'Ridiculous!' Sadiq Khan's Ulez expansion hits cancer patients DESPITE hospital exemption scheme
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GB NEWS
The new Ulez expansion has hit cancer patients who have been attending hospitals across London - despite Sadiq Khan vowing that hospital exemption schemes would refund patients and carers.
The Labour Mayor of London agreed that as the ultra low emission zone expanded, the fee would not have to be paid by those attending appointments.
Drivers can request a refund of the £12.50 charge, as well as the £15 congestion charge, if applicable.
However, three in five people do not realise that they qualify for this exemption and those who are aware struggle to get refunded, according to charity Young Lives vs Cancer.
King’s College Hospital in south east London has said that it had seen cases of patients battling to receive refunds for the journey
GETTY
King’s College Hospital in south east London has said that it had seen cases of patients battling to receive refunds for the journey.
A spokesman for the hospital said that, since spring, they had "experienced difficulty" in processing repayment claims, which they have raised with Transport for London (TfL).
Mother Jasmin Sarll, 30, said she spent more than £250 on the fees as her son Hugo received cancer treatment and a liver transplant in London hospitals.
Once the two-year-old was diagnosed, he was referred to Great Ormond Street Hospital, while also attending appointments at King's College Hospital.
“If you could plan in your head that this was going to happen, you’d get a Ulez-exempt car. But it is ridiculous," she told The Telegraph.
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TfL sent two £90 fines to the mother of three after she forgot to pay the fee on the day that her son checked into hospital to undergo surgery for a liver transplant.
Once Young Lives vs Cancer contacted TfL, the fines were cancelled. Hugo, now four years old, is now in remission.
Sarll said: “We were never once told we could claim back Ulez, or obviously we would have.”
Charity chief executive Rachel Kirby-Rider said: "We know young people and families face an extra £250 a month on average to travel to treatment – treatment which is frequent and can often last years.
The Ulez zone expanded last year to encompass a larger portion of the south east
TfL
"While young people with cancer and their families are able to claim their Ulez charges back, there is a lack of communication about what families can claim back. Our research shows 59 per cent of families are unaware that such schemes exist."
A TfL spokesman said: “We are very sorry for the distress that Ms Sarll has experienced. We had already accepted the representation she made and cancelled the penalty charges she incurred during these challenging circumstances.”
A spokesman added: “We are also in contact with Ms Sarll about the Ulez charges she paid during visits to the hospital, and will refund these as a gesture of goodwill.”
TfL's impact assessment before the Ulez expansion said that the charges would mean higher costs for older people, disabled people, as well as people with underlying health conditions who must travel to receive medical treatment.
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