The Competition and Markets Authority has spent the best part of two years pulling apart the UK veterinary services market, and the findings have not been comfortable reading for the profession. Its investigation, which formally began in May 2024 after a review drew more than 56,000 responses from pet and animal owners, concluded that owners often lack the basic information needed to make informed choices. Price lists hidden away. Prescription fees nobody mentioned. Little clarity over who actually owns the practice.
For horse owners, the implications are significant. Equine medication is expensive, often long-term, and frequently bought in bulk across a yard. Understanding what the remedies mean in practice could save real money.
What the CMA actually found
The watchdog’s provisional decision pointed to several problems that will sound familiar to anyone who has paid a vet bill recently.
Weak price transparency. Many practices did not publish prices for common treatments, making comparison nearly impossible.
Prescription costs going unexplained. Owners were often unaware they could request a written prescription and buy medication elsewhere.
Consolidation. Six large corporate groups now account for a substantial share of UK practices, yet many branches still trade under their original family names.
Weak regulation. The Veterinary Surgeons Act dates from 1966, long before corporate ownership existed on this scale.
The remedies being put forward include mandatory price lists, clear disclosure of ownership, comparison-site support and firmer rules around prescription fees.
Why this matters more for equines
Horses are not hamsters. A single sack of joint supplement or a course of ulcer medication can run into hundreds of pounds, and treatment regimes for conditions like Cushing’s or laminitis may last years. Pergolide for PPID is a daily commitment, not a one-off. Scale that across a twenty-horse yard and small differences in medication pricing become serious sums.
Your right to a written prescription
This is the part most owners under-use. A vet who has examined your horse and deemed medication necessary can issue a written prescription, allowing you to buy that medication from a registered retailer rather than the practice dispensary.
Practices are permitted to charge a fee for writing it. Typically that sits somewhere between £15 and £25, though the CMA has flagged inconsistency here as a concern. The maths is simple enough: if the prescription fee is £20 and the medicine costs £70 less elsewhere, you are £50 better off.
Registered online pharmacies such as Pet Drugs Online dispense against written prescriptions and often stock equine products at prices below practice rates. Check that any retailer you use is accredited by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate before ordering.
Questions worth asking your vet
Have a straightforward conversation. Most vets will not take offence.
What does a written prescription cost here, and how long is it valid?
Can you write a repeat prescription rather than individual ones?
Is there a generic version of this medication?
Would a longer prescription period reduce the per-month cost?
Practical steps for livery yard owners
Yard owners occupy a tricky position. You are not the owner of the horses in your care, so you cannot request prescriptions on a client’s behalf without their authority. But you can make life easier for everyone.
Keep medication records tidy and separate. Store each horse’s drugs clearly labelled, with the prescribing vet’s details attached. If you administer medication as part of your service, record doses and times; this protects you if a dispute arises later.
Worth considering too: a yard-wide approach to routine products. Wormers, poultices and electrolytes bought collectively often come in cheaper, and nothing in the CMA’s work prevents sensible bulk purchasing of non-prescription items.
Insurance and the paperwork trap
One warning. Some insurers require medication to be supplied through the treating practice, or ask for specific documentation before reimbursing costs. Check the policy wording before switching supplier, particularly on ongoing claims. A £60 saving is no saving at all if it voids a £900 claim.
What happens next
The CMA published its provisional decision in 2025 and has been consulting on remedies, with a final report expected to shape how practices operate from 2026 onwards. Some measures, such as published price lists, could appear relatively quickly. Others, including any overhaul of the 1966 Act, require government legislation and will take longer.
Don’t wait for the rules to change. The right to request a written prescription already exists and has done for years; the problem has always been that too few owners knew about it. Ask the question at your next visit.
Good veterinary care is not cheap, and nobody sensible wants to undercut the professionals who turn out at 3am for a colic. But paying over the odds for a tub of bute paste because you didn’t know you had options is a different matter entirely. The CMA’s work simply makes that choice visible.