Non NHS Private Fees

Some services provided are not covered under our contract with the NHS and therefore attract charges.

Examples include the following;

  • Medicals for pre-employment, sports and driving requirements (HGV, PSV etc.)
  • Insurance claim forms
  • Passport signing
  • Prescriptions for taking medication abroad
  • Private sick notes
  • Vaccination certificates

If you require a copy of our private price list please contact us.

If you are unsure if the service you require or for Full listings on non NHS services, services we don't provide and services we provide at a charge please read the information below:

Introduction

St Bartholomew & Hollow Way Medical Practice is proud to offer quality General Practice care to our patients under the terms of our NHS contract. Unfortunately, General Practice across the UK is currently under severe pressure. Some types of work which have been traditionally done by GPs are not actually NHS work and do not form part of our NHS contract.

In order to provide good NHS care, the doctors at St Bartholomew & Hollow Way Medical Practice limit the amount of private (non-NHS) work they do. If you request non-NHS work from us, the request may be declined and you may need to consult a private doctor instead. This leaflet explains what we provide and do not provide. If you have queries about this policy, please speak to the Practice Manager.

An important note about Medical Records

You have the right to view your medical records. Please make your application in writing to the Practice Manager. You may have copies of your records, which is set in law by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Before giving you access to your records, we are obliged by law to check the records for any confidential or third-party information. All requests made will be responded to within 30 calender days.

Items We Can Provide Free Of Charge

Important

Please allow a minimum of 5 working days for these forms and certificates to be completed.

Please direct any queries about these to Reception.

  • Fit for work certificates: (Commonly known as sick notes, officially called Med3 certificates). These are ONLY issued for 7 days or more and ONLY for the purposes of sick pay or benefits.
  • MatB1 forms, Maternity Exemption certificates & Healthy Start forms: These can usually be issued by your midwife.
  • Prescription Charge Exemption certificates: Only if you fulfil the strict criteria set out on the forms.
  • Referral letters: Referral letters to hospitals, secondary care and other healthcare providers, whether NHS or private. These are arranged by our secretaries. Please let them know of any particular requirements.

Items We Can Provide For A Fee

Important

Please allow a minimum of 2 weeks for these forms and certificates to be completed. All fees are payable in advance

These items are overseen by our Administrator, Clare. She can advise you on fees for specific items and she can liaise with solicitors and insurance companies if required.

  • Adoption/ Fostering Medicals: Please book a long appointment for these. Fee is payable in advance.
  • Flying/Travelling with Insulin or other medications: All injectable medications in hand luggage will require a certificate. This also applies to carrying certain other drugs, even tablets, when entering certain countries. If in doubt, consult your airline, travel agent or the embassy of the country you intend to visit.
  • HGV & Taxi driver medical examinations: These require a long appointment and there is a charge, please make sure you tell the receptionist which medical you need so that she can book the correct appointment for you. Please note, for these medicals you will need to attend an optician first, to have the eyesight section signed before seeing the doctor.
  • Medical examinations for leisure activities: We may be able to complete other medicals such as for flying/sailing, but NOT for diving or dangerous sports.
  • Private Sick Notes: If your employer requires a sick note for less than 7 days’ absence, we can supply one with your written permission. The employer is responsible for our fee.
  • Fitness to Fly during Pregnancy: Usually required by the airline if flying (or returning) after 28 weeks, and can be supplied if you have a healthy uncomplicated singleton pregnancy. The midwife can also sign these.
  • Statement of fact: Occasionally a patient is required to provide evidence of living in a certain place and being registered as a patient at the surgery. A fee is payable in advance.
  • Fitness for Exercise or Gym: We encourage all our patients to exercise as it is generally very good for you. The risk that harm would come to you by exercising is low; however we cannot guarantee that it is 100% safe for anyone to exercise. We can provide a summary of your medical problems but any risk is entirely between you and your gym instructor.
  • Medical Reports for Students staying/travelling abroad: Students may require an examination as part of the report and as such a fee is payable and this depends on the time taken to complete the report and/or examination.

Items We Do Not Provide

  • Applications for Passports, Visas, Character references: The organisations supplying these forms will be able to suggest alternative signatories.
  • Fitness for Parachute Jumps, Mountain Climbing, Diving, or any other high risk activity: We cannot advise on fitness to partake in dangerous activities such as parachute jumps, mountain climbing, diving as this is outside our field of expertise and not part of the NHS service. Please ask your instructor about any concerns you have regarding safety for these activities. We can supply a print-out of your medical records for their consideration. A fee is charged for this. Diving medicals are a highly specialised area of medicine, and your diving instructor can advise you how to find a suitably qualified doctor to assess your fitness to dive.
  • Letters about Housing: Oxford Council does not require GP letters when you seek housing or rehousing, even on medical grounds. You are entitled to a print-out of your medical record if you believe this will assist your application. This does not incur a fee.
  • Letters about Missing a Court Appearance: Missing a court appearance is a very serious matter. We will only provide a letter to the court if we are requested or ordered to do so by the court. Your solicitor can advise you further.
  • Letters about Missed Exams or Problems with 11+: There is no obligation on GPs to provide sick notes for schools or for missed exams. Usually the school can request special consideration.
  • Recording Injuries for Insurance: Attending the surgery because your insurer asks you to record injuries from a car accident is not an NHS service, and is not appropriate. Your insurance company can arrange a private medical examination if necessary.
  • Recording Injuries for Police: In the case of an alleged assault, a police doctor must assess and document injuries. This is not an NHS service and we are not trained to do this work to the legal standard required.
  • Will-Writing Capacity (testamentary capacity) & Power of Attorney: Testamentary capacity is a highly specialised area of medico-legal practice with important implications for the patient and their family. Therefore we recommend that the solicitor seek an expert opinion, for example from a private consultant psycho-geriatrician. Power of Attorney does not usually require a doctor’s opinion or signature – if your lawyer feels that a doctor’s input is necessary, he or she should arrange for a private expert to provide this.

