HOSPITAL bosses raked in record sums in car parking charges last year – as one in three sites hiked their prices.
New figures show that NHS trusts made £254million in 2018/19, up ten per cent on the previous 12 months.
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Campaigners slammed the “rip-off” fees as a tax “for being ill”, and called for their axing as it emerged some visitors are paying more than £100 a time.
The Tories have pledged to make parking free for those in greatest need, including the disabled, parents of sick children staying overnight and staff working nights.
Labour says it will scrap hospital parking charges altogether.
Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust raked in the most parking cash last year with £6.4m.
Increased charges
It was followed by University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, who earned £5.9m from drivers, and University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust who made £5m.
And North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust had the highest hourly rate, at £4 for 60 minutes.
The Press Association investigation analysed financial data from 144 NHS trusts – as well as speaking to nearly 8,000 patients or visitors.
They found 47 had increased their charges from the previous 12 months.
While the most expensive trust to park your car for an hour was North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust at £4.
That’s compared to the cheapest one-hour parking charge of £1 at Pennine Acute Hospitals Trust.
Added stress to visits
Overall, hospitals took £254,373,068 in 2018/19 in parking fees, up from £232,236,216 the year before.
Nearly nine in ten patients and visitors said charges added to the stress of a hospital visit.
Many often struggled to find spaces, found a lack of disabled parking and meters that did not work.
One claimed it took nearly an hour to leave the site, while another said he spent “over £102 to visit my wife”.
The top biggest earners for car park charges in 2018/19
1. Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust – £6,352,676
2. University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust – £5,876,000
3. University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust – £5,025,860
4. Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust – £4,962,583
5. East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust – £4,740,464
6. University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust – £4,239,851
7. Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust – £4,202,315
8. Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust – £3,968,709
9. University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust – £3,961,201
10. Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust – £3,951,985
Others described the charges as “a rip-off”, “too expensive”, “extortionate”, “astronomical” and “exorbitant”.
A spokeswoman for the Patients Association said: “Charges for car parking at hospitals are a charge on people who are unwell, levied on them because they are unwell.
“We believe that patients should not be effectively charged for being ill.”
Only England’s hospitals routinely charge for parking – with sites largely free in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Deputy chief executive of NHS Providers Saffron Cordery said increases in the cost of parking were frustrating, but added: “Car parks are expensive to run for the trusts that own them.
“These parking facilities must be maintained, lit well, and secure. Parking facilities must also provide good access for patients, families and staff.
“All charges by trusts for parking cover the day-to-day running of car parking at the hospital, with any surplus reinvested back into wider services for patients or improving these facilities.”
She said abolishing charges could cost around £200 million per year, and trusts would have to find funding from elsewhere, which could “impact on patient care”.
