UK competition watchdog mandates structural reforms across the vet market

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has officially concluded its investigation into the household veterinary services market, which launched in 2024.

Concluding that the current system repeatedly leaves pet owners in the dark, the CMA’s independent inquiry group determined that a lack of accessible information has been fueling weak competition and unnecessarily high treatment costs.

Therefore, the CMA has introduced a package of legally binding reforms that will start coming into force later this year.

“Our measures mean it will be made clear to pet owners which practices are part of large groups, which are charging higher prices, and for the first time, vet businesses will be held to account by an independent regulator,” says Martin Coleman, Chair of the Independent Inquiry Group.

Key solutions

At the heart of the CMA’s final report is a targeted set of key solutions aimed at fundamentally transforming how veterinary businesses operate and interact with consumers.

Enhanced price transparency is the primary focus of the changes. Currently, less than 40% of vet practices list their prices online. Under the new rules, practices will be required to publish comprehensive price lists for standard services, including consultations, diagnostics, routine procedures, written prescriptions and cremation options.

Furthermore, for non-routine treatments expected to cost £500 ($663.80/€572.89) or more, practices must provide an itemized written estimate in advance so owners are not caught off guard by large bills.

Prescription fee caps will directly impact the daily costs of pet care. Recognizing that over 70% of pet owners buy long-term medication directly from their vet – often missing out on potential savings of £200 ($265.49/€229.11) a year by not shopping online – the CMA is mandating change. Vets must actively inform clients that they can request a written prescription.

Clarity on corporate ownership will also be enforced. With large veterinary groups dominating the market, many consumers are unaware that their local independent- sounding clinic is actually part of a corporate chain. Moving forward, vet businesses must clearly display their common ownership on signage at the physical premises and online.

Empowering choice and impartiality rounds out their core remedies. To combat potential commercial pressure, vet practices must implement written policies ensuring their staff are empowered to offer independent and impartial clinical advice. Additionally, a new price and ownership comparison tool will be integrated into the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons’ (RCVS) ‘Find a Vet’ service, eventually feeding data into third-party comparison sites.

Regulatory overhaul

Beyond immediate consumer-facing remedies, the CMA has advocated for the modernization of the 60-year-old Veterinary Services Act. The proposed legislative reforms will make the entire veterinary business accountable to an independent regulator.

The RCVS will assume a central role in monitoring business compliance, managing the new comparison tools and enforcing the measures.

To fund these expanded regulatory duties, a new levy will be placed on veterinary businesses. Initial estimates suggest a setup fee of £150 ($199.06/€171.83) to £250 ($331.76/€286.38) per practice, followed by an ongoing annual cost of £450 ($597.18/€515.49) to £550 ($729.88/€630.11).

Implementation process

With the investigation concluded, the CMA now has a six-month window to formalize these legally binding orders, with a deadline set for 23 September 2026. Once this is established, most measures will take effect within 3 to 12 months.

To ease the transition, smaller, independent veterinary practices will be granted an additional 3 months to implement the mandated changes compared to their larger corporate counterparts.