Big changes for UK pet owners from September
Key Points
- The CMA's vet reforms become legally binding from 23 September 2026, with most measures following over the next three to 12 months.
- Large chain practices must publish standard price lists, and customers should see them before Christmas.
- Prescription fees face caps, and a price comparison website is planned.
- Vet service prices rose 63% between 2016 and 2023, roughly double general services inflation.
- Pets at Home, with over 450 practices, reported vet revenue up 1.9% to £215 million in its latest quarter.
The UK’s largest vet chains must publish standard price lists and cap prescription fees under Competition and Markets Authority orders that take effect from 23 September.
The CMA concluded its market investigation into veterinary services for household pets on 24 March, after an independent inquiry group found the current system leaves pet owners in the dark.
The measures include standard price lists, prescription fee caps, a price comparison website and mandatory branding by the large groups. Pet owners using a practice that belongs to a larger chain can expect to see changes before Christmas, including standard price lists.
The CMA has six months from the final report to put legally binding orders on businesses, which places them in force by 23 September. Nearly all the remedies then follow in the next three to 12 months, and smaller veterinary businesses get three months longer to implement the changes than larger ones. Compliance timings vary by remedy and by the size of the practice.
What the investigation found
The CMA identified three core problems:
- Alack of information for pet owners,
- Barriers in the market,
- An inadequate regulatory framework.
The investigation drew 56,000 responses to the CMA’s call for information and more than 450 stakeholder responses to its consultation on the provisional decision.
Costs rose sharply over the period the CMA examined. Average prices of veterinary services grew 63% between January 2016 and December 2023, and average first-year treatment expenses rose 53%, against general services inflation of 32% over the same years.
Pets at Home
The new rules come into effect weeks after Pets at Home reported its vet arm growing ahead of the market.
Pets at Home operates more than 450 veterinary general practices, both inside its 460 pet care centres and in standalone sites, making it one of the large groups the branding and pricing measures target.
In its Q1 trading statement on Thursday (30 July), the company reported Vet Group consumer revenue up 1.9% to £215 million for the 16 weeks to 16 July 2026, growth it said remains ahead of the market.
It credited strong Care Plan performance and sign-ups alongside higher average transaction values. Clinical headcount across vets and nurses rose 4% to 3,700 full-time equivalents.
Subscription plans now account for a larger share of what customers spend. The company said subscription revenue, which covers its Flea & Worm, Easy Repeat, Complete Care and Vac4Life plans, made up 15.3% of group consumer revenue, up from 14.5% a year earlier.
“We remain focused on delivering better value, stronger execution and more convenient pet care for customers, while building a more resilient and profitable business,” said James Bailey, Chief Executive Officer at Pets at Home Group.
