Tim Leal, Ryde: 

I earlier had the misfortune to use the car park at St Mary’s Hospital in Newport on the Isle of Wight.

Actually, my partner was driving as I had surgery two weeks ago and am unable to drive.

Firstly, at 9.45am, the car park was already full with the usual snake of cars circling the lanes with the off-chance lottery of a space opening up in front just before you reach the spot.

This is immensely frustrating and adds ten to 20 minutes to the parking time just waiting for a space.

Upon finishing my appointment, my partner had to ensure I was strapped into the car before she could go and pay the exit fee.

This caused minor confusion as some of the now lost souls slowly losing the will to live in their own endless nightmare of circling the car park, thought we were imminently about to depart and for a moment the merry-go-round of cars was suspended as people now numbed by this experience, gawped in forlorn hope that they may finally have respite from this circular hell.

This was made worse by the torrential rain which meant nobody could quite see properly through the murk.

Meanwhile, my partner had gone off to pay for the exit. An exercise I thought would take around two minutes.

TWENTY MINUTES later, she still had not returned and I thought someone had finally snapped and knocked people down in an effort to escape the nightmare.

Upon undoing my seatbelt (a not insignificant task as I have just been discharged after a total shoulder replacement surgery) I ventured outside into the pouring rain only to see my partner returning.

It appears of the two machines in the car park that can take payments only one was marked as operational.

There was a long queue and people were struggling to make payments. Someone tried to use the help point telephone next to the machines only to be told there was no help available.

Bear in mind there is no cover, it is raining heavily and people are ill, unsteady on their feet, elderly and having difficulty with using these strange machines and generally fed up.

My partner finally made it to the machine only to have it consume the money she put in it without any acknowledgement.

She tried again but this time used her card and it spat out a receipt.

But she paid TWICE. It’s already expensive enough in these car parks without having to pay TWICE.

I have to say, having surgery was less traumatic than using the car park. Someone should be ashamed of the mess and what they put patients and visitors through when visiting the hospital.

I look forward to hearing how this aspect of using the hospital will be improved with the expansion and would like to know if Apcoa, which runs the car park, actually do anything than install money machine and then abandon us.

I suggest these machines are taken away and replaced with something more reliable and intuitive to use.

I also suggest more spaces are made available. Have a chat with the prison opposite or with B&Q is my advice.

Finally, all the staff inside the hospital were brilliant. The doctors and nurses are second to none and as always, took their time with me, made sure everything was done correctly and performed above expectation.