National Friendly's cash plans start from £5.90/mo and bundle My GP Anytime. Our verdict on everyday claim limits, digital GP access and who it suits.
National Friendly Cash Plan Review — from £5.90/mo
National Friendly's cash plans start from £5.90/mo and bundle My GP Anytime. Our verdict on everyday claim limits, digital GP access and who it suits.
What National Friendly cover includes
Bristol-based mutual friendly society — accessible cash plans plus a distinctive 'My GP Anytime' digital-GP-first proposition.
National Friendly (formally the National Deposit Friendly Society) is a UK mutual friendly society tracing its heritage to 1868 — one of the older continuously-trading mutuals in UK protection. Its cash-plan proposition is deliberately simpler than Medicash's six-level ladder. The headline product is My GP Anytime, a low-cost 24/7 digital-GP-first plan from around £5.90 per adult per month that also pays modest dental, optical and specialist-consultation benefits. Above that sit the Health & Wellbeing Plan tiers (traditionally levels 1–4), which move into standard cash-plan territory with escalating dental, optical, therapy and cash-benefit limits. National Friendly also underwrites Over 50s plans and protection products where mainstream PMI insurers typically decline — a genuinely useful niche.
National Friendly at a glance
- Established: 1868 as the National Deposit Friendly Society.
- Head office: Bristol.
- Regulation: National Deposit Friendly Society Ltd is authorised by the PRA and regulated by the FCA and PRA (FRN 110008).
- Best suited to: Digital-first buyers wanting 24/7 GP as the headline benefit; Older adults where big-name PMI declines; Simple everyday-health cover without corporate complexity
- Indicative starting premium: £5.90/mo
- PremierPMI broker rating: 4.4 out of 5
- Corporate structure: Mutual friendly society — member-owned, no shareholders
- Trading since: 1868 (as National Deposit Friendly Society)
- Flagship products: My GP Anytime · Health & Wellbeing Plan (Levels 1–4) · Over 50s cover
- Signature feature: 24/7 digital GP as a headline plan in its own right, not just a bundled extra
- Later-life eligibility: Actively accepts new applicants where mainstream PMI insurers decline
National Friendly plan tiers compared
| Plan | Monthly (illustrative) | Typical use / limits |
|---|---|---|
| My GP Anytime | from ~£5.90/mo | Unlimited 24/7 GP video consultations,Dental up to £50,Optical up to £50,Specialist consultations up to £100 |
| Health & Wellbeing Plan — Level 1 | ~£10–£12/mo | Dental up to £100,Optical up to £100,Therapies up to £150,GP video included |
| Health & Wellbeing Plan — Level 2 | ~£16–£18/mo | Dental up to £180,Optical up to £180,Therapies up to £250,Consultations up to £150 |
| Health & Wellbeing Plan — Level 3 | ~£24–£28/mo | Dental up to £250,Optical up to £250,Therapies up to £350,Health screening included |
| Health & Wellbeing Plan — Level 4 | ~£34–£38/mo | Dental up to £320,Optical up to £320,Therapies up to £450,Consultations up to £300 |
Benefit limits, line by line
| Category | Benefit | Limits | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24/7 digital GP | Unlimited GP video consultations day or night | Unlimited on My GP Anytime and every Health & Wellbeing level | The single strongest feature of the National Friendly range. |
| Dental | Routine check-ups, hygienist, fillings, extractions, crowns, dentures | £50 (My GP Anytime) → £320 (L4) per adult per year | |
| Optical | Eye tests, prescription glasses, contact lenses | £50 → £320 per adult per year | |
| Therapies | Physiotherapy, osteopathy, chiropractic, acupuncture | £0 (My GP Anytime) → £450 (L4) per adult per year | |
| Specialist consultations | Consultations with a specialist for diagnosis (not treatment) | £100 → £300 per adult per year | |
| Hospital stays (NHS) | Cash back per night for eligible NHS inpatient stays | £20 → £40 per night, capped nights per year | |
| Personal accident | Lump-sum cash benefit on eligible accident-related injuries | Available on Health & Wellbeing tiers, escalating with level | |
| Health screening | Contribution to a private health MOT / screening | £0 → £120 per year depending on tier | |
| Mental-health support | Structured counselling / therapy sessions arranged through the plan | Up to 6–8 sessions per year on higher levels | |
| Maternity / new-child | Cash benefit on birth or adoption of a new child | £100 → £250 on Health & Wellbeing tiers | |
| Discount services | Discounted access to gyms, wellness services and everyday retail partners | Included on every tier |
Indicative National Friendly premiums by age
Illustrative desk figures, not quotes — every premium is individually underwritten.
Making a claim
- 1. Book the appointment — You attend any UK dentist, optician, physio or specialist of your choice. National Friendly does not maintain a restricted network.
- 2. Pay the practitioner directly — You settle the invoice with the practitioner. National Friendly is a cash-plan — not a direct-settlement provider.
- 3. Submit the claim — Upload the itemised receipt via the National Friendly member portal, choose the benefit category, submit. Most decisions come back inside 3–5 working days.
