Tim Bonner: The veterinary market faces scrutiny

It will have been no surprise to many of you that the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced earlier this week that it had “multiple concerns” about the veterinary market. Those concerns centre around suggestions that pet owners have been overpaying for treatments and medicines. Shockingly, only today (Thursday 14 March), the Daily Mail reported on how a growing number of owners have been giving pets human painkillers to ‘avoid soaring vet costs’, triggering alarm bells among veterinary experts.

The CMA only deals with competition issues, but there are questions about animal welfare and ethics that follow from its findings. The most obvious is whether pet owners are not just overpaying for treatments, but whether they are also paying for treatments that are not necessary or in the best interests of the animal concerned.

The CMA’s initial review highlighted weak competition in some areas, driven in part by the consolidation of veterinary practices by private equity groups.

Changes in the veterinary market seem to have been driven by the widespread adoption of pet insurance which has attracted corporate interest into a sector that was previously dominated by independents.

Whilst the CMA has only highlighted the cost of treatments and drugs, the market issues it has highlighted could just as well influence advice about treatments themselves. For instance, there is anecdotal evidence that the approach some vets take to euthanasia has changed in recent years. Some veterinary practices seem more inclined to propose treatment to prolong a pets life, even where it may be questionable if the welfare implications of that treatment justify the extension of life. Veterinary science is developing and there are new treatments that were not available previously, but where pet insurance covers the cost of treatment and some pet owners may be willing to clutch at straws, there is the opportunity for unscrupulous practices to occur.

The CMA now looks likely to carry out a formal market investigation, but that will be limited in its scope by its brief. The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons has welcomed the CMA’s review and called for new legislation to help it in its role as a regulator.

For the veterinary profession to retain full confidence it is vital that there is an open and honest debate about the scope of treatment as well as the cost of veterinary care. It is important that there is a fair veterinary market for pet owners, but it is even more important that the welfare of their pets is protected from the potential for unnecessary treatments.

To respond to the Competition and Markets Authority's consultation, please follow this link. The consultation closes at 5pm on Thursday 11 April 2024.