HMCA

What HMCA does

HMCA (Hospital & Medical Care Association), trading via HMCA/S PLC, is a UK-registered private medical insurance intermediary authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN:307587). Founded in 1978 by Barney and Julia Skrentny in Knaresborough, the company distributes its products via a network of more than 600 professional associations, trade organisations, and membership groups; plans are explicitly not available to the general public, and the distribution model is designed to avoid advertising costs in favour of channel-based acquisition. The company also maintains a secondary London office to support UK-wide members.

HMCA's product portfolio is built around three core medical plan tiers (Medical Care Plan, Medical Saver Plan, and Medical Starter Plan) covering outpatient, day-case, and inpatient private treatment with international extensions of up to six months. These are supplemented by the Plus Plan add-on (24/7 GP access, video consultations, prescription delivery, and wellbeing helplines), cash plans including the Hospital Sickness & Injury Money Plan and Care Starter Cash Plan, dental plans, and travel insurance delivered via a referral partnership with Just Travel Cover. Underlying insurance risk is carried by a panel of FCA-authorised underwriters; HMCA itself operates as an intermediary without proprietary underwriting technology.

The business model is subscription-based with monthly billing for medical, cash, and dental plans, plus referral commissions on travel insurance. Revenue is generated through three primary customer segments: individual members and families of qualifying associations, the associations themselves (which earn an income share on plans taken out), and employer groups via the Company Schemes vertical. The company employs 11-50 staff, runs UK-based human-staffed contact operations with no automated menus, and reports operational metrics including 92% same-day claims processing and 92% of transferring members saving money (between 1 January and 30 April 2026).

Name

HMCA

Legal name

HMCA/S PLC

Website

https://hmca.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1978

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

HMCA is a UK private medical insurance intermediary operating exclusively through 600+ professional associations and membership groups, offering tiered medical plans, cash plans, dental, and travel insurance to individual members and company scheme participants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Medical Insurance

NAICS

Direct Health and Medical Insurance Carriers (524114), Health and Welfare Funds (525120)

SIC

Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411), Hospital & Medical Service Plans (6324), Accident & Health Insurance (6321)

akta.pro primary industry

Utilization Management (Prior Auth/Medical Necessity) Administration (HLAEALAF)

Keywords

• Private medical insurance
• Health insurance plans
• Membership group benefits
• Cash benefit plans
• Dental insurance plans

Headquarters

HQ city

Knaresborough

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Private Medical Insurance Premiums: HMCA generates revenue through subscription-based private medical insurance premiums paid by members of qualifying associations and groups. Plans include Medical Care Plan, Medical Saver Plan, and Medical Starter Plan, with optional Plus Plan upgrades. Additional revenue streams include cash plans, dental plans, and travel insurance referral commissions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

HMCA (Hospital & Medical Care Association) is an FCA-regulated insurance intermediary that provides private medical insurance and supplementary health plans exclusively to members of qualifying professional associations, trade organisations, and membership groups. Its core product line consists of three tiered medical plans (Medical Care Plan, Medical Saver Plan, Medical Starter Plan) backed by a panel of underwriters, with access to over 500 UK hospitals. The product portfolio is extended with cash plans (Hospital Sickness & Injury Money Plan, Care Starter Cash Plan), dental plans, travel insurance via Just Travel Cover, and a Plus Plan add-on offering 24/7 GP access and wellbeing helplines.

Product overview

HMCA (Hospital & Medical Care Association) is a private medical insurance provider offering a portfolio of healthcare plans exclusively to members of qualifying associations and membership groups. The core offering consists of three tiers of private medical insurance: the Medical Care Plan (comprehensive coverage including outpatient, day-case, and inpatient treatments with international benefits), the Medical Saver Plan (focused on inpatient coverage with international benefits), and the Medical Starter Plan (entry-level inpatient coverage within the UK). These medical plans can be enhanced with the Plus Plan add-on, which provides 24/7 GP helpline access, video consultations, and various wellbeing support services. HMCA also offers supplementary health plans including cash plans (Hospital Sickness & Injury Money Plan and Care Starter Cash Plan), dental plans, and travel insurance. All plans are available exclusively to members of partner associations and groups, with no medical exams required and guaranteed acceptance regardless of age.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HMCA Insurance: Private medical insurance brand operated by HMCA for members of qualifying groups and associations.

