The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority, or CMA for short, just turned up the heat on online sellers. They’re looking at more than 100 companies right now. The problem? Sneaky prices, hidden fees, and tricks that push people to buy fast. Ticket sites, driving schools, gyms, and furniture shops are all in the spotlight. A brand-new law called the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act gave the CMA extra muscle. Now businesses have to show the real price from the start. No more nasty surprises at checkout. It’s about time, honestly. Who hasn’t screamed at a screen when the total jumps £30 at the last second?
Investigations into Leading Companies
The CMA didn’t just send polite letters. They opened proper cases against eight big names. StubHub, viagogo, AA Driving School, BSM Driving School, Gold’s Gym, Wayfair, Appliances Direct, and Marks Electrical. These firms sell stuff people need every day. Tickets for gigs. Driving lessons. Gym passes. Sofas and fridges. If any of them break the rules, fines can hit millions. And their reputation takes a beating too.
Ticket Resale Platforms: Scrutiny of StubHub and viagogo
The big ticket trouble
StubHub and viagogo joined forces back in 2021. Together they control most resale tickets in the UK. Fans hate them sometimes. You click on a £75 seat for Taylor Swift or Arsenal. Looks like a deal. Then boom. “Service fee” £25. “Handling” £15. Suddenly it’s £130. The CMA wants to know: do these sites show the full price early? Or do they hide it until you’ve typed your card details? That’s the trick they’re checking.
The government is fed up too. Word is they’ll soon make it illegal to sell tickets way above face value. Like those £50 Glastonbury tickets that pop up for £800. Fans get ripped off. Real supporters miss out. Bots scoop everything. The CMA probe started right when ministers said “enough.” Timing feels spot on.
One example: Oasis reunion tickets in summer 2025. Face value £150. Resale sites listed them at £6,000 before fees. Fans raged on X. Even Noel Gallagher called it disgusting. The CMA used that mess as fuel. They want clear totals from the first page. No drip-feed nonsense.
Driving Schools: Lack of Transparency in Pricing
AA Driving School and BSM Driving School got letters too. Learners book lessons online. Sites shout “lessons from £25!” Great, right? Then you pick a slot. Only at the end do they add a £3 or £5 “booking fee.” Some people say it’s £9 extra in busy cities. The CMA says show the real price up front. Not buried on page four.
AA fired back quick. “Our £3 fee is on the website,” they told reporters. They promised to move it higher up anyway. BSM stayed quiet. Learners just want to pass their test without feeling cheated. One mum on Mumsnet said her son paid £48 for a “£39 lesson” because of hidden bits. Stories like that pile up.
Gym Memberships: Hidden Joining Fees
Gold’s Gym got pinged for its joining fee. You see £19.99 a month on the advert. Sounds cheap. Then you sign up. Wham, £50 “admin” or “activation” fee. The CMA hates that. They say tell people the full first-year cost from day one. Not sneak it in tiny writing.
Loads of gyms do this. PureGym got fined years ago for the same trick. People join in January full of hope. Then quit by March. Still stuck paying that big upfront chunk. The CMA wants gyms to list everything clear. Monthly price plus any one-off cost. Simple.
Homeware Retailers: Sales and Hidden Costs
Wayfair, Appliances Direct, and Marks Electrical sell big stuff online. Sofas. Washers. TVs. They love countdown timers. “Sale ends in 2 hours!” But the CMA noticed some sales never end. The timer resets. Or they tick a box for you that adds warranty you didn’t want.
One shopper told BBC Watchdog he bought a £799 fridge from Appliances Direct. “50% off – 3 hours left!” Paid £899 total because delivery and “connection” got added late. The sale? Still running two weeks later. Same price. That’s the kind of thing the CMA is mad about.
Wayfair got heat for “Wayfair Professional” pop-ups. Business account. Extra fees. Box pre-ticked. People didn’t notice until the bill. Marks Electrical had flash sales that rolled over every day. Classic fake urgency.
The Role of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act
This new law landed in 2024 and kicked in fully in 2025. It hands the CMA real teeth. Before, they begged companies to behave. Now they can fine up to 10% of worldwide turnover. That’s billions for some giants. They can also force websites to change the same day. No long court fights first.
The rules are simple. Show the full price early. No pre-ticked extras. Countdown timers must be real. No fake “someone in Leeds just bought this.” The law covers the whole UK shopping world online. From tiny Etsy sellers to Amazon. Everyone.
Responses from Companies Under Investigation
AA Driving School spoke up fastest. “We think we’re already clear, but we’ll make the fee pop up sooner.” Good move. Shows they listen. Gold’s Gym said they’re “working with the CMA.” Classic careful reply. Wayfair promised to review everything. The ticket sites? Mostly quiet so far. StubHub told The Guardian they “always try to be transparent.” Fans laughed at that one online.
Some firms already changed pages overnight. Booking fees moved up. Timers got removed. Smart ones fix it before the CMA forces them. Others dig heels in. Could cost them big.
The Broader Implications for Online Business Practices
This isn’t just eight companies. The CMA wrote to over 100 more. Warning shots. Travel sites. Fashion shops. Even vape sellers. Anyone who plays pricing games. Message is clear: clean up or get named.
Shoppers win here. Money is tight in 2025. Energy bills still hurt. Food prices high. Every sneaky £10 matters. People want to know the real cost when they click “add to basket.” Not at the final screen when they feel stuck.
One Which? survey said 68% of UK adults abandoned a cart because of late fees last year. That’s billions lost for shops too. Honest pricing actually helps sales. Funny how that works.
Smaller sites feel the pinch more. Big ones have lawyers on speed dial. A little candle shop on Etsy told me they spent two days redoing prices to stay safe. Better safe than fined, they said.
A Step Towards Fairer Online Shopping
The CMA keeps going. More letters went out last week. They hired extra staff just for this job. Expect more big names on the list soon. Maybe even train companies or mobile phone sellers next.
For shoppers, it’s simple. Check the total early. Screenshot it. Complain loud if it changes. The CMA reads those complaints. They use them as evidence.
Years ago, Ryanair got slammed for hidden charges. Remember £70 to print a boarding pass? They changed because regulators pushed. Same story now, just bigger and faster.
UK online spending hit £120 billion last year. That’s a lot to protect. The CMA wants every pound spent fairly. This crackdown is the start, not the end. Good news for anyone who hates surprises at checkout.
