The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has today published the provisional decision in its market investigation into the UK’s £6.3 billion veterinary services market.
The market investigation – which is principally into vet businesses, not individual vets – identifies concerns, including that pet owners:
- are often unaware of the prices of commonly used services and whether their local practices are part of large national chains;
- have no effective way of comparing vet prices when they get a pet or move areas;
- may be paying twice as much for commonly prescribed medicines from vet practices than they could pay online, amounting to hundreds of pounds more than they need to pay;
- often receive no written estimate for courses of treatment running to hundreds – or even thousands – of pounds;
- are often unable to tell if they are getting good value for money from pet care plans;
- may be overpaying for individual cremations; and
- often have no effective means of complaining when things go wrong.
These factors are market wide and mean consumers do not benefit from strong competition between vet businesses. Average vet prices across the market rose by 63% between 2016 and 2023 – well above the rate of inflation.
The CMA also found that pet owners pay 16.6% more on average at large vet groups than at independent vets. For at least three of those large groups, average prices increased faster at practices they bought than at practices that remained independent. For a substantial part of the market as a whole, profits are much higher than they should be if competition was working well.
In addition, the CMA has found that the current regulatory system is not fit for purpose. It only regulates individual veterinary professionals and not vet businesses, despite the majority of practices being part of a large corporate group.
Given its market-wide concerns, the CMA’s independent expert inquiry group has provisionally decided that a far-reaching package of 21 measures is required to address the above concerns and reinvigorate competition in this market.
Martin Coleman, chair of the Inquiry Group, said: “Pet owners are often left in the dark, not knowing whether their practice is independent or part of a chain or what a fair price looks like. They are sometimes committing to expensive treatment without understanding the price in advance. And they do not always feel confident asking for a prescription or buying medicine online – even when it could save them hundreds of pounds.
“Even where pet owners could access some of this information, it is difficult for them to compare prices and services – despite the fact that, in most of the country, there are several local practices they could choose between.”
Mr Coleman continued: “We are proposing major reforms aimed at bringing about a transformation in the experience of pet owners and empowering them to make the best choices for their circumstances.
“We believe that our proposals would enable pet owners to choose the right vet, the right treatment, and the right way to purchase medicine – without confusion or unnecessary cost.”
CMA’s proposed remedies
The CMA is today proposing a wide-ranging set of remedies to address these issues, including:
- Requiring vet businesses to publish comprehensive price lists, be clear if they are part of a large group, and make sure that their policies and processes allow vets to act in the best interests of pets and pet owners. These measures will give pet owners the information they need to choose the right practice and treatment options for them
- Making it easier for pet owners to access cheaper medicines online, including by requiring vets to tell pet owners about savings they make by buying medicines online and, where a medicine is likely to be needed frequently, automatically providing a written prescription to enable the pet owner to purchase the medicine elsewhere (unless the pet owner chooses otherwise), and capping the price of providing prescriptions at £16. These measures will help prompt consumers to consider buying medication online and protect them from having to pay excessive prices for the prescriptions they would need to do so.
- Requiring vets to give pet owners clear price information when they are choosing a treatment, with prices in writing for treatments over £500 and itemised bills. This will make it easier for consumers to consider different treatment options and providers.
- Requiring the RCVS to enhance its Find a Vet website to include pricing data drawing on the price lists vets will be required to publish; this data can also be used by third party websites and apps. This will allow consumers to compare vet prices much more effectively, for instance when they first get a pet or move areas.
- Requiring vets to give clear price information to pet owners arranging a cremation. This is important to allow pet owners to make the best decisions for their circumstances, at an especially emotional time.
- Requiring vets to give pricing breakdowns for pet care plans. This will allow pet owners to better decide if these would provide good value for money in their own circumstances.
- Recommending that the government urgently prioritises a new Veterinary Surgeons Act and updates regulation to include veterinary businesses, as well as individual vets and nurses, and give the regulator powers to set and enforce requirements and standards for these businesses. Reform is needed to make sure pet owners’ interests are protected and there is an effective complaints handling route if things go wrong.
The main focus of the inquiry is into veterinary businesses, not individual vets. The CMA is concerned to hear that some vets and vet nurses face abuse from frustrated clients – they deserve respect, not hostility. The proposed remedies would be good for vets, further enhancing trust in the profession and protecting clinical judgment from undue commercial pressure.
Implementation
The CMA’s final decision will be published by March 2026. The reforms would be implemented through a legally binding CMA Order and could see some measures coming into force before the end of 2026.
Small vet businesses will be given additional time for implementation.
Vet businesses can make changes that would benefit their customers in the meantime, and the CMA encourages them to consider doing so.
The CMA fully recognises that the proposed changes would require businesses to adapt systems or make other changes which would incur some administrative costs. The CMA’s provisional view is that the benefits to consumers of these measures would far outweigh the
The CMA will now consult on its provisional decision.
