Stansted Just Charged £28 to Drop Someone Off. Here's How to Never Pay It Again.
- execservices
- Mar 20
- 6 min read
From 19 March 2026, London Stansted Airport increased its Express Set Down charge to £10 for drop-offs of up to 15 minutes — a 40% hike from the previous £7 — and to £28 for stays of between 15 and 30 minutes. It is now the joint most expensive airport for drop-offs in the UK, alongside London Gatwick. And it is not alone: every single London airport now charges drivers to stop at a terminal.
If you are dropping off a colleague, client, or family member at Stansted — or arranging a transfer for a business traveller departing from any London airport — this article covers exactly what has changed, how every UK airport now compares, and what the practical alternatives are.
What exactly changed at Stansted from 19 March 2026?
Stansted’s Express Set Down zone allows vehicles to stop directly outside the terminal. The new charges are:
Under 15 minutes: £10 (up from £7 — a 43% increase)
15 to 30 minutes: £28 (up from £25)
Over 30 minutes: requires a short-stay or mid-stay car park booking
The charges have not changed since 2012 until now — the airport held the Express Set Down fee at £7 for well over a decade before this increase. Payment is now handled via Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) technology, replacing the barrier system introduced in December 2024.
Stansted’s spokesperson stated the increase is part of the airport’s drive to reduce car-based arrivals: “Kiss and fly journeys are the least sustainable way of accessing the airport, involving four car journeys per flight. Reducing the number of cars accessing the space immediately in front of the terminal also helps manage congestion in a capacity-restricted area.” Nearly 50% of Stansted passengers already travel by train, coach, or bus — a statistic the airport cites as justification for continuing to push the car-based fee higher.
“It was bad enough paying £7, and for it to go up from £7 to £10 is just outrageous.” — Matt Malone, Essex-based taxi driver, who described the charge as a “cash cow” and noted it was free when he started the job 15 years ago.
How does Stansted compare to every other London airport in 2026?
Every major London airport now charges for terminal drop-offs. Here is the complete picture as of March 2026:
London Stansted (STN): £10 for up to 15 minutes. £28 for up to 30 minutes. Joint most expensive with Gatwick. Blue Badge holders are NOT exempt — unique among London airports.
London Gatwick (LGW): £10 for 10 minutes. Raised from £7 to £10 on 6 January 2026 — a 40% increase. Free alternative available via long-stay car park shuttle.
London Heathrow (LHR): £7 for 10 minutes. Increased from £6 on 1 January 2026. Overstay penalty: £80.
London City (LCY): £8 for 5 minutes, then £1 per minute thereafter (10-minute maximum). The most expensive per minute at £1.60/min. Introduced January 2026 — the last London airport to hold out on free drop-offs.
London Luton (LTN): £7 for up to 10 minutes, then £1 per extra minute up to a maximum of 30 minutes.
Bristol Airport: £8.50 for 10 minutes. Introduced at the start of 2026.
For context: Amsterdam Schiphol offers 20 minutes free in its Kiss & Ride zone. Paris Charles de Gaulle offers 10 minutes free. Berlin Brandenburg offers 10 minutes free. The contrast with UK airports — which were themselves free less than five years ago — has been described by critics as a “national disgrace”.
Why the Stansted charge is particularly unfair on two groups
Two groups face disproportionate impact from Stansted’s new charge. First, disabled passengers and Blue Badge holders. At Heathrow and Gatwick, Blue Badge holders are exempt from drop-off fees. Stansted has no such exemption. A passenger with a disability requiring kerbside assistance from a carer or family member will be charged £10 for the privilege — a policy that has drawn direct criticism from consumer advocates.
Second, passengers using budget airlines. Stansted is the primary base for Ryanair, easyJet, and Jet2 — airlines whose entire value proposition is low ticket prices. A £10 or £28 drop-off fee applied to a £25 Ryanair flight to Malaga represents a meaningful percentage of the total journey cost. The passengers most likely to be dropped off by a family member rather than arriving by train are precisely those who chose a budget carrier to save money.
