Out of Hours GP Home Visits in London: Your Options at Night

It is 11pm, you are unwell, and every option in front of you looks wrong. This article walks through your real choices at night in London, honestly, including the one we provide: a private GP home visit between 9pm and 7am at a published price of £450 for up to an hour with the doctor.

We publish that number deliberately. Night medicine is where price opacity does its worst work, because nobody comparison-shops at 2am. You should be able to know what a night doctor costs while you are well, calm and reading this on a Tuesday afternoon. It is on our fees page alongside everything else.

Before the options: if you have chest pain, one-sided weakness or facial droop, severe breathlessness, heavy bleeding, a severe allergic reaction, or you suspect sepsis, stop reading and call 999. Nothing below applies to you tonight.

Your four options at night, honestly

Option	Right when	Worth knowing
999 / A&E	Emergency symptoms, now	Free, immediate, the correct choice for genuine emergencies. Do not hesitate out of politeness.
NHS 111	You are unsure how serious it is	Free clinical triage by phone or at 111.nhs.uk. Can arrange NHS out-of-hours care. Queues vary with the night.
Wait for morning	Symptoms are uncomfortable but stable	Often sensible. A £65 virtual consultation at 8am can be the cheapest good medicine in London.
Private GP night visit	You need a doctor tonight, but not an ambulance	£450 published, up to an hour, doctor to your door. The rest of this article.

The fact that we have listed the free options first tells you something about how we practise. A visiting service you can trust at night is one that will also tell you when you do not need it.

What a night visit is for

The 9pm to 7am callouts we see are rarely mysteries. They are urinary infections that have turned feverish, chest infections in people with asthma or COPD whose breathing is heavier but not severe, vomiting and dehydration, acute back pain or shingles pain that has defeated the paracetamol in the cupboard, distressed feverish children whose parents need an examination and a clear plan, and frail older people who have worsened through the evening while the family debates what to do. We have written separately about home visits for elderly parents, much of which applies double at night.

What happens when you call

Call 020 8882 8088. At night your call is handled by a clinical decision-maker, not a message-taking service, because the first decision, visit or ambulance or morning, is a medical one. If a visit is right we agree it there and then, give you a realistic arrival window for tonight, and the doctor sets out with the equipment and the medicines a visiting GP lawfully carries.

The visit itself is unhurried: up to 60 minutes, a proper history, a careful examination, treatment started where appropriate, and a written plan that includes exactly what to do if things change before morning. Where the situation needs longer, an extended night visit of up to two hours is £750, agreed before it begins, never sprung on you afterwards. You receive an itemised invoice the same night, suitable for travel or health insurance claims.

What it costs, and why we say so

£450 for the night visit, £750 extended. Blood draws are £20 plus the test, a referral letter is £50, a formal report from £120, all published. No membership is required and there is no premium for calling at 3am versus 10pm; night is night. Most of the London market quotes night fees by phone only. We would rather you knew the figure now, while you can weigh it calmly, than discover it when you are at your least able to negotiate.

Frequently asked questions

How quickly can a doctor reach me at night?

Usually faster than daytime, because London’s roads empty. The honest answer is still an estimate given when you call, based on where you are and where the doctor is. We say “tonight” and mean it; we do not advertise minute counts we cannot control. Subject to availability.

Can the doctor bring medication?

The visiting doctor carries the medicines a GP can lawfully supply and administer at a visit, and can prescribe where assessment supports it. What is given depends entirely on clinical findings.

Is £450 the whole price?

£450 covers the visit and up to an hour of the doctor’s time at night. Anything beyond that, tests, letters, an extended visit, has its own published price and is agreed with you first.

Should I just go to A&E instead?

If your symptoms are on the emergency list above, yes, without delay. If they are not, A&E at night often means a long wait to be seen briefly. A home visit exists for exactly the middle ground: needs a doctor tonight, does not need a hospital.

Do you visit hotels at night?

Yes, discreetly, and it is a large part of our night work. Our guide to hotel doctor visits in London covers the details, including insurance paperwork.

Written by Dr Mitesh Parmar, MBBS MRCGP, GP and founder of Clinique Alpa, 466 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London N13 5PA. General information, not personal medical advice. In an emergency call 999. For NHS advice call 111 or visit nhs.uk.