- 4. Cash paid to your account — Approved claims are paid straight into your nominated bank account. The 24/7 GP benefit works differently — you access GP video appointments direct through the app with no claim needed.
Where National Friendly stands out
- 156+ year mutual heritage — one of the UK's older continuously-trading friendly societies.
- My GP Anytime is genuinely differentiated — a proper 24/7 digital-GP-first plan from under £6/month rather than a bundled bolt-on.
- You can use any UK practitioner — no restricted network.
- Actively accepts Over 50s applicants where mainstream PMI insurers frequently decline or price out.
- Mutual structure means claim limits have historically been increased at renewal rather than squeezed.
Watch-outs before you buy
- Individual cash-plan limits are lower per tier than Medicash Proactive at broadly similar price points — worth comparing category-by-category before committing.
- My GP Anytime dental / optical top-up amounts are modest — it's really a digital-GP plan with cash-plan add-ons, not a full cash plan.
- As with every UK cash plan, this is not PMI — hospital-level acute treatment and private consultants for treatment (rather than diagnosis) sit outside the product.
- Qualifying periods can apply to higher-value dental treatment on the Health & Wellbeing tiers — always check the specific category before booking a big-ticket appointment.
PremierPMI broker desk notes
- My GP Anytime is our default recommendation when a client wants unlimited 24/7 digital GP as the primary benefit and doesn't need full cash-plan limits — the price point is genuinely hard to beat elsewhere in the UK market.
- For clients over 65 who have been declined by mainstream PMI, National Friendly's Over 50s cover and Health & Wellbeing plans are frequently the only viable option — worth a specific conversation.
- Where a household wants higher dental and optical limits, we usually recommend Medicash Level 2/3 over the equivalent National Friendly Health & Wellbeing tier at the same price point — Medicash tends to have the edge on limits per pound.
- National Friendly plans combine cleanly with a mainstream PMI policy — no benefit overlap, so no double-cover issue.
National Friendly compared with other insurers
| Versus | Broker verdict |
|---|---|
| Medicash | Both are UK mutuals. Medicash's individual level ladder has higher dental/optical limits at similar price points; National Friendly's My GP Anytime is unmatched at its price for 24/7 digital-GP-first cover. |
| Simplyhealth | Simplyhealth is corporate-heavy; National Friendly's individual proposition (especially My GP Anytime) is more distinctive at the low-cost end of the market. |
| Vitality GP Anytime add-on | Vitality includes a Vitality GP video benefit within its PMI, but you pay full PMI premium to access it. National Friendly's My GP Anytime is a standalone plan from under £6/month for buyers who only want the GP benefit. |
| PMI (Bupa / AXA / Aviva) | Different products. National Friendly cash plans reimburse everyday health spend up to limits; PMI funds private hospital treatment. Many households benefit from both. |
Broker verdict
National Friendly is the digital-GP-first pick — the right cash-plan recommendation when a client wants unlimited 24/7 GP video access as the primary benefit at a genuinely low price point, and specifically valuable for older applicants where mainstream PMI has declined.
Best for: Best for 24/7 digital-GP-first buyers and later-life applicants.
Common questions
Is National Friendly a health insurance company?
National Friendly (formally the National Deposit Friendly Society) is a UK mutual friendly society. It underwrites health cash plans (including its distinctive My GP Anytime plan and the Health & Wellbeing Plan tiers) and life-and-protection products. It is not a mainstream private medical insurance (PMI) provider — cash plans and PMI solve different problems.
What is My GP Anytime from National Friendly?
My GP Anytime is National Friendly's flagship digital-GP-first plan, priced from around £5.90 per adult per month. It provides unlimited 24/7 GP video consultations, plus modest dental (~£50/year), optical (~£50/year) and specialist consultation (~£100/year) cash-plan top-ups. It's the strongest single UK product in its price range for buyers who mainly want 24/7 GP access.
Does National Friendly accept older applicants?
Yes — National Friendly actively accepts new applicants in later life through its Over 50s cover and Health & Wellbeing plans. This is genuinely valuable given that mainstream UK private medical insurance insurers frequently decline or price out new applicants above certain age bands.
Is National Friendly a mutual?
Yes — National Friendly is a mutual friendly society, member-owned, with no external shareholders. Any surplus is reinvested in member benefits and product improvements rather than paid out as dividends.
How does the National Friendly claims process work?
You attend any UK dentist, optician, physio or specialist of your choice, pay them directly, and submit the itemised receipt through the National Friendly member portal. Approved claims are paid straight into your bank account within a few working days. The 24/7 GP benefit works differently — you access video appointments direct through the app with no claim needed.
Price basis: Illustrative adult-only price on the provider's lowest cash plan tier, before any employer subsidy. Adding partner or family cover and moving up tiers increases the price.
PremierPMI is a UK private medical insurance broker specialising in whole-of-market placement across 10+ leading UK health insurers including Bupa, AXA Health, Aviva, Vitality, WPA, Freedom Health, The Exeter, General & Medical and National Friendly. FCA regulated (Tesha Family Ltd, FRN 1029667). Speak to a broker on 020 4525 0884, WhatsApp 020 8064 2273, or email contact@premierpmi.co.uk.
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