For any enquiries, please speak to the Practice Manager.

Charges for Non-NHS Work - January 2025

We can provide patients with a summary of their medical record including key diagnosis and current medication as previously recorded and read coded in their medical record. There is no charge for this level of support. 

  • All Driving Medical Examinations with Reports (Taxi; HGV; Bus) £150.00
  • Solicitors Letters – depending on time taken £100.00 to £150.00
  • Pre-employment Medical Examinations £150.00
  • Firearms License Report £145.00
  • Adoption/Fostering Medical Examinations and Report £145.00
  • Adoption/Fostering Medical Report only £85.00
  • Child Minder report - OFSTED £145.00
  • Court of Protection Form £145.00
  • Medical Reports with Examination £120.00 to £160.00
  • Medical Reports only £80.00
  • Income/Loan/Life cover Reports £120.00 to £160.00
  • Patient letter requests (short max 2 page letter) £40.00
  • Any other form – fitness to exercise, travel, non-extreme activity; private medical claims; Accident & Sickness; Citizenship forms, Holiday Cancellation £60.00
  • Bus Pass £40.00
  • Private Fit Note £45.00

Oxford Brookes Students

  • OBU Students – Report with Examination £85.00
  • OBU Students – Report only £45.00

We are not a Travel Centre and do not provide/prescribe Non-NHS medicines.

We do not sign documentations for dangerous activities such as Parachute Jumps; Marathon runs; SCUBA Diving or any other Extreme Activity.

If you are seeking a Hepatitis B vaccination for work purposes, please obtain this vaccination through your employer via an occupational health service. This is not a service that we are able to provide our patients. 

Private blood tests and radiology requests are directed to The Manor Hospital.

Any Non-NHS work deemed inappropriate will be declined.

Payment must be made in advance by bank transfer or cash.

Why do GPs sometimes charge fees?

Read our frequently asked questions about non-NHS and private services.

Isn’t the NHS supposed to be free?

The National Health Service provides most health care to most people free of charge, but there are exceptions: prescription charges have existed since 1951, and there are a number of other services for which fees are charged. Sometimes the charge is made to cover some of the cost of treatment, for example, dental fees; in other cases, it is because the service is not covered by the NHS, for example, medical reports for insurance companies.

Surely the doctor is being paid anyway?

It is important to understand that GPs are not employed by the NHS, they are self-employed, and they have to cover their costs – staff, buildings, heating, lighting, etc – in the same way as any small business. The NHS covers these costs for NHS work, but for non-NHS work the fee has to cover the doctor’s costs.

What is covered by the NHS and what is not?

The Government’s contract with GPs covers medical services to NHS patients. In recent years, more and more organisations have been involving doctors in a whole range of non-medical work. Sometimes the only reason that GPs are asked is because they are in a position of trust in the community, or because an insurance company or employer wants to be sure that information provided is true and accurate.

Can you give examples of non-NHS services for which GPs can charge their NHS patients:

  • accident/sickness insurance certificates
  • certain travel vaccinations
  • private medical insurance reports

Can you give examples of non-NHS services for which GPs can charge other institutions:

  • medical reports for an insurance company
  • some reports for the DSS/Benefits Agency
  • examinations of local authority employees
  • DS 1500 Form (Disability Living/Attendance Allowance)

Is it true that the BMA sets fees for non-NHS work?

The BMA suggests fees for non-NHS work which is not covered under a GP’s NHS contract, to help GPs set their own professional fees. However, these fees are guidelines only, not recommendations, and a doctor is not obliged to charge the rates suggested.

Why does it sometimes take my GP a long time to complete my form?

Time spent completing forms and preparing reports takes the GP away from the medical care of his or her patients. Most GPs have a very heavy workload – the majority work up to 70 hours a week – and paperwork takes up an increasing amount of their time, so many GPs find they have to take some paperwork home at night and weekends.

I only need the doctor’s signature – what is the problem?

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 or even the Police.

What will I be charged?

The BMA recommends that GPs tell patients in advance if they will be charged, and how much. It is up to the individual doctor to decide how much to charge, but the BMA produces lists of suggested fees which many doctors use. Surgeries often have lists of fees on the waiting room wall based on these suggested fees.

What can I do to help?

  • Not all documents need signature by a doctor, for example passport applications. You can ask another person in a position of trust to sign such documents free of charge.
  • If you have several forms requiring completion, present them all at once and ask your GP if he or she is prepared to complete them all at once as a (job lot) at a reduced price.
  • Do not expect your GP to process forms overnight. You should expect the form(s) to take up to 4 weeks for the GP to complete and return

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