What the CMA investigated
In September 2024, the Competition and Markets Authority launched a full market investigation into the supply of veterinary services for household pets in the UK. This was triggered by growing concerns about rising vet fees, lack of price transparency, and the rapid consolidation of the industry by large corporate groups.
The investigation examined:
- Whether pet owners could make informed choices about vet services
- How corporate acquisitions were affecting competition and pricing
- Whether prescription practices were restricting medicine competition
- How pricing transparency compared to what consumers experience in other professional services
What the CMA found
The final report (March 2026) identified significant problems in how the veterinary market operates for consumers:
Lack of price transparency
Most practices did not publish prices. Pet owners had to phone around or visit practices to get even basic pricing information. This made it effectively impossible to compare prices before registering, and difficult even afterwards. The CMA found this was a significant barrier to competition — practices faced limited pressure to price competitively because consumers could not easily compare.
Corporate consolidation
Six large corporate groups now own approximately 60% of UK vet practices. Many acquisitions involved practices retaining their original name and branding, meaning pet owners had no idea their "local independent" was actually part of a national chain. The CMA found that this lack of ownership transparency reduced consumer choice and undermined trust.
Prescription fee barriers
High prescription fees and cumbersome processes were discouraging pet owners from exercising their legal right to buy medicines elsewhere. Some practices charged £30–£50 for a written prescription, making it uneconomical to shop around even when online prices were significantly lower.
Information asymmetry
Pet owners were making decisions about treatment and spending without adequate information about costs, alternatives, or what was included in quoted prices. The emotional context of veterinary care — a sick pet — made it particularly difficult to shop around or negotiate.
The legally binding remedies
The CMA imposed a package of remedies through a formal Order. These are not voluntary guidelines — they carry legal force.
Already in effect
- Prescription fee cap: Maximum £21 for the first medicine, £12.50 for additional medicines (same consultation), including VAT
- Proactive prescription information: Vets must inform owners they can request a written prescription and buy medicines elsewhere
- Written estimates: Vets must provide a written estimate for any treatment likely to cost £500 or more
- Itemised bills: Pet owners can request an itemised breakdown of any bill
December 2026: Mandatory price lists
Large vet businesses (corporate groups above a size threshold) must publish standardised price lists covering a defined set of common treatments and services. These must follow a prescribed format so prices can be compared directly between practices. This is the single most important change for consumers — it will transform vet fee comparison from near-impossible to straightforward.
June 2027: RCVS data sharing
The RCVS (Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons) will share practice pricing data with approved third-party comparison services. This will enable independent price comparison tools to access standardised, verified pricing data rather than relying solely on web scraping and user submissions.
September 2027: Full practice data submission
All practices must submit pricing data to the RCVS in the standard format, regardless of size. This completes the transparency framework.
Timeline of changes
| Date | What changes |
|---|---|
| March 2026 | CMA final report published with legally binding remedies |
| September 2026 | CMA Order formally issued |
| December 2026 | Large vet businesses must publish standardised price lists |
| June 2027 | RCVS shares pricing data with approved comparison services |
| September 2027 | All practices submit pricing data to RCVS |
What this means for you now
Even before the December 2026 deadline, you can already:
- Request a written prescription and pay no more than £21 to buy pet medication online or from another supplier
- Ask for a written estimate before agreeing to any treatment likely to cost over £500
- Request an itemised bill after any treatment to understand exactly what you paid for
- Check who owns your practice — use our ownership checker to see if your practice is part of a corporate group
- Compare prices where available — an increasing number of practices are voluntarily publishing fees, and comparison data is growing
From December 2026, price comparison will become dramatically easier as mandatory standardised price lists roll out across large vet businesses. We are building ComparePetCosts to make the most of this new data as soon as it becomes available.