A price cap will be placed on pet prescriptions, the Competition and Markets Authority has announced following a three-year investigation. Pet owners will pay a maximum of £21 for their first prescription and £12.50 for any other medicines within the same consultation under the changes, after the CMA found some were being overcharged for commonly prescribed medicines from vet practices.
Money blog: Follow latest
Under the major overhaul of the sector, vets will also have to tell customers about savings they could make by buying medicines online, using those prescriptions. Average prices of vet services have risen by 63% between 2016 and 2023, which is much faster than general inflation, the report found.
Martin Coleman, chair of the independent inquiry group, said the reforms will make a «real difference to the millions of pet owners who want the best for their pets but struggle to find the practice, treatment and price that meets their needs.
What else is changing?
Practices will be required to publish a comprehensive price list for standard services – including consultations, common procedures, diagnostics, written prescriptions, and cremation options. A comparison site will also be set up to allow pet owners to assess different vet practices more easily. Vets will have to make it clear whether they are part of a group or an independent business with signs on site and online. Practices will have to provide a written estimate in advance for any treatment expected to cost £500 or more – plus an itemized bill. Emergencies will be the only exception to this rule. All of these changes will be legally enforced by 23 September.
Six ‘large veterinary practices’ singled out
The inquiry found that some issues were «specific» to six large veterinary groups. These are CVS, IVC, Linnaeus, Medivet, Pets at Home, and VetPartners. Coleman said: «We’re not shying away from this. Most of them have higher average prices than independent practices, and, in at least three out of five cases, large groups buying up independent practices has led to higher average prices at those practices. Some of these groups are earning profits significantly higher than would be expected in a well-functioning competitive market.» He said that today’s changes will mean that large vet groups will be held to account by an independent regulator for the first time. «Pet owners are left in the dark about prices even when they may be incurring costs of thousands of pounds; many are paying much more for medicines than they need to; pet owners often do not know who they are buying services from; and the large businesses that control the majority of vet practices and provide critical services are not held to account by an independent regulator,» he said in his summary. «And this ultimately impacts pet owners’ ability to get the care that their animals need. This must change.»
What did the vets say?
We asked each of the large veterinary groups for their thoughts on the reforms, and this is what they told us: Vets for Pets, which is part of Pets at Home, said it had been a «challenging time» for its teams, but it was pleased to hear the system would be modernized. A spokesperson said it was the only large group whose average prices were not found to be higher than independent practices. «Our network of over 600 practice owners are dedicated to providing the best quality and value pet care in the communities they serve,» they added. «This has been a challenging time for dedicated veterinary teams who work tirelessly to provide care to the nation’s pets, but we’re pleased the process has identified the need to modernize the legislation and regulatory system underpinning the sector.» CVS, which has hundreds of practices, said in a statement to investors that it thought some of the CMA reforms were not «fully justified,» but that it was «comfortable with them» and believes they are «workable.» «We already comply with many remedies and are well advanced in complying with others, with price lists published on our practice websites in late 2025 and 117 CVS UK companion animal practices already jointly branded,» it added. IVC Evidensia, which has more than 2,200 clinics, hospitals, and out-of-hours sites, said it welcomed the report and was focused on delivering «outstanding care for animals and excellent support for customers.» Medivet, which has more than 350 clinics across the country, said it was pleased to see that many of its existing practices already aligned with the CMA’s findings. «We further welcome the fact that the CMA’s analysis has found that Medivet does not generate excess profits. We look forward to focusing on delivering exceptional care to our patients,» a spokesperson added. The British Veterinary Association, a national body that represents the veterinary profession and was not one of the six large vets named by the CMA, said the changes were a «really positive step» to increasing transparency, but it noted that vets have been dealing with higher costs in recent years. The group’s president Dr. Rob Williams said: «Delivering highly skilled veterinary medicine is costly, and whilst we recognize prices have risen sharply in recent years, this is due to a number of factors, including the higher costs all businesses are experiencing – and vet practices are not immune.»
SOURCE