Hospital visitors faced £13.3 million in parking fines in 2016

Online parking place YourParkingSpace.co.uk has revealed that visitors to hospitals were hit with an estimated £13.3 million in parking fines last year.

The freedom of information request which received responses from 136 NHS trusts, showed that one in ten of the 159,000 tickets issued were appealed, of which two thirds were successfully overturned saving patients fines of up to £100 each time.

The analysis of data showed regional variation in the success of appealing a ticket, with The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, University of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust and Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust all successfully overturning all penalty charge notices they received.

Barts Health NHS Trust and University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Foundation Trust were the trust which issued the highest numbers of penalty charge notices, at 12,789 and 12,556 respectively.

Harrison Woods, managing director of YourParkingSpace.co.uk, said: “It isn’t right that visitors who are often attending hospital for treatment or to visit sick relatives are being hit with fines of up to £100. It’s added worry at a time that is often already very stressful for patients and their families. The research, however shows that if you feel that you have been unfairly ticketed while parking at a hospital it can pay to appeal.”