Nearly 12,000 hospital car clamps recorded in Ireland 2023‑2025

Private parking operator APCOA reported 11,785 vehicle clamps at hospitals across Ireland between 2023 and 2025, highlighting growing financial and emotional pressure on patients and visitors.

Dublin Street Parking Services, which works for Dublin City Council, logged almost 10,000 clamps on streets surrounding the Mater Hospital, Temple Street Children’s Hospital and Holles Street Hospital. Over the three‑year period this equates to roughly 20 vehicles a day being immobilised in the vicinity of health‑care facilities.

Barry Whyte of Newstalk discussed the issue on The Claire Byrne Show, citing the experience of Tara Doonan from County Cavan. Doonan, undergoing oncology treatment, fell asleep after a lengthy hospital visit and missed renewing her parking via the app. When she returned after eight or nine hours, her car was clamped.

She described the incident as “a punch in the stomach”, noting the distress of confronting additional costs while exhausted and ill. An appeal, even with a letter from the hospital, was rejected, leaving her to pay the release fee and prompting her to set alarms for future appointments.

APCOA data also showed 5,385 clamps on streets around the Mater Hospital alone, which shares the area with Temple Street Hospital and the Mater Private. Many on‑street meters impose a three‑hour maximum, preventing drivers from paying for an entire day in advance.

The prevalence of clamps is influencing how patients plan travel to appointments, with some altering schedules or seeking alternative transport to avoid further financial strain.

Source: Newstalk. Photo: Erik Mclean / Pexels.