This could be for specialist NHS treatment or diagnostic tests by a doctor, dentist or another primary care health professional
Who can claim for help with travel costs
To qualify for help with travel costs under the HTCS, you must meet 3 criteria:
- At the time of your appointment, you or your partner (including civil partners) must receive one of the qualifying benefits or allowances: Income Support; income-based Jobseeker's Allowance; income-related Employment and Support Allowance; Pension Credit Guarantee Credit, or Universal Credit (and meet the criteria). You may also be able to claim for help with travel costs if you have an NHS tax credit exemption certificate or via the NHS Low Income Scheme.
- You must have a referral for specialist care from a healthcare professional to a specialist or a hospital for further NHS treatment or tests (often referred to as secondary care).
- Your appointment must be on a separate visit to when the referral was made.
Travelling with someone
You can claim travel costs for an escort or carer if your healthcare professional says it's medically necessary for someone to travel with you.
You can claim travel costs for your children if you're eligible for any of the benefits described earlier on this page, and your child has been referred for treatment as outlined in condition 2 and condition 3.
If your child is aged 16 or over, they may make their own claim under the Low Income Scheme.
What's excluded
You can't claim help with travel costs if you're visiting someone in hospital.
You also cannot claim if you're visiting a GP, dentist or another primary care service provider for routine check-ups or other services, such as vaccinations or cervical cancer screening.
Urgent primary care services during out-of-hours periods (between 6.30pm and 8pm on weekdays, weekends or bank holidays) are also excluded.
The transport you can use
The NHS organisation handling your claim will normally base any refund on what would have been the cheapest suitable mode of transport for your circumstances.
This can include your age, medical condition or any other relevant factors, such as the availability of public transport.
This means you should use the cheapest, most appropriate means of transport, which in most cases will be public transport.
You may also be able to claim for unavoidable car parking and toll charges.
If you need to use a taxi, you should agree this in advance with the hospital before you travel.
Help with travel costs before your appointment
You're expected to pay for your travel and claim back the costs within 3 months.
In some cases, you may be able to get an advanced payment to help you attend your appointment.
The NHS service providing your treatment should be able to tell you how to apply.
How to claim a refund
To claim your travel costs, take your travel receipts, appointment letter or card, plus proof that you're receiving one of the qualifying benefits, to the cashiers' office at the hospital where you have attended for treatment. They'll assess your claim and make the payment directly to you. In some hospitals, the name of the office you need to go to may be different for example, the General Office or the Patient Affairs Office.
If you're not sure, ask reception or Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS) staff where you should go.
Important numbers
If you have questions about help with health costs, contact the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) either online or telephone: 0300 330 1343.
Non-emergency patient transport services
Some people are eligible for non-emergency patient transport services (PTS). These services provide free transport to and from hospital for people including:
- people whose condition means they need additional medical support during their journey, such as requiring oxygen
- people who find it difficult to walk and are unable to travel by private car, taxi or public transport
East Midlands Ambulance Service provides non-emergency patient transport services in Derbyshire. The number for booking transport is telephone: 0300 300 3434. Call handlers will ask questions to assess your eligibility to use patient transport.
Derbyshire Connect Access to Health
Derbyshire Connect can support people unable to use conventional buses because of age, disability or because they live in areas where public transport is limited.
Services vary by area and may also be able to help with transport for shopping trips.