Competition law experts respond to CMA investigation into vet bills
Published: 30 March 2026
Dr David Reader (Senior Lecturer in Competition Law at the School of Law) and Dr Scott Summers (Association Professor in Business Law at the Centre for Competition Policy at the University of East Anglia) have responded to the findings of a Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) market investigation into veterinary services for household pets, published last week.
Dr David Reader (Senior Lecturer in Competition Law at the School of Law) and Dr Scott Summers (Association Professor in Business Law at the Centre for Competition Policy at the University of East Anglia) have responded to the findings of a Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) market investigation into veterinary services for household pets, published last week.
The CMA report identifies a number of adverse effects on competition arising from the workings of the market and, in some cases, the practices of some larger veterinary chains.
While welcoming the CMA’s attempts to drive greater clarity for pet owners, Dr Reader and Dr Summers warn that there is no guarantee transparency remedies alone, as recommended by the report, will bring down veterinary prices or keep them from increasing above inflation. They add that the risk of further corporate consolidation is “real”, with the CMA’s main instrument for reviewing veterinary practice mergers having been significantly blunted by wider procedural reforms during the course of its inquiry.
The government’s pro-growth strategic steer to the CMA may yet have a further impact on the investigation’s outcomes, with Drs Reader and Summers warning that recommendations by the CMA that require legislative change, including those related to a new effective complaints/redress regime, may never see the light of day due to limited political appetite.
Although the CMA report presents a strong acknowledgement of the link between affordable care and animal welfare, Reader and Summers are unconvinced that such care is assured by the remedies put forward by the CMA, albeit they have no doubt that this is what the report had sought to achieve.
Since late-2023, the pair have been leading a research project to examine what has been driving changes in the country’s vet industry. Their research looks at how vulnerable pet owners navigate rising costs and access care, how the growing takeover of vet practices by large corporate groups is affecting the market and the wider profession, and the role private equity plays in shaping the market. The project has informed their contributions of evidence to the CMA at various stages of its investigation.
Hear Dr Reader speak about the key issues on Radio 4’s ‘You and Yours’ (from 09:22) published on 25 March: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002t1hm
First published: 30 March 2026