Drivers To Pay £5 Drop-Off Charge At Gatwick Airport

"sky-high" drop-off charges now apply at most airports, with Gatwick now charging drivers £5 for 10 minutes to drop off passengers at the north and south terminals.

According to RAC research, more than two thirds of the UKs busiest airports have put prices up.

London Stansted continues to top the drop-off charges table with a whopping initial fee of £7 for 15 minutes (in summer 2019 it was £4 for 10 minutes), but travellers will not find other London airports much cheaper.

London Luton has increased its initial drop-off charges to £5 for 10 minutes (2019 - £4 for 13 minutes) while Britain’s two busiest airports Heathrow and Gatwick have finally succumbed to introducing drop-off fees with both charging £5, which will get you just 10 minutes at Gatwick and an unspecified number of minutes at Heathrow. Dropping off passengers at these two airports was free in 2019.

Across other parts of the country, sky-high charges are also prevalent. Manchester Airport gives drivers just five minutes for dropping off at a cost of £5 (an increase from £3 in 2019), while Liverpool John Lennon has raised its fees to £4 for 10 minutes (an increase from £3 for 20 minutes). Bristol and East Midlands Airports have both put up their charges to £5 for 10 minutes and 15 minutes respectively – Bristol Airport’s hike is especially galling as it was charging £1 for 10 minutes in 2019.

Holidaymakers using the three largest airports in Scotland fair little better. Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Glasgow Airports have all doubled their drop-off fees to £4 for 10 minutes. 

More positively, Birmingham and Belfast International Airports have kept their fees the same since 2019 (£3 for 15 minutes and £1 for 10 minutes respectively) while drivers can take still advantage of free-drop off areas near the terminal entrance at Cardiff, London City and Belfast City airports. 

RAC head of roads policy Nicholas Lyes said:

“Anyone dropping a loved one off at the terminal this summer will be stunned by some of these sky-high ‘kiss and drop’ charges. And for those using the UK’s two busiest airports, the luxury of free drop-offs outside the terminal building has been replaced by some pretty high fees. Minute for minute and pound for pound, some of these charges could almost be as high as the airfare itself. 

“While airports have had a turbulent couple of years with the pandemic, it very much looks like they have put up drop-off fees to partially make up for two years of lost revenue. 

“Drop-off charges were meant to encourage travellers to use public transport to get to the airport, but with strikes impacting the rail network this summer and public transport options being limited at some airports, people will understandably seek more reliable ways to get to the terminal and that usually means asking a friend or relative to give them a lift. The increase in drop-off fees, combined with high fuel prices, means taking loved-ones to the airport this summer is more expensive than ever.

“Doing your research on the fees charged before heading to drop off at an airport has to be the best advice. It’s good to see some airports offering cheaper drop-off rates in mid-term or long-stay car parks though these tend to be further away from the terminal and might require a shuttle bus connection. 

“Drivers should also be aware that many airport forecourts have no stopping areas enforced by cameras, so trying to drop passengers off without paying could result in a hefty charge.”

Details of how you can pay the drop-off charge can be found on the Gatwick Airport website (https://www.gatwickairport.com/to-and-from/terminal-drop-off-charge/ ) and drivers can pay up to midnight the day after they've visited the airport.

All information supplied by the RAC.