Question 1

How much does it really cost to employ a medical secretary in the UK?

Accepted Answer

The true annual cost of employing a full-time medical secretary in the UK is typically between £37,000 and £42,000, significantly more than the advertised salary of £25,000 to £32,000. The difference is made up of employer National Insurance contributions, pension obligations, statutory holiday pay, sick pay liability, recruitment costs, training, and equipment. Many practices are surprised by how quickly these additional obligations accumulate on top of the base salary.

Question 2

What is the employer National Insurance rate in the UK in 2026?

Accepted Answer

As of 2026, employers pay National Insurance at 13.8% on employee earnings above the secondary threshold of £9,100 per year. For a medical secretary earning £28,000 per year, this represents approximately £2,868 in employer NI contributions annually, a cost that does not appear in the job advertisement but falls entirely on the employer from day one.

Question 3

Is outsourcing medical transcription cheaper than hiring in-house?

Accepted Answer

For most independent consultants and small to medium practices, yes, often significantly so. Outsourcing to OutSec Medical means paying only for the work completed. There are no NI contributions, no pension obligations, no holiday or sick pay liability, and no recruitment costs. A consultant dictating 30 audio minutes per week would typically spend between £1,800 and £2,200 per year with OutSec Medical, compared with £37,000 or more for a full-time in-house employee.

Question 4

What hidden costs come with employing someone in the UK?

Accepted Answer

Beyond salary, UK employers must budget for employer National Insurance at 13.8% above the secondary threshold, auto-enrolment pension contributions at a minimum of 3%, 28 days of statutory holiday including bank holidays, statutory sick pay, recruitment and onboarding costs of typically £1,500 to £3,000 for a specialist role, training and CPD, equipment, and software licences. The ongoing management time the role requires is an additional cost that rarely features in a practice's initial calculations but is very real in practice.

Question 5

Can I scale outsourced transcription support up or down as my workload changes?

Accepted Answer

Yes. OutSec Medical operates with no minimum commitment and no contracts. During a busy medico-legal period or following a heavy clinic schedule you use more. During quieter periods you use less. There is no obligation to maintain a fixed level of spend and no penalty for varying your usage from month to month. This flexibility is one of the most practical advantages of outsourcing over employing in-house, where costs remain fixed regardless of workload.

Question 6

What does OutSec Medical charge for transcription?

Accepted Answer

Standard transcription is charged at £1.40 per audio minute excluding VAT, with a guaranteed turnaround within 24 hours. Priority transcription, for delivery within 6 hours, is £1.70 per audio minute excluding VAT. There are no setup fees, no monthly charges, and no minimum usage requirements. You pay only for what you use.

Question 7

What is included in an OutSec Medical transcription account?

Accepted Answer

Every OutSec Medical account includes a dedicated specialist typist assigned to your work, a trained backup typist for continuity, a dedicated Account Manager as your single point of contact, secure access to the OutSec FileManager for audio upload and transcript return, and the free OutSec Speak App for iOS and Android. There is no setup fee and no minimum commitment required to open an account.

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