Products and services

• Medical Care Plan Comprehensive private medical insurance plan offering full outpatient, day-case, and inpatient treatments with international coverage extending up to six months abroad. Includes NHS cash benefits and personal accident cover. Available exclusively to members of qualifying associations and membership groups.
• Medical Saver Plan Inpatient-focused medical plan with coverage extending internationally for up to six months while travelling abroad. Provides NHS cash benefits of £200 per night for up to 30 nights. Available exclusively to members of qualifying associations and groups.
• Medical Starter Plan Entry-level private medical insurance covering inpatient treatments within the UK only. Includes NHS cash benefits of £100 per night and personal accident cover. Available exclusively to members of qualifying associations and groups.
• Plus Plan Upgrade add-on to any HMCA medical plan providing 24/7 GP telephone consultations, video consultations, private prescription delivery, emotional wellbeing helpline, food and nutrition advice, musculoskeletal support, exercise and activity guidance, and good sleep advice. Sold as a separately purchasable add-on.
• Hospital Sickness & Injury Money Plan Cash plan paying £225 per night for up to 365 days when hospitalized, available whether as NHS or private patient, and payable even alongside other medical plans. Available to HMCA members.
• Care Starter Cash Plan Cash plan providing tax-free cash benefits to cover unexpected medical expenses including treatments and consultations, paid directly to the member. Available to HMCA members.
• Dental Plans Dental insurance plans providing coverage for routine examinations, dental X-rays, remedial or restorative treatment, oral cancer coverage, dental accidents, emergency dental treatment, and emergency call-out fees. Available to HMCA members.
• Travel Insurance Travel insurance provided through partnership with Just Travel Cover, offering single trip and annual multi-trip policies with no age limit, pre-existing condition coverage, cruise cover, up to £15,000,000 emergency medical cover, and baggage protection. Delivered via a white-label website operated by Just Travel Cover.
• Company Schemes Employer medical insurance plans offering fast access to medical investigations and treatment, personal claims service, and three levels of medical plan options to enhance employee benefits and retention. Includes options for excess or moratorium plans to reduce subscription costs, and 24-hour GP Advice Helpline and wellbeing support.

Quantifiable outcome

• 92% of claims processed same day (between 1 January 2026 and 30 April 2026)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Just Travel CovercoreGTM or Marketing PartnerHMCA has partnered with Just Travel Cover to provide travel insurance options to its members. When members click through from HMCA's website, they are transferred to a white label website operated by Just Travel Cover (a trading name of Just Insurance Agents Limited) to obtain travel insurance quotes. HMCA earns referral commissions through this arrangement.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Bupa: Bupa is the UK's largest private medical insurer and healthcare provider, offering individual and corporate PMI alongside health clinics. It is the dominant incumbent against whom HMCA positions itself in the UK PMI market, though Bupa serves the general public rather than exclusively through membership groups.
• AXA Health: AXA Health is a major UK private medical insurance provider offering individual, family, and corporate PMI. Comparable to HMCA in product category but much larger and competing through direct-to-consumer and intermediary channels rather than association-only.
• VitalityHealth: VitalityHealth is a UK PMI provider that underwrites its own policies and is known for wellness-incentivised plans. Comparable to HMCA in offering private medical cover to UK consumers, though Vitality is a direct insurer rather than an intermediary and operates at a much larger scale.
• Aviva Health: Aviva is a major UK insurer offering private medical insurance alongside life and general insurance products. Comparable to HMCA as a UK health insurance provider, but Aviva operates broadly across segments and channels rather than exclusively through membership groups.

Direct peers

• The Exeter: The Exeter is a UK friendly society offering private medical insurance alongside income protection and other health-related products. Comparable to HMCA as a UK-focused health insurer with similar customer-base emphasis on affordability and personal service.
• Freedom Health Insurance: Freedom Health Insurance is a UK specialist private medical insurer focused on individual and SME PMI. Closely comparable to HMCA in scale and product focus, competing for similar budget-conscious individual and small-group customers.
• WPA (Western Provident Association): WPA is a UK not-for-profit private medical insurer offering individual and corporate PMI. Highly comparable to HMCA in product focus and UK-only footprint; both compete for SME and individual PMI customers, with WPA occasionally partnering with membership groups.
• Medicash: Medicash is a UK health cash plan provider offering cash benefits and corporate wellbeing schemes. Comparable to HMCA's cash plan line of business and overlaps on the membership/corporate group channel.
• Health Shield: Health Shield is a UK health cash plan and wellbeing provider offering cash benefits, Employee Assistance Programmes, and PMI-like products to employers and membership groups. Directly comparable to HMCA's cash plan and membership-channel distribution model.
• Simplyhealth: Simplyhealth is a UK health solutions provider offering cash plans, dental plans, and private medical insurance to individuals, employers, and membership groups. Comparable to HMCA across the same product portfolio (cash, dental, PMI) and similar customer base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/hmca.co.uk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hmca/posts/?feedView=all
• Xx.com/hmca

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HMCA