8:11 am, March 27, 2026
The CMA is investigating Autotrader – and other high profile firms – as part of a crackdown on ‘fake’ reviews.
The used car marketplace is being investigated as part of wider investigation into five companies – which includes Just Eat and Dignity – for ‘fake or misleading’ online reviews.
Feefo, the online reviews provider used by Autotrader, is also being probed, as well as Pasta Evangelists.
The Competition and Markets Authority has said it has not reached any conclusions about whether these companies have broken the law.
The regulator said it was investigating whether a number of 1‑star reviews ‘were not published on Autotrader’s platform, and were not counted towards star ratings, therefore denying consumers a fully rounded picture of other customers’ experiences’.
Sarah Cardell, chief executive of the CMA said: ‘Fake reviews strike at the heart of consumer trust – with many of us worrying about misleading content when looking at reviews online.
‘We’ve given businesses the time to get things right. Now we’re deploying our new powers to tackle some of the most harmful practices head on.’
In a statement, a spokesperson for Autotrader said: ‘We note that the CMA, exercising its new direct consumer enforcement powers, has today announced an investigation into a number of companies, including Autotrader and our third-party moderator, in relation to online consumer reviews.
‘We endeavour always to operate as a responsible and compliant business and will co-operate fully with the CMA’s investigation.’
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has opened what it calls a ‘formal consumer protection enforcement case’ into Autotrader and the other companies.
The CMA is targeting reviews that are ‘not genuine’ and incentivised reviews that are not clearly labelled.
The action uses new powers under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, signalling a tougher enforcement approach to the reviews industry and those that use them.
Last year, the CMA issued a warning to car dealers about the dangers of falling foul of the law if they post fake reviews about their business online.
Dealerships that fail to comply could face huge fines of 10% of global annual turnover or £300,000 while individuals could face fines of up to £150,000.
In an update, posted today on its website, the CMA reviewed more than 100 businesses and found 54 of them were ‘non compliant’.
Issues included some firms had no clear policy for banning fake reviews and poor or unclear rules on incentivised reviews.