How do you avoid paying the Stansted Airport drop-off charge?
There are two ways to avoid paying the Stansted drop-off charge. The first is to use Stansted’s free Mid-Stay Car Park: the driver parks for free and the passenger takes a seven-minute shuttle bus to the terminal. The second — and more practical option for business travellers — is to pre-book a chauffeur transfer, where the drop-off charge is absorbed into the transfer cost and there is no additional payment required from the passenger.
The Mid-Stay Car Park option works for personal travellers with flexible timing and light luggage. It is less practical for anyone catching an early-morning departure, travelling with checked luggage, or being dropped off after a late international arrival. The seven-minute bus transfer, the wait time, and the physical distance from the terminal are all meaningful inconveniences when time is tight.
For business travellers and their companies, a pre-booked chauffeur transfer eliminates the drop-off charge problem entirely. With Onyx Transport, the journey from Derby, Nottingham, or Leicester to Stansted is a single fixed-price booking: your driver pulls up at the terminal, unloads luggage, and the drop-off fee is a cost the driver manages — not a surprise charge to the passenger. The same applies on arrival: your driver meets you in arrivals after your flight lands, no fare-metering, no standing at a rank.
For corporate travel managers and EAs booking on behalf of executives: Onyx Transport operates a corporate account structure with monthly invoicing. Airport charges, toll roads, and terminal fees are factored into the agreed rate at account setup — there are no line-item additions after the journey. The invoice reflects exactly what was quoted.
Frequently asked questions about the Stansted drop-off charge
How much does it cost to drop off at Stansted Airport in 2026?
From 19 March 2026, the Stansted Express Set Down charge is £10 for stays of up to 15 minutes, and £28 for stays of between 15 and 30 minutes. This represents a 40% increase from the previous £7 charge, which had been in place since 2012.
Is Stansted the most expensive airport for drop-offs in the UK?
Stansted is joint most expensive alongside London Gatwick, both charging £10 for a short drop-off. However, London City Airport is more expensive per minute — charging £1.60 per minute for the first five minutes. Heathrow charges £7 for 10 minutes; Luton charges £7 for 10 minutes.
Are Blue Badge holders exempt from the Stansted drop-off charge?
No. Unlike Heathrow and Gatwick, London Stansted does not exempt Blue Badge holders from its drop-off charge. This means disabled passengers requiring kerbside assistance will be subject to the £10 fee. This distinction has been highlighted by consumer advocates as an area requiring urgent review.
Do all London airports now charge for drop-offs?
Yes. As of March 2026, every major London airport charges for terminal drop-offs. London City Airport was the last to introduce a fee, doing so in January 2026. The complete picture: Heathrow £7/10 mins, Gatwick £10/10 mins, Stansted £10/15 mins, London City £8/5 mins, Luton £7/10 mins.
How does Stansted’s drop-off charge compare to European airports?
Continental European airports generally offer free drop-off zones. Amsterdam Schiphol allows 20 minutes free, Paris Charles de Gaulle allows 10 minutes free, and Berlin Brandenburg allows 10 minutes free. The UK’s approach — where drop-offs at the same airports were themselves free as recently as 2021 — has drawn widespread criticism and been described as a “national disgrace” by some commentators.
Fixed-price transfers from East Midlands to Stansted — no drop-off charge surprises
Onyx Transport operates fixed-price intercity and airport transfer services from Derby, Nottingham, and Leicester to all London airports including Stansted, Heathrow, Gatwick, and London City. The rate quoted at the time of booking is the rate on the invoice — no add-ons, no airport charge line items, no congestion zone supplements. For business travellers and corporate accounts, transfers are bookable by phone, email, or through the PA/EA portal.
Book at onyxtransport.co.uk or contact the team directly. We operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
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