FRIMLEY Health NHS Foundation Trust has defended itself after new figures by AutoExpress claimed the hospital is one of the top ten highest earning trusts in the UK in terms of car parking income.

According to the motoring magazine, hospitals across England made more than £344 million from parking fees in the last three years - with Frimley Health raking in £7.4m during that period.

This places Frimley Health seventh in the list of highest earning NHS hospital trusts in England, with Derby Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust coming out top after collecting £10.8 million since 2013.

However, Frimley Health has been quick to point out the figure quoted by AutoExpress relates to all three of the trust’s main hospital sites - Frimley Park as well as Wexham Park in Slough and Heatherwood in Ascot.

And the last three years of parking revenue for Wexham Park and Heatherwood were also included in Frimley Health’s total sum despite the fact the trust only began running those hospitals in October 2014.

A spokesman for the Frimley NHS trust said: “The enlarged trust serves a catchment population of almost 900,000 people in areas where car parking demand is high.

“At Frimley Park Hospital all money raised from parking is reinvested back into improving parking and 24-hour security for the car parks. The hospital directly manages staff and public car parks, so none of the money goes to a third party.

“Recently this reinvestment has included a second car parking deck to provide extra public spaces, improved ticketing facilities and resurfacing work. Any surplus income goes directly into patient care.”

Royal Surrey County Hospital has also dismissed the AutoExpress research, which names the Guildford-based NHS foundation trust as one of the top three in England for its car parking charges.

AutoExpress said its investigation based on freedom of information requests received from 124 of 160 NHS Trusts contacted, showed hospitals were “raking in” an average £949,000 a year from parking.

Its report, which covers the period 2013 to 2016, found the most expensive parking charges for up to two hours was £3.50 levied by the Royal Surrey County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (RSCH) and The Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital.

But RSCH dismissed the findings as inaccurate and said many trusts charged more, particularly London hospitals.

A spokesman said: “We know of a number of trusts who exceed our levels. The parking charges in the hospital are fair and consistent with those across the area.

“Good advances have been made with regards to car parking on the site in the last few years with the addition of more employee spaces, releasing spaces for visitors.

“We have plans in place to extend this further over the next few years. This is subject to planning permission, which is always problematic given our position to the A3 and we are working closely with Guildford Borough Council, Surrey County Council and Highways England to find a long-term solution.

“Like other trusts we would prefer not to charge for parking, but the money generated is used to manage and maintain the facilities, as well as to fund future developments.

“The trust owns its car parks and they are managed on its behalf by a private contractor, who provides the attendants and collects the income.”

A quarter of hospitals are diverting the money received from car parking charges into car park maintenance rather than patient care, added the AutoExpress report.

The investigation found trusts have issued 275,000 fines to patients and visitors worth £2.8million since 2013, amounting to an annual £8,200 a year income from penalty charges.

It also revealed hospitals differ vastly in the amount they charge for parking. Some set £3.50 as the standard tariff; others offer parking for as little as 60p while 14 per cent of trusts don’t offer any concessions to Blue Badge holders or long-term and terminally ill patients.

The Department of Health told AutoExpress over half of NHS hospitals offer free parking, although AutoExpress found free parking is only for up to 30 minutes at most of these hospitals. Only four trusts in England don’t charge for parking.

Responding to the report, Katherine Murphy, chief executive of the Patients Association, described hospital parking charges and fines as “a tax on the ill”.

Moves to scrap hospital parking fees in England have previously been blocked by Parliament, although last year, the British Parking Association (BPA) worked with the NHS to update its parking guidelines.

A BPA spokeswoman said: “While many people attending healthcare facilities expect car parking to be free, the limits on space, costs involved and demand for spaces mean that parking needs to be managed. Often the most effective way to do this is by charging.

“Free parking at hospitals in Wales and Scotland has actually made the situation worse. If the users don’t pay for the parking then the trust does.”