Gatwick Airport has announced it will increase its drop-off charge to £10, meaning stopping in the zone will cost £1 per minute.
Motorists taking a loved one to the airport to say goodbye this holiday season face rising rates to enter the drop-off zone, also known as kiss-and-fly fees.
Heathrow Airport announced last week it will hike up the drop-off charge to £7 in the new year and limit the maximum stay to 10 minutes, which drivers criticised as ‘unjustifiable.’
However, Gatwick will soon take the prize for the most expensive drop-off stint after the UK’s second busiest airport said it will increase the fee from £7 to £10 from January 6 – a 43% rise.
A spokeswoman for Gatwick said the decision to increase the charge was not taken lightly, but the airport is facing increasing costs like a higher business rate.
She said: ‘The increase in the drop-off charge will support wider efforts to encourage greater use of public transport, helping limit the number of cars and reduce congestion at the entrance to our terminals, alongside funding a number of sustainable transport initiatives.’
The upcoming £3 increase comes just months after Gatwick increased the fee in May, which private taxi campaigners already labelled a ‘cash cow on the public.’
Taxi drivers told Metro that higher drop-off fees are always passed onto the customer, while stricter maximum stay limits will make many drivers skip airport jobs.
Rod Dennis from the motoring group RAC said that more than 40% increase is the largest ever, and drivers should get used to ‘coughing up increasingly exorbitant sums’ to drop off loved ones.
He said that drop-off fees at European airports are ‘almost unheard of.’ A quick drop-off of under 10 minutes is free at airports like Dublin and Paris Charles de Gaulle.
How much does drop-off cost at other airports?
Research has ranked the UK’s most expensive and cheapest airport kiss-and-fly fees.
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Before Gatwick announced the January hike, Southend Airport in Essex took the top spot for the highest fees.
Drivers have to dish out £7 for a 5-minute stay in the drop-off zone, according to research by Select Car Leasing.
The airport, with flights by airlines like easyJet, Aer Lingus and TUI, charges £15 for goodbyes lasting longer than 5 minutes. It does offer a mid-stay option, with stays up to 30 minutes costing £8.
Elsewhere, Gatwick Airport, Leeds Bradford and Bristol Airports already charge £7 for 10 minutes near the terminals.
Gatwick, the UK’s second busiest airport, announced the fee increase in the spring as part of its expansion plan, which private hire taxi campaigners labelled a ‘cash cow on the public.’
Stansted and Southampton Airports charge £7 for a drop-off, but motorists can stay up to 20 minutes.
But some airports are bucking the trend of rising fees and stricter limits.
Drop-off charges at London airports
Gatwick Airport – The fee increased to £7 in May. The charge must be paid by midnight the day after parking. Late payment will incur a Parking Charge Notice (PCN). The charge will be £10 from January 6.
Heathrow Airport – Its fee increased to £6 in January this year, with another £1 increase in the pipeline from January 1, 2026. The drop-off fee can be paid after a visit or prepaid.
Stansted Airport – Drop-off costs £7 for up to 15 minutes, with anything over 15 minutes costing £25.
London Luton – Pick up and drop-off at Luton costs £7 for up to 10 minutes. Each further minute costs £1, with a maximum stay of 20 minutes. The charge can be paid online only. A longer stay than 20 minutes in the express zone will incur a penalty charge.
Luton also has a mid-stay car park around a 10-minute walk away, which is free up to 15 minutes.
City of London – Drop-off at the terminal is free, but drivers are not allowed to wait. Blue Badge holders can park up for free for 30 minutes.
The pick-up charge is £6.90 for up to 20 minutes, increasing to £14.90 for up to 30 minutes.
A 24-hour visit costs £74.90.
London City Airport in Newham offers a free drop-off, while at Exeter International Airport the drop-off is free for 30 minutes.
Birmingham International and Newquay Cornwall Airports have a free drop-off for the first 10 minutes, while Inverness Airport in Scotland offers it for free for 15 minutes. If drivers stay longer, fees will apply at most of them.
In some cases, like at Heathrow starting from January 1, any stay longer than 10 minutes in the drop-off zone will result in a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN).
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