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A review of veterinary services in the UK has been launched over concerns that pet owners could be paying too much.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said vet fees were rising faster than other goods and services during the cost of living crisis.
When pets need urgent treatment, owners may not have all the information to decide on the best deal, the CMA said.
The vet industry is worth £2bn after pet ownership rose to two-thirds of UK households during the Covid pandemic.
Pet-owners often did not know the price of treatments until after their appointment, leading them to foot “eye-watering” bills, consumer group Which? found during its work with the CMA.
It also said people had difficulties shopping around for cheaper medication, and called for a more competitive sector to provide cheaper drugs.
The coronavirus pandemic saw more people working from home and now about 60% of households have a pet, the CMA said.
But now many owners are struggling with squeezed household budgets as price rises reach near-record highs, meaning more needs to be done to make sure vet cost are fair, it said.
Sarah Cardell, chief executive of the CMA said that when pets need urgent treatment, owners may not receive full information to make informed decisions at what can be a distressing time.
The CMA was also concerned about changes in ownership of vet practices in recent years.
Independent practices accounted for 89% of the UK veterinary industry in 2013 – but that had fallen to about 45% by 2021, said the CMA.
“In some cases, a single company may own hundreds of practices and it may be unclear to people whether their vet is part of a large group”, the CMA said. “This could impact pet owners’ choices and reduce the incentives of local vet practices to compete”.
Last week, the Celia Hammond Animal Trust said a shortage of vets due to Brexit means people are struggling to get their animals neutered.
Ms Cardell said: “There has been a lot of consolidation in the vet industry in recent years, so now is the right time to take a look at how the market is working.”
The CMA would like to hear from pet owners, veterinary surgeons, veterinary nurses, practice managers and veterinary businesses as part of the review. It said it will provide a further update and its next steps in early 2024.
The CMA’s review follows its annual plan which sets out that the regulator “will act in areas of essential spending and where people are under particular financial pressure, such as accommodation and caring for ourselves and others”.
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