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Original poster

To not pay hospital parking fine

478 replies

StupidFine · 09/01/2018 08:19

Last week Dd (8 months) suffered an allergic reaction and was taken to the hospital. DH followed in the car and parked without paying (we live on the border and our usual hospital is in Scotland where parking is free, but this is our first emergency and we were taken to the nearest hospital which is in England). Either way the last thing on DH mind was the bleeding parking.

Thankfully Dd was ok, but a week later DH and I are reflecting on what to do about the parking fine. Our options as we see them are:

A) pay the fine and draw a line under this incident (£40).
B) contest the fine as it was an emergency and we have a hospital note with time and reason for admission (if contest is denied fine will go up to £80 as takes 35 days to review).
C) don't pay and just ignore the fine. A colleague of mine said as we live in Scotland we don't need to tell the parking company who was driving (apparently this loophole was closed in England) and since they don't know who was driving it's very costly/time consuming and not worth the company's effort to raise a case to claim the fine.

My head says to go for option A) as I don't want things like this hanging over our head. But my heart says option C) as it's ridiculous anyone should need to pay for parking at a hospital and the fine is just an arbitrary number pulled out of the company's backside (not quite but you get the point).

WWYD?

OP posts:
Cath2907 · 09/01/2018 09:17

My Dad got a parking fine for overstaying the maximum length of time allowed to park in our hospital car park. He was in with my mum whilst she was being diagnosed and initially treated for leukaemia. He had taken her in as an emergency after the GP said "Go, now!". He paid for the maximum allowed parking but the diagnosis, etc.. took all day and well into the night (the are no other carparks near by to transfer to even if he had thought to do so). He wrote a letter and returned it with the fine money requested detailing what he and my mum had been doing and why they were in the car park so long. He is rather eloquent and I assume whoever received the letter felt a little bad when they saw that. Since then hospital parking in Wales has been made free - as it should be!

BashStreetKid · 09/01/2018 09:19

My understanding is fines are enforceable by law but charges aren't?

Not so. By using the car park your DH entered into a contract, and contracts are enforceable by law. There is recentish case law confirming this.

gamerchick · 09/01/2018 09:20

Pay it then contest it if it really bugs you, that way it doesn’t go up. Personally I would pay it and learn the rules if there’s a next time. Considering how much the ambulance cost, a&e and treatment is 40 quid that much of a hardship?

Royalcoronation · 09/01/2018 09:20

I don't see how you can contest it. On what grounds?

Just pay!

All this Scotland v England stuff isn't relevant and it's certainly not grounds to try and contest a legitimate parking ticket.

Llangollen · 09/01/2018 09:20

It sucks, and it's awfully unfair on patients who need regular appointments, but that's what it is. Of course pay. bit cheeky not to, sorry!

I am really glad if the money does goes to hospitals, I was under the impression (reading some articles) that it wasn't the case.

I think that if people must pay, then it's fair to charge visitors. There should be a scheme for ongoing patients - I know people undergoing chemio treatments who had to travel by public transport because they couldn't afford the car park on top of everything else. Something is not right there.

I also think patients should have priority in car parks over visitors, but no idea how you could implement that in real life

PeacefulBlessing · 09/01/2018 09:21

StupidFine Healthcare that is free at the point of access and saved your child's life and you're complaining about paying for parking?

Really?

FWIW, I actually don't believe that you can just 'forget' to pay for parking in English hospitals because there are signs and paypoints around all over the place to remind you.

I think it's far more likely that he a) chose not to b) couldn't be bothered c) thought "fuck it", I'll deal with the fine when it comes.

And now he's facing C.

BarbarianMum · 09/01/2018 09:23

I'd contest it. In fact, in similar circumstances (trip to OOH doctor escalating to 2 day hospital admission) I did and it was waved. I just had to prove evidence of admission. Given the lack of free parking near our Children's A&E I think this probably happens a lot.

Sirzy · 09/01/2018 09:24

Our local hospital do a frequent flyer pass which works out at £10 a month which makes life much simpler (and cheaper!)

BashStreetKid · 09/01/2018 09:24

contesting just involves a quick later or perhaps e mail. Not a lot of hassle for £40 in my opinion. It would only take 10 minutes

But on what grounds? How would the charge not be payable? It wasn't an emergency all the time they were in the hospital.

Redhead17 · 09/01/2018 09:25

I’d argue it.

I always argue it, I got one recently and it went to POLPA and I won.

A fine from the council or police yes from a private company no, it’s an invoice not a fine.

I think what OP said was they normally don’t pay for parking where they live and as this hospital was England not Scotland they therefore assumed and in a panic their daughter was a priority.

