Private Fees

Why do GPs charge fees?

The National Health Service provides most health care to most people free of charge but there are exceptions such as prescription charges and NHS dental fees. The NHS does not provide medical reports for insurance companies, claims on private health insurance and other letters and forms which require the doctor to review the patient’s medical records.

GPs are not employed by the NHS. The NHS pays the doctor for specific NHS work but for non-NHS work the fee has to cover the doctor’s costs. As the doctors are self-employed, their costs – staff, buildings, heating, lighting, printing, paper etc. – must be covered in the same way as any small business.

Examples of non-NHS services for which GPs can charge patients:

• Private medical insurance reports
• Taxi licences and DVLA forms
• Holiday cancellation forms
• Fit to fly letters
• Letters requested by, or on behalf, of a patient

How long should I allow for the work to be done?

Please allow up to 31 days for the work to be completed. The practice has a substantial volume of non-NHS work to complete weekly and it is all done in addition to the NHS work and hours. 

Once your request has been passed to our Secretarial Team, you will receive an invoice to pay.

Upon payment of the invoice, the 31 days for completion of request, starts. 

I only need the doctor’s signature – why do I have to wait?

When a doctor signs a certificate or completes a report it is a condition of remaining on the Medical Register that they only sign what they know to be true.

In order to complete even the simplest of forms therefore, the doctor might have to check the patient’s entire medical record.  Carelessness or an inaccurate report can have serious consequences for the doctor with the General Medical Council (the doctors’ regulatory body) or even the police.