Patients and NHS staff using the Costa coffee outlet in Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI) are paying more for their drinks than customers in the chain's nearby Northumberland Street branch, less than two miles away.
And the coffee giant has been slammed for the hospital 'surcharge', with campaigners accusing the company of taking advantage of its 'captive customers' inside the hospital's Leazes Wing.
However Costa, which has 94 concessions in hospitals throughout the UK, defended the price difference, saying it was set by its commercial partners and reflected the cost to run the cafe in the hospital, which has around 138,000 patients every year.
