Fake reviews are banned: 5 firms under CMA investigation, and how to spot a fake

What's happening

A lot of