Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many prescription fines have been successfully appealed in each of the last five years.

This information is not recorded. However, the Penalty Charge Notice clearly states that the recipient is encouraged to contact the NHS Business Services Authority (NHS BSA) if they believe there was an exceptional reason why the penalty charge should not apply or if they can show that they did not act wrongfully or with lack of care. In some circumstances the penalty charge can then be waived. An online tool to make it even easier for someone to challenge a Penalty Charge Notice has recently been launched by the NHS BSA.