Practice private fee charges
Please find below a list of private fees that are charged for any work completed outside of our contractual obligation classed as “private”.
Private fee charges
Fees for non-NHS services
| Service or certificate | Fee (£) |
|---|---|
| Certificates & forms – general | |
| To whom it may concern letters | 45.00 |
| To whom it may concern letters (urgent requests) | 90.00 |
| Certificates & forms – specific | |
| Private prescription | 25.00 |
| Private medical (sick) certificate | 45.00 |
| Private insurance claim | 45.00 |
| Funeral services: cremation form | 82.00 |
| Shotgun & firearm licence (no examination required): first application | 140.00 |
| Shotgun & firearm licence (no examination required): renewal application | 95.00 |
| Patient medicals and reports | |
| Report – no examination (up to 20 minutes) | 90.00 |
| Report – no examination (up to 30 minutes) | 135.00 |
| Pre-employment medical | 140.00 |
| Fostering medical | 140.00 |
| Driver medical (for example HGV, LGV, PSV, taxi medical) | 140.00 |
| Travel abroad – certificates & forms | |
| Insurance or holiday claim form (for example holiday cancellation insurance form) | 45.00 |
| Travel abroad – vaccinations | |
| Hepatitis A | 30.00 |
| Hepatitis B (single) | 50.00 |
| Hepatitis B (course of 3) | 120.00 |
| Hepatitis booster | 30.00 |
| MMR consultation | 15.00 |
| MMR blood test | 110.00 |
| Rabies (course of 3) | 120.00 |
Forms can take up to 3 weeks to complete
If we agree to complete non-NHS work, our NHS medical care of our patients takes priority during our working day so any private non-NHS letters or forms can take up to 3 weeks to complete and return to you. We cannot guarantee they will be completed earlier.
Payment
We accept cash & credit cards. No refunds are given.
Understand non-NHS (private) work
Some services are not covered by the NHS and our practice will therefore charge a fee for completion of this work.
As the British Medical Association suggest
“With certain exceptions written within their contract, doctors do not have to carry out non-NHS work. However, many choose to for the benefit of you and other families they treat.”
“Why does my doctor charge fees?” BMA website. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
Please can you review the “check list for patients” included below in the frequently asked questions if you are considering requesting, we complete any non-NHS (private) work.
Frequently asked questions
Check list for patients when requesting private work to be undertaken by the practice
Before submitting a form or a request it is worth reading about some important considerations which act as a checklist and can save you time.
- Always confirm the fee, timescales and that the non-NHS work will be completed before you hand any documents to the practice.
- Don’t book an appointment with your GP to complete forms without confirming your GP will complete such a form and checking whether you actually need to book an appointment to have the form completed (as this maybe an unnecessary appointment).
- Do not expect your GP to process forms overnight. NHS work will always take priority and so there is no guarantee non-NHS work will be completed before our set timescale guidance.
- Not all documents need a signature by a doctor and can be done by other professionals. Please check the form and accompanying guidance as you may get a quicker and cheaper response that way.
- Remember if you access your records online (see under online access to your records), you can print out a copy of your notes including your medication and this may suffice for a number of requests and is free.
- If you are told you need a letter of support from your GP by another organisation always challenge the necessity and value of such a letter as in many cases it can be unnecessary bureaucracy for us (despite any fee we charge) with little value to you.
Private sick notes for less than 7 days
You will be charged a fee by us if you request a private sick note for less than 7 days. However, this is unnecessary, and your employer should not request one unless they are concerned about repeated illness.
As Gov UK suggests
“If employees are off work for 7 days or less, they do not need to give their employer a fit note or other proof of sickness from a medical professional. When they return to work, their employer can ask them to confirm they’ve been off sick. This is called ‘self-certification’. The employer and employee will agree on how the employee should do this. They might need to fill in a form or send details of their sick leave by email.”
“Taking sick leave” Gov.UK website. Retrieved 14 February 2023
If you are off longer than 7 days, then a sick note is free.
You can find further information under the Get a Fit/ Sick note section which also includes a link to more detailed information and how you can get a sick note.
Common questions asked about non-NHS work
The British Medical Association have set out common questions asked of GP practices about non-NHS work.
Why does my doctor charge fees? Why does my doctor charge fees?
The process of completing medical reports
From the British Medical Association
Intended for GP practices but provides insight into the steps required by a GP practice.
Dealing with fees for non-NHS report requests Dealing with fees for non-NHS report requests