To not pay hospital parking fine

[StupidFine]

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?

I once won on appeal because they put the price of the ticket up. I didn't read the signs because I parked the regularly so just paid the previous price. They probably didn't have to let me off as technically they could have stated I should have read the signs on each occasion but they still did...

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

This.

Imagine how much you would have had to pay if you were liable for the full cost of treatment. And remember to pay for parking next time you use this free service.

www.thewestonmercury.co.uk/news/weston-general-hospital-accrued-almost-500k-in-parking-charges-last-year-1-5346448

Plenty of articles showing that the money goes back into the hospital.

Of course we can argue that this shouldn't be necessary, but at the moment that's how it is. It's not fair if one person thinks they shouldn't have to pay when everyone else has to - esp when they've not had to pay for the cost of an ambulance and all the treatment.

Probably A.

If I read your post correctly, appealing if it fails will result in an increased fine.

If you can ask for a review, and they are bound to respond to this before the fine increases, then go for this.

If there is a lack of clear signage, then you could argue you could not reasonably be aware of the conditions relating to payment at the time you entered the car park. But most of these places have the TAC spotted about.

Sadly, if they don't agree to waive it on compassionate grounds, I suspect you may not have good grounds for an appeal.

I don't think that's right. But that's the screwed up system we have.

Glad your little one is alright. Totally get there were much more important things on your mind at the time. But I would put it down to experience.

Good for you, dungeon. So rules shouldn't apply to you, we get it (massive eye roll).

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.

It might do if they have evidence from the hospital that it actually was an emergency. It doesn't set a precedent because it is not usually an absolute emergency and most people don't have hospital evidence that it was an emergency.

As the child’s treatment was already under way that argument would be invalid as him paying or not wouldn’t change the fact the child was being treated

Why does it matter who was driving?

If it was your car parked there & you hadn't reported it stolen, then you are responsible?

Was the ticket on the windscreen when your husband got back to the car?

Pay up.

And, as many others have said, everyone who is parking at the hospital is there because they are severely unwell. It's not a day out.

Do you really think it is realistic that people challenge the fine based on "I was worried"? Most people attending hospital are. It's not a defence.

As the child’s treatment was already under way that argument would be invalid as him paying or not wouldn’t change the fact the child was being treated

I think it unlikely that the parking people are going to investigate whether the treatment was already underway.

@MadamPatti

That's lovely that your parents got the fine cancelled, (by Lidl.) But - as you said - they were entitled to free parking anyway (presumably a blue badge holder?) And so their case is not the same as the OP, who should have paid the parking fee, and now needs to pay the fine.

You used a hospital where there were charges, so I'm afraid you should pay up.

In case anyone thinks, as the OP does, that all Scottish hospitals have free parking, that is not the case. Major hospitals in several cities in Scotland still have parking charges because of contracts they were tied into.

Everyone else has to pay, what makes you guys special?

Glad your DD was OK.

We go to regular appointments at a few different hospitals. We regularly have to pay the equivalent of £16 each time for parking, if we can get it. It eats into our very meagre budget, but it is necessary.

Pay the fine, know for next time if you ever need the hospital services again (hopefully you won't!). I do hope your daughter is now well.

I'm not sure why you would not pay the fine. I understand it was an emergency circumstance, but it doesn't mean you can't pay for the parking.

I sympathise, I really do. I got a parking ticket outside a hospice when sitting with my dying mother, because I’d sped there in the wee small hours, when you didn’t actually need to pay, and she took longer to die than the hospice had said she would (imminently). It is what it is. Problem you have is it’s a hospital, everyone in there is stressed, ill, dying, having an emergency, of some sort. That’s what hospitals are for. The other problem you have is that your DH wasn’t having an emergency. He might think he was having one, but his delay or lack of delay made absolutely no difference to the treatment or health of your DD. So it’s tough, but I reckon just pay, and I hope your DD is OK now.

Ahh so you want to lie then dragon. Fair enough

Just pay it. The opportunity to only pay £3 or £4 has passed. He should have paid when he parked. Just because you are fortunate enough to have free parking in Scotland isn't relevant here. I don't agree with charging for parking at hospitals, no one goes there unless you have to for a health reason, and where I live rurally, there isn't an alternative but to drive and park.

Appeal. Given the circumstances you may well be let off. I doubt they will double the fine, that’s just to discourage time wasters. But agree with others, they will pursue if you don’t pay.

I think it unlikely that the parking people are going to investigate whether the treatment was already underway.

No but the OP can't lie and say the emergency patient was travelling in the car! Her DH parked and should have paid. He didn't. The fine is justified.

Pay and move on

Just pay it.

Didn't I read a news story last year saying patients are having a hell of a time getting parking at Raigmore because people are using the car park and taking the bus to work, shop or even the airport because there's no parking charge? Maybe free parking's not that great after all...