King's College Hospital defends wheelchair rental scheme

A wheelchair rental scheme at a south London hospital is being raised with the government by a Green Party member of the House of Lords.

The service operating at King’s College Hospital is accessed by using a debit or credit card - a wheelchair is free for the first four hours and costs £2 an hour after that.

Baroness Bennett has tabled a question asking how many hospital trusts are supplying wheelchairs to outpatients and visitors requiring the use of a credit or bank card, and whether it considers this appropriate.

The hospital said any patient who arrived at hospital and had a clinical need for a wheelchair would get one in the usual way, with no charges at any point.

Baroness Bennett told BBC London that not everyone who needed a wheelchair at hospital would have a credit or debit card.

She said: “We know the levels of financial exclusion in the UK are high, with many people not having access to such services, and other people, perhaps not confident with technology and well aware of the levels of fraud, are fearful of any form of card use.”

She added: “There is the concern about those whose disability might make using this system more difficult, potentially for a whole range of reasons. It is hard to see how this can square with disability duties.”

The Wheelshare service has been operating at King’s College Hospital since June 2022.

A hospital spokesperson said the scheme was introduced following patient feedback, and that the latest data showed 92% of rentals were for under four hours, adding that the hospital trust received no money from Wheelshare for hosting the service.

They said volunteers were on hand to ensure people without a bank card can still have access to the service.

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