CMA Fake Reviews Investigations Pass Six-Month Mark — No Outcomes Yet
What happened
Six months have now passed since the CMA opened its first five fake reviews investigations on 27 March 2026 — and none of the five cases have been resolved.
The businesses under investigation are:
- Autotrader and Feefo — over whether negative reviews were suppressed and excluded from star ratings
- Dignity — over whether staff were asked to write positive reviews of crematoria services
- Just Eat — over review practices on its food delivery platform
- Pasta Evangelists — over whether customers received discounts in exchange for 5-star reviews without that being disclosed
The CMA had indicated it would provide an update in Autumn 2026, but no public update has been released as of 30 October.
Meanwhile, the CMA has been active elsewhere. Its one-year DMCCA enforcement report (published April 2026) recorded 14 businesses under investigation, two settlements, £4.7 million in fines, £760,000 in consumer refunds, 157 advisory letters, and 46 information notices. And just two weeks ago, the CMA fined Wayfair £4.8 million for fake urgency tactics under the same legislation.
What this means for tradespeople
These investigations matter because the practices being examined — suppressing bad reviews, paying for good ones, asking staff to post fake reviews — are exactly the kind of shortcuts some tradespeople are tempted by.
The DMCCA made all of these practices explicitly illegal from April 2025. The CMA can now fine businesses up to 10% of global turnover without needing to go to court. While the five current cases target larger businesses, the CMA has also issued 157 advisory and warning letters to smaller firms — a clear signal that nobody is below the radar.
For a self-employed electrician or plumber, the message is simple: if you're buying reviews, incentivising 5-star ratings, or getting family members to post fake ones, you're breaking the same law that's being used against Autotrader and Wayfair.
What to do about it
Build your review profile the legitimate way. Ask every satisfied customer for an honest review after a completed job — most will say yes if you make it easy.
Source: JD Supra — CMA Steps Up Enforcement on Fake and Misleading Reviews