Hospital Car Parks Rip-Off

[Jimmy Boy]

Recently lost a family member. For two weeks we spent every day visiting at hospital (Basildon)
It ended up costing us, visiting sometimes twice a day over a two week period £85 in parking costs in the hospital car park. If you go once or twice you don't notice £2-3 but if you have a loved one in for a period of a week plus, you start to feel the pinch in your pocket. It almost feels like another tax on the sick for using the NHS. I remember the last time I went to this hospital when my son broke his arm and parking was free and the car park huge. Now it's a multistory car park on the same huge site only now its some car parking company charging the sick or infirm to park at a NHS Hospital.

Sorry, rant over .. just f sickens me the way this country is going.

 

[devonmark]

I feel exactly the same way, there is no need whatsoever to charge the prices they do, our local hospital charge £2, if they need to charge surely 50p would be enough, with the amount of people using the car parks they would still make a huge sum of money.....good old Britain..Mark.

 

[faithhealer]

Currently visiting twice a day myself. I understand why they have to charge, our hospital is near the town centre and would be used as a free car park and hospital visitors wouldn't get a look in, but charging on an evening and Sundays??

 

[grumpygrouter]

Currently visiting twice a day myself. I understand why they have to charge, our hospital is near the town centre and would be used as a free car park and hospital visitors wouldn't get a look in, but charging on an evening and Sundays??

I was just about to post a similar reply. You saved me the trouble.

 

[Fekin]

I think parking charges for hospitals is madness and could easily avoided.

Fair enough, if you only ever have to go and visit someone once or twice it ain't much of a problem, but for people with someone in hospital where you'd visit either once or twice a day and it was obvious they would be in for longer than a few days then Im sure the ward could issue a small ticket with a reference number on that realated to the paitent that would say their in for an extended period of time and it gives you free parking while their admitted.

It wouldn't be difficult to do, and they could charge a flat £3 to cover the tiny amount of time it would take to issue this too you.

My wifes been in and out of hospital dozens of times in the last 2 years and I dread to think how much I will have spent on hospital parking.

 

[IvegotsTILE]

Just had my favourite uncle in hospital for past 2 weeks and sadly passed away,was staying late most nights and instead of paying the £3 fee which I think is unfair I found a gap just big enough to get my car through and never paid a penny.
I needed to do this as it was costing me a fortune in petrol because I had to travel 30 miles to a bigger hospital because my local hospital has been whittled down to a useless surgery even though our local population is growing at an alarming rate.

Countrys going down the toilet when we can't look after our sick.