A woman in High Wycombe has been hit with an NHS letter threatening a fine of up to £100 over a ‘fraudulent’ free prescription she was told she had claimed for her Type 1 diabetes.

Sarah O’Neill, 48, said she found it ‘stressful’ when she received a letter from the NHS Business Services Authority in June telling her that she could face a penalty charge notice of up to £100.

The health body told her in the letter that she was receiving the warning because she did not have a valid medical exemption certificate for her diabetes.

Sarah told the Bucks Free Press: “I was there going, ‘what certificate?’ I thought my diabetes was the exemption. I didn’t realise I had to have a certificate.”

The mum-of-two, who is originally from Maidenhead, says she was not told about the need to have a certificate by either her GP surgery, the Cross Keys Practice in Princes Risborough, or the Boots Pharmacy where she is registered in High Wycombe’s Eden Centre.

She said: “Now, years later, here I am, having finally been caught out, having not had one for the best part of 30 years. They have finally realised that I don’t have one.”

A fine of £48.25 against Sarah was eventually dropped after she called the NHS to tell them she was diabetic and subsequently obtained the certificate. However, she has been told that she still has to pay the NHS £9.65 for the prescription she ‘fraudulently claimed’.

Sarah said: “I have been registered with two different doctors’ surgeries across this period of time. I have used countless different pharmacies in Maidenhead and Wycombe and at no point has anyone picked up on this and said, ‘excuse me, do you actually have the certificate?’.”

The resident said there were lots of boxes to fill in on the form to explain an exemption from paying.

“What has happened to me is what has happened to a lot of other people,” said Sarah, who wants to make others aware that they may need a certificate when claiming a free prescription.

The NHS Business Services Authority said it was unable to comment on individual cases without the consent of the patient, but that it had contacted Sarah.

In a statement it said: “The NHS Business Services Authority provides the exemption checking service on behalf of NHS England to recover unpaid patient charges for NHS prescriptions and dental treatment.

“If we identify that an NHS prescription was incorrectly claimed for free, an initial enquiry letter is sent to patients.

“This gives patients an opportunity to check their exemption and contact us to confirm that they were exempt from paying. If they don’t contact us within 28 days, or if they weren’t exempt, a penalty charge notice (PCN) is then issued.”

The authority added that it was the patient’s responsibility to ensure they were correctly claiming free NHS prescriptions and to apply for a medical exemption certificate and keep it in date.