Can You Sleep In Hospital Parking Lot?

Have you ever wondered if you can sleep in hospital parking lot? Look no more. We´ve got you covered.

If you have a car or an RV, then you may be wondering whether you can sleep in a hospital parking lot. Unsurprisingly, this is a pretty difficult question to answer.

Actually, it is one of the more complicated sleeping situations that we have talked about on this page.

Can You Sleep in Hospital Parking Lot? In theory, No. However, that is just purely in theory. You should also bear in mind that it is not just the hospital rules that you need to pay attention to. There are a lot of states that limit whether somebody can sleep in their vehicle after a certain time.

This means that it may not even be the hospital that ends up removing you, it may be the police.

Table of Contents

Can You Sleep in a Hospital Parking Lot?

The thing with a hospital parking lot is that, unlike other places, there could be a genuine reason why people are sleeping there. For example, they may have a loved one in the hospital.

As a result, while you may not be allowed to sleep in the hospital parking lot, many people will let you anyway. They don’t really want to move on people that are sleeping there because their loved ones are in hospital.

That being said, this really only applies to cars. We reckon that if you tried to get into a hospital parking lot with an RV, somebody would probably have something to say about that.

Basically, if you are planning on sleeping in a hospital parking lot, then try to keep yourself to yourself. Don’t irritate anybody and nobody will be the wiser that you are there.

When you enter a hospital parking lot, we do suggest that you pay attention to any signs that they have up. This will let you know whether sleeping there is going to be allowed or not.

What Happens if You Get Caught Sleeping in a Hospital Parking Lot?

Chances are that you are not going to be caught sleeping in the hospital parking lot. We have read a lot of reports online, and a lot of people claim that nobody has ever approached them.

That being said, since you will have parked on private property, there is always going to be the risk that somebody will catch you sleeping in the area.

If they do catch you, then they have the legal right to ask you to leave their property. If you refuse to leave, then the police can be called, and this may lead to criminal charges.

If you have somebody that is currently in hospital and they ask why you have parked there, then feel free to tell them that you are only sleeping in the vehicle because one of your loved ones is in the hospital.

They may let you stay because they feel sympathy. Although, of course, this is not actually going to be a full defense. They may still ask you to leave the parking lot.

How Can You Prevent Yourself Being Caught Sleeping in a Hospital Parking Lot?

You have to just not draw attention to yourself. Unless you are at a small hospital, we doubt that there is going to be people regularly patrolling the hospital parking lot.

There will also likely not be anything that records people going into and out of that hospital parking lot, and thus you do not have to worry about people being sent the location because you overstayed your welcome.

Obviously, you will have to pay for the hours that you spent parked there.

Many people recommend that if you do sleep in a hospital parking lot that you stick to the back seat of your vehicle.

Nobody is going to think of checking in the backseat for you. As we said, it is unlikely that they are going to be patrolling the hospital parking lot for you.

Is it Safe to Sleep in a Hospital Parking Lot?

To be honest, a hospital parking lot is probably going to be one of the safest places that you can sleep. Well, at least outside of proper campsites.¨

If you think about it, hospital parking lots are always going to be well lit. This means that you are going to be reducing the chances of there being any crime.

They should almost always be staffed too. After all, there will always be people coming and going from the hospital parking lot.

A hospital parking lot is also going to be available 24-hours a day. Obviously, this can be a bit irritating if you are trying to sleep, but there will barely be a time where somebody is not going into that hospital parking lot. This does make things a whole lot safer.

Basically, crime is going to be very, very low in hospital parking lots. In fact, we would probably go as far as to say that it will be non-existent.

Can You Sleep in a Multi-Story Parking Lot?

Some hospitals will have multi-story parking lots. If they have one of these, then we do not recommend that you sleep in the multi-story parking lot. It isn’t so much the fact that you could potentially get caught, it is just dangerous.

Obviously, there are a lot of car fumes going through a building like this. The problem is that there will be very little in the way of airflow.

While it is fine for you to spend a short while there, if you are sleeping in the parking lot, then you could end up suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning. This, of course, has the potential to be fatal.

Are There Alternatives to Sleeping in a Hospital Parking Lot?

If you have a loved one in the hospital, and your loved one is in a relatively serious condition, then chances are that the hospital will allow you to stay overnight inside of the hospital.

You may have to pay a small fee but, trust us, it is probably going to be a lot better than the hospital parking lot.

If you do not have somebody that you know in the hospital, then you should probably try to steer clear of the hospital parking lot, or be prepared to be moved on at any hour of the day.

We recommend looking for a motel in the local area. It is probably going to be a lot safer for you.

Of course, if you are going to take the latter suggestion, then you may still want to pay attention to the laws of the state. After all, you can’t just pull up your car or RV and sleep wherever you want.

Conclusion

While you will probably have a lot more success parking in a hospital parking lot than any other parking lot, it is still going to be against the rules in most cases.

You should only really be sleeping in a hospital parking lot if you have somebody that you know inside of the hospital.

However, even then, there is still a small chance that you could be moved on. The rules are the rules, after all.

Just try to keep a low profile while you are in the hospital parking lot, and we are confident that you will run into fewer problems.

References

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2013/12/03/nearly-all-hospitals-will-give-you-the-price-of-parking-barely-any-will-give-you-the-price-of-care/

Can You Sleep In Hospital Parking Lot? – (The Truth)