NHS hospitals have been charging £2 an hour for patients unable to walk access to wheelchairs.
King's College Hospital has installed a "Boris bike-style" hiring dock of wheelchairs, caged behind a credit card machine, for patients who have not arrived by ambulance and require extra support.
While the first four hours are free, the wheelchairs set patients back £2 an hour, which is automatically charged to the individual's credit card if the wheelchair has not been returned.
The Trust said the scheme, run by a private healthcare service, was implemented to improve wheelchair supply and to ensure the patients return the wheelchairs once they have finished using them.
Several have said the scheme is reminiscent of Boris bikes (Stock image)
PA Media
A hospital spokesman said: "Wheelchairs are available for patients to access free of charge at King’s College Hospital for four hours, after which each additional hour or part of it costs £2.
"The scheme helps ensure that every patient who needs a wheelchair can find one when they arrive at hospital.
“Patients using a wheelchair who experience longer waits for treatment are able to have these costs refunded by contacting Wheelshare directly.”
Wheelshare is the healthcare service that has rolled out the scheme across several hospitals, including Hillingdon Hospital in Uxbridge.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
However, local website London Centric has reported that any chance of refunds were not advertised on the hospital's website nor through payment confirmation from Wheelshare.
King's College Hospital has some of the longest A&E wait times in the UK with some patients waiting up to 12 hours, as the Trust has claimed it is "working to improve".
Patients and their carers have hit out at the scheme, criticising the cost when they visit hospital.
One carer claimed that they had "probably spent a thousand pounds on parking" within a year.
Another said: “You can’t call an ambulance because of the waiting times. If you get to the hospital in a car you need to pay for transport while you wait in A&E.
One user wrote on X: "The NHS is crumbling, and is being eaten away by constant privatisation. When will @wesstreeting act?"
PA Media
"There’s literally a wheelchair shortage in a hospital.”
The private healthcare business has been slammed online as well, with the system labelled "crass" and "unacceptable".
One user wrote on X: "The NHS is crumbling, and is being eaten away by constant privatisation. When will @wesstreeting act?"
Since 2021, Wheelshare has rolled out schemes across Coventry and Warwickshire, Northumbria and Bedfordshire.
Further expansion is expected across London.
GB News has approached Wheelshare for comment.
