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ARTICLE · 23 JULY 2026

Inside A CMA Investigation – Six Things Your Business Needs To Know Now

Winston Taylor
Explore more from Winston Taylor

The Competition and Markets Authority has dramatically increased its enforcement activity, imposing over £5.7M in fines in early 2026 and accelerating investigation timelines under new statutory duties. Businesses face heightened scrutiny across consumer protection practices, from advertising to commercial operations, requiring immediate attention to compliance frameworks and rapid-response capabilities.

United KingdomAntitrust/Competition Law
Giles Crown
Giles Crown

In the first half of 2026 alone, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) imposed more than GBP5.7M in fines and secured GBP1.95M in consumer refunds. Fines are rising, scrutiny is increasing, and investigations are moving faster than most businesses expect.

In our webinar, “The CMA’s New Consumer Protection Powers in Action”, we set out six things your business needs to understand now about consumer law investigations—and what to do about them.

Consumer law compliance is important

We are no longer in a world where there was the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) (with limited sanctions) and trading standards (with limited enforcement). The CMA has the desire, resources, and available remedies to make consumer law compliance a far higher priority for businesses. That means reviewing practices and policies, ensuring appropriate levels of review of not just advertising but across the full range of commercial practices, training relevant staff, and being prepared for regulatory

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