True hourly pay
None of us like a gappy run. But did you know that gaps between care visits count as payable working time?
In 2025, 72% of over 500 domiciliary care workers we asked said they were only paid for the time they spend at care visits. Yet some or all of the gaps between scheduled care visits counts as payable working time. This means that our true hourly rate of pay once all working time is considered is often lower than the rate stated on their contract of employment.
Compliant employers top-up wages when they run payroll so that each worker’s pay meets the National Living (Minimum) Wage. Misleadingly high rates of pay in domiciliary care are an issue in their own right which we are doing our best to address. Non-compliant employers illegally underpay the National Living (Minimum) Wage.
Homecare Voices helps homecare workers find out where they stand in relation to this issue. Based on calculations we have performed using our One Run Checker in the current financial year, we find that the average contracted rate of pay was £13.08 yet the average true hourly rate of pay was just £9.61. hat's well below the legal National Minimum Wage of £12.21.
Learn more
What's going on?
Homecare Voices founder Rachel Kelso with the Minister For Employment Rights Justin Madders MP in March 2025
How do I find out whether my employer tops up our wages to meet National Living (Minimum) Wage?
Take a look at recent payslips. If your pay has been topped up to meet National Minimum Wage, this is usually stated on the payslip. You can also ask your employer about this directly, though we recommend joining a trade union like Unison or GMB before starting any conversation about the terms and conditions of your employment, so that they may be able to support you in future if necessary.
If there is no mention of a top up on your payslip, this may mean that:
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Unpaid gaps during the pay period in question were not big enough to degrade your true hourly rate below the National Minimum Wage, or,
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You have been illegally underpaid the National Minimum Wage
If there is mention of a top up on your payslips, it is likely that:
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You were paid the National Minimum Wage for your work during the pay period, but no more.
I think I might have been underpaid by the National Minimum Wage. What can I do?
You can make a report to HMRC who will investigate your case. You can do this confidentially. If HMRC decides you have been underpaid the National Minimum Wage, you are entitled to make a claim for back-pay from your employer.
How does HMRC work out whether or not I have been underpaid the National Minimum Wage?
HMRC is likely to ask you to provide one or more payslips, and the corresponding rotas. They will calculate your average hourly wage once all working time is considered across the pay period in question. This is why, to help people feel confident about making a report to HMRC, Homecare Voices provides a Pay Period Log to members of our free-to-join community in addition to our One Run Checker.
What length of gaps between care visits counts as payable working time?
In 2020, a judge ruled that travelling and waiting time of up to an hour between appointments should be compensated as working time for domiciliary care workers. Unfortunately, this case law has not since been formalised in common law. As a result, HMRC does not consistently recognise gaps of up to sixty minutes between care visits as payable working time when deciding whether a homecare worker has been paid above or below the National Minimum Wage. Instead, we understand that individual Compliance Officers at HMRC make a judgement call about which gaps should count as payable working time, based on their understanding of what you were doing during the gap and whether it was reasonably possible for you to 'take a break'. It is therefore important to make a note about what you did during gaps.
Is it really worth me reporting to HMRC?
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A member of Homecare Voices was granted five years to make a claim for backdated pay after HMRC confirmed they had been illegally underpaid the National Minimum Wage. This allowed them the breathing space to seek new employment before taking the matter further
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In October 2025, the government revealed that 500 companies - including a number of homecare providers - had been fined over £10 million by HMRC for failing to pay their staff the National Minimum Wage, with £6 million going straight back into workers’ pockets
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In 2020, a group of ten homecare workers were awarded £10,000 each after taking their employer to court over the impact of unpaid gaps on their true hourly rate of pay
Find out where you stand
We've created three unique resources to help you work out how you are affected by all this
One run checker
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The best place to start is to look at a single run of visits. You can do this by using our One-Run Checker. This will help you know whether it's worth looking into things further.
Alternatively you can learn how to do this calculation yourself by downloading our 10 step DIY manual.
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Pay period log
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Instead of looking at your true hourly rate of pay for just one run, HMRC will make their decision based on the average true hourly rate of pay for all the runs you did during a particular pay period. For most of us, a pay period covers either two weeks or a month worth of runs.
Exclusively for members of Homecare Voices, use the pay period log to find out your average true rate of pay for a whole pay period and get peace of mind ahead of a possible report to HMRC.
Take action
If you are reasonably confident that you may have been illegally underpaid the National Minimum Wage, it is HMRC’s job to look into this for you. You can make an anonymous report to HMRC via the button above.
You have every right to feel misled by your employer if the hourly rate stated in their job advert is far higher than what you’re actually being paid. Report a problem job advert to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) via the button above.
Our MPs can only speak up for us in Parliament if we tell them what's going on. Use the Work Rights Centre’s AI tool to send a personalised letter to your MP about how misleadingly low pay rates in homecare have affected you. Just click the button above.