye overturned after he took his wife, Carol, to Bath’s Royal United Hospital.
Mr Cottle, 80, says his wife, 76, was in and out of hospital after her hysterectomy operation on September 30 which led to her picking up cystitis, inflammation of the bladder. He claims he was told by a surgeon to go to the hospital pharmacy to collect a stronger course of antibiotics to cure the cystitis, but he exceeded the 20-minute waiting area as there was a delay in collecting the prescription.
A ‘M Whitemore’ wrote in last week’s Bath Chronicle (February 13) that he sympathised with Mr Cottle but said parking there for 30 minutes was ‘out of order.’
Mr Cottle responded in a letter by saying he had no choice but to do this and has since called for the hospital’s parking system to be reviewed.
“I am at a loss to understand the partial sympathy offered by your correspondent, M. Whitemore over my dispute with Parking Eye,” said Mr Cottle in his letter. “Has he/she overlooked the following:
“1) That my wife was categorically told by the gynaecological department that if she presented herself at the pharmacy, her tablets would be ready and waiting.
“2) That, on arrival, I did not note the time in the belief that we would not be more than a few minutes. We could not predict the backlog of prescriptions then being dispensed that caused a nine-minute delay.
“3) That I was not away from the car for more than one to two minutes and that I was legally parked, at all times.
“4) Had I moved my car to the car park, my wife would not have any way of contacting me and I hope that your correspondent would not expect her to come to the car park, looking for me, when she had only been discharged four days previous, following major abdominal surgery.”
He added: “No, the entire system should be reviewed.”
Parking Eye is the hospital’s car park operator but the rules for the car park are not set by them.
M Whitemore’s letter read: “While I have some sympathy with Mr Cottle (“We’ll fight ‘ridiculous’ fine for wait by hospital’s pharmacy”, Bath Chronicle, February 6), the 20-minute parking zone is a much-needed and well-used facility. To park there for the best part of 30 minutes just to pick up a simple prescription is out of order.
“I have enjoyed many hours of free parking at the RUH courtesy of a Blue Badge, for which I am very grateful. It comes with but a few rules and regulations - what it’s not is a free pass to plonk your car wherever you think you will.”