At least one in 4 NHS trusts hike hospital parking charges for sufferers, workers or each
Patients are being ‘unfairly penalised’ as parking charges soar at hospitals and surgeries, research revealed yesterday.
At least one in four NHS trusts in England raised the cost of parking for patients, staff or both in the two years to March 2024.
Health experts have tried to justify the increases by claiming hospital trusts are under ‘huge financial pressure’ and cannot afford to maintain car parks free of charge.
But patient groups said forcing mounting charges on vulnerable people during a cost-of-living crisis was unfair.
Parking fees for hospital staff in England were waived in July 2020 due to Covid, but this ended in March 2022, with the Department of Health claiming it had cost £130million.
Rachel Power, of the Patients Association, said: ‘With car parking charges increasing again this year at many NHS hospital sites, patients and their families are facing an even greater financial strain.
‘The cost-of-living crisis is pushing many households to the brink, and these charges unfairly penalise people simply for being unwell and needing access to essential healthcare.
‘While parking fees provide important revenue during a period of significant financial strain, it is vital that any additional NHS funding is focused on improving patient care.’
At least one in four NHS trusts in England raised the cost of parking for patients or staff in the two years leading up to March 2024 (file photo)
She said patients were enduring ‘undignified and unsafe conditions’ in overcrowded hospitals, adding: ‘[This] must remain the priority over other concerns, including parking charges.
She also queried whether there was a fair financial split with firms that run NHS parking.
Ms Power added: ‘The considerable profits generated by parking schemes raise serious questions about whether hospitals are receiving a fair share of this income, particularly when financial pressures are affecting the quality of care patients receive.’
Some 37 trusts – 25 per cent of the 147 in England – raised the price of parking between April 2022 and March 2024, according to Freedom of Information requests made by the Press Association news agency.
While 122 of the 147 trusts responded to the FoI request, 25 did not, meaning the actual number who boosted their charges may be higher.
Parking fees for hospital staff in England were waived in July 2020 due to Covid, but this ended in March 2022, with the Department of Health claiming it had cost £130million
Saffron Cordery, interim chief executive of NHS Providers – the umbrella group for trusts, said: ‘NHS trusts – most of whom are under huge financial pressure – just couldn’t afford to maintain car parks without charging people to use them.
‘The last thing trusts want to do is have to divert money away from patient services. City centre and urban hospital car parks where spaces are in great demand are a particular challenge.’
The Department of Health and Social Care said: ‘Car park charges are the responsibility of individual NHS trusts, however any charges must be reasonable and in line with the local area.’
A separate analysis of NHS figures by the GMB union found healthcare staff in England paid £70.5million to park at work in the 2023-24 financial year. It said fees for staff should be scrapped.
