Thousands of patients who dial 999 for an ambulance are being sent to hospital by taxi – with cab costs soaring from just £88 to £166,000 a year.
Ambulance chiefs began to send patients to hospital by taxi after the Covid pandemic as waiting times rocketed due to long waits at A&E departments.
Now the shocking rise in the use of taxis by the Scottish Ambulance Service can be revealed in figures given to the Daily Record.
A total of 6961 patients have been taken to A&E departments by cabbies in the last three years, sparking demands for more investment so that professional 999 crews are used.