‘Kiss and fly’ fees cost up to £1 a minute as more than a third of airports put up charges
Dropping off friends and family at the airport costs up to £1 a minute as more than a third of Britain’s biggest airports hike so-called “kiss and fly” fees.
Such charges are paid by drivers stopping off at airports so friends and family can catch their flights without having to struggle through public transport hubs with bulky luggage.
Four major airports have increased drop-off charges by £1 compared with last year, with the average rise across the country’s 20 biggest airports being 17 per cent.
The highest-charging airport is London Stansted, which charges £7 for up to 15 minutes’ use of its “express setdown” area.
Leeds Bradford Airport now charges the equivalent of 65p per minute, at £6.50 for up to 10 minutes in the airport’s drop-off zone.
And Manchester Airport has been charging the equivalent of £1 a minute – £5 for a five minute stay – since last year.
Depressing, if perhaps unsurprising
Overstaying the drop-off period typically results in much higher parking charges.
The RAC described this year’s rise in charges as “depressing, if perhaps unsurprising”.
Senior policy officer Rod Dennis said: “To have to pay £5, £6 or even £7 for the briefest of stops to simply open the boot and take some luggage out for a friend or loved one is bordering on the ridiculous.
“It’s depressing, if perhaps unsurprising given what’s happened in the past, to see seven airports have hiked their drop-off charges once again this year.
“Fortunately, most of the country’s busiest airports have frozen their charges this year and travellers have to hope things stay that way.”
RAC research found that four in five drivers agreed with the statement that airport drop-off charges are a “rip-off”.
Parking charges have become an increasingly important revenue stream for airports in recent years, with a large percentage of those being received from vehicles that drop off or collect travellers.
Three airports do not charge
The Airport Operators Association, which represents airports in the UK, has previously said that increased revenue from parking and drop-off fees helps “keep charges to airlines lower” and “maximise the range of flights that can be offered to all passengers”.
Heathrow, the UK’s busiest airport, received £86 million from all of its parking charges in 2022.
Just three of the UK’s top 20 airports do not charge for so-called “kiss and fly” temporary parking.
These are London City, Cardiff and Inverness.
Drivers using Heathrow’s meet-and-greet parking, as well as its valet parking services, were warned last summer that the Ulez extension risked catching their vehicles.
This would make them liable for fees of £12.50 for each occasion their car entered or left the airport.