The figures from NHS England were uncovered by the Liberal Democrats. (Image: Getty)
Rip-off hospital car parking fees must be banned, campaigners are demanding, after patients, visitors and staff paid out nearly £200million in a single year.
Data from NHS England shows the total taken from patients and visitors soared by 50% to £145.9million in 2022/23. The bill for hospital staff shot up eight-fold to £46.7million.
Dennis Reed, director of the Silver Voices campaign group for the over 60s, said: “Hospital parking charges should be abolished.
“Nobody goes to hospital for the fun of it or to have a cup of coffee. Everyone is either a patient, a visitor for a patient or an NHS worker.
“There are only a limited number of exceptions to these charges at the moment – such as blue badge holders or parents staying overnight with their ill children.
“It is sickening that the NHS is being forced to use essential parking as a money-raiser, a hidden charge for the use of the NHS.
“Many hospitals are not easy to get to by public transport, particularly if your mobility is hampered by your medical condition. And sky-high hospital parking charges are another disincentive from seeking medical help when you know you might have to wait for hours in A&E.”
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Caroline Abrahams, Age UK charity director, warned the charges are a further blow during the cost-of-living crisis.
She said: “Unfortunately, being confronted by a hefty car parking fee when you visit a loved one in hospital or attend an appointment simply ups the financial pressure on people who are already struggling with the high cost of living.
“We recognise cash is in short supply in the NHS but the more hospitals can do to keep their parking fees affordable, the better it will be for patients and their families and friends.”
The amount paid by hospital patients and visitors for car parking last year is up from £96.7million in 2021/22, and triple the £47.9million made the year before that.
It was the equivalent of £400,000 spent in hospital car parks every day in 2022/23.
But it is unclear whether the increase is due to more people using car parking, prices going up or another reason.
It is also uncertain how many hospital car parks are run by health trusts and how many are managed by private companies.
The total paid by hospital staff in 2022/23 rose to £46.7million from £5.6million the year before because parking charges were suspended during the pandemic.
The figures from NHS England were uncovered by the Liberal Democrats.
This paper has campaigned to scrap excessive parking fees for hospitals. The Conservatives pledged in their election manifesto in 2019 to scrap fees for those most in need at hospitals.
Patricia Marquis, the Royal College of Nursing’s director for England, said: “For nursing staff and support workers, the soaring cost of parking takes too much of their low wage.
“Nurses work around the clock to be there for their patients – and working odd shift times or in difficult locations means public transport is not always possible. District nurses even pay their own fuel costs to travel to patients.
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“Government and the NHS must rethink – leaving nursing staff out of pocket just for doing their jobs is wholly unfair.
“Ministers need to invest in nursing, otherwise even more will leave this brilliant profession – and it will be patients who ultimately pay the price.”
Professor Phil Banfield, chairman of the British Medical Association council, added: “The cost of parking on NHS sites in England is a long-standing issue for healthcare workers as well as patients. They are a covert tax on the sick, those who visit and those who care for them.
“In the context of chronic under-investment in our NHS, we can see that some of the revenue trusts bring in from parking charges is invested in patient care.
“But it remains nothing other than yet another hike in the cost of living for healthcare staff already undervalued by the Government.
“At a time when staff morale is at its lowest, they need to feel valued – too many are leaving.
“So of course the Government should be looking again at these punitive charges.”
The 2019 Tory manifesto said: “We will end unfair hospital car parking charges by making parking free for those in greatest need, including disabled people, frequent outpatient attenders, parents of sick children staying overnight and staff working night shifts.
“This will eliminate costs for those in need, while making sure there are enough spaces for everyone.”
Current NHS guidance, updated in March 2022, states that trusts must provide free car parking for disabled people, frequent outpatient attenders, parents of sick children staying overnight and staff working night shifts.
On a voluntary basis, trusts should also ensure fees are “reasonable for the area”.
The Liberal Democrats urged the Government to work with trusts to lower charges for patients, visitors and staff.
Lib Dem health and social care spokesperson Daisy Cooper said: “Hospital car parking fees are becoming a tax on caring for visitors and hard-working NHS staff.
“This Conservative Government is failing to deliver on their promise to crack down on unfair hospital parking fees and people are literally paying the price.”
It comes as NHS England’s budget is worth £3.5billion less this year than last due to high inflation, according to recent research by the Health Foundation think-tank.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “We will always support hardworking NHS staff and have delivered on our commitment to provide free hospital car parking in England for those most in need.
“As of October 2022, all trusts that charge for car parking have fully implemented this commitment.
“This is the first time that free hospital car parking in England has been made available to those who need it the most.”