JustOneChocolate · 09/01/2018 09:26

Pay it. Completely realise why you are annoyed, but our hospitals are underfunded. Challenging it takes money from our already underfunded health service

Dungeondragon15 · 09/01/2018 09:26

FWIW, I actually don't believe that you can just 'forget' to pay for parking in English hospitals because there are signs and paypoints around all over the place to remind you.

I'm sure that it is perfectly possible just to forget to pay for parking if your eight month old child is admitted to hospital by ambulance because of an allergic reaction, particularly if you are from Scotland and not used to paying. Who would stop to read signs in those circumstances. Most people would just get out of the car and run...

FartsMeanHearts · 09/01/2018 09:27

B

If you contest it you will still pay the lower price of £40

petbear · 09/01/2018 09:29

@StupidFine

Yes you need to pay it. I saw a documentary last year that showed six NURSES who had been fined for double-parking and parking on the grass verge, when they were doing their shift (because they couldn't find a parking space!) And one nurse refused to pay the (£40) fine, so they took it further, and she still dug her heels in, and it escalated to the point of a debt collection agency. She ended up owing £6,000. From a £40 fine.

I think we live in a seriously fucked up world when this is done to a NURSE. (When she is doing her low-paid, stressful, ball-breaking job!)

Also, I don't know about the fees raising 100s of millions, but at our hospital, the fees go to the security men enforcing the parking charges, and the company that operates the machines and clamps. Make of THAT what you will.

I think it's absolutely disgusting that people are charged to park in a hospital car park. People don't CHOOSE to be there FFS .Hmm

But anyway, you still need to pay it. It will escalate if you don't. They don't let people off. They're relentless.

MadamPatti · 09/01/2018 09:29

I would appeal. I appealed over Christmas on behalf of my elderly parents when then incurred a fine in their local Lidl car park. They did their shopping but didn’t realise that to qualify for free parking they had to register their car details. Within 3 days they had their fine rescinded. You were in the wrong but had good reason. I would just explain this to them. Your potential fine shouldn’t increase because you have appealed.

Mintychoc1 · 09/01/2018 09:30

You use a service, you pay for that service, simple as that. Yes I get that your Dh was so used to the joy of free parking in Scotland that he didn't think to look for a meter, but this was England, where parking isn't free. Ignorance is not a defence. And everyone in the car park has a health-related reason for being there, no one is there for fun.

All the people suggesting you try and wriggle out of it - do you realise that hospitals need money and that parking creates income for them?
Health care won't be free for much longer if that is the attitude people take.

paperandpaint · 09/01/2018 09:31

Peacefulblessing - spot on. Our baby son has a lung defect and we are forever paying hospital parking in central London but we are getting free medical care in one of the top specialist units in Europe. If parking and the odd cup of coffee is all we have to pay for then that’s fine - if a little/eye wateringly expensive!!

Also they ARE enforced so don’t think it will go away. I had a private parking ticket from a small local sports field. I ended up with a letter from a debt collecting agency....just save yourself the stress and pay it.

Dungeondragon15 · 09/01/2018 09:31

But on what grounds? How would the charge not be payable? It wasn't an emergency all the time they were in the hospital.

On the grounds that they went to the hospital as an emergency with an eight month old (supplying copy of hospital letter) and had no time to stop and read signs/pay for parking. They may say no but I don't see the harm in sending a quick letter or email personally... I have appealed on more than one occasion for parking fines (not hospital) and they have let me off.

Royalcoronation · 09/01/2018 09:32

I think what OP said was they normally don’t pay for parking where they live and as this hospital was England not Scotland they therefore assumed and in a panic their daughter was a priority.

Easily done, but in no way is it grounds to contest the fine. It's unfortunate but sometimes we just have to suck it up.

Loonoonow · 09/01/2018 09:33

Pay up.

user789653241 · 09/01/2018 09:33

Dungeondragon15, but OP says,

"DH didn't see the signs it was he genuinely didn't realise he needed to pay until after returning to the car."

He could have done something about it then?

Royalcoronation · 09/01/2018 09:34

On the grounds that they went to the hospital as an emergency with an eight month old (supplying copy of hospital letter) and had no time to stop and read signs/pay for parking

They will throw that right back because only the father went by car. So arguably the child was the first and recieveing treatment. Had they taken her by car together that may have held more weight, but one parent going alone by car would be expected to read a sign.

YellowFlower201 · 09/01/2018 09:35

For goodness sake pay the bleeding fine! The nhs is on its last legs as it stands without having to deal with time wasters wanting to appeal.
Your daughter got treated for free. Consider it a small contribution.

Sirzy · 09/01/2018 09:36

Very few people go to hospital for fun. I don’t think the “it was an emergency” argument will make them any different from anyone else so if they waive that they set a precedent. Especially when there where two adults and he wasn’t transporting the child.