Care work is one of the most emotionally and physically demanding jobs there is, requiring patience, skill, empathy, resilience, and a genuine commitment to another human being. And yet, in the UK, it has historically been one of the most underpaid professions.
The result is predictable: high turnover, burnout, and ultimately worse care for the people who need it most. When carers feel undervalued, stretched, and exhausted, it shows, not through any fault of their own, but because unsustainable conditions produce unsustainable care.
The agency fee problem
Much of the pay problem in domiciliary care comes from the agency model. A family pays £28 per hour for a carer's visit. The agency takes its cut, covering management, overheads, compliance, and profit margin. The carer might receive £11 to £14 of that. In some cases, even less.
This is not a criticism of every care agency, running a regulated care business is genuinely expensive and complex. But the structure means that there is an inherent tension between what families pay and what carers earn.
The introductory model
Hibant operates as an introductory agency. We do not employ carers, we introduce self-employed carers to families. We take no commission and no platform fee: matching is free for families and carers.
Because we are not the employer, we do not carry employer National Insurance, holiday pay liability, or pension contributions. Our cost structure is leaner, and we pass that directly on to carers.
At Hibant, carers keep everything a family pays, minus only the small card-processing fee. For a carer charging £22 per hour, that means taking home the full £22 for every hour worked, significantly more than they would earn through most traditional agencies for the same visit.
Why this matters beyond the pay
Higher earnings attract more talented carers and allow them to build genuinely sustainable businesses. It reduces the financial pressure that leads many experienced carers to leave the profession or take on too many clients.
It also changes the dynamic. A carer who earns well, controls their own schedule, and chooses who they work with is in a fundamentally better position than one who is over-stretched, underpaid, and allocated to a roster of clients they have had no say in. That wellbeing, that sense of agency, translates directly into the quality of care.
Our commitment: no commission, ever
Hibant does not take a cut of what carers earn. Matching, introductions, and the tools carers and families use every day are free, and we fund the business in other ways, never by skimming from care itself.
This is our commitment: the person doing the caring keeps what they earn. Not the other way around.
Looking for care or thinking of joining Hibant?
Whether you are a family navigating care for a loved one or a carer looking for fairer, more meaningful work, we would love to hear from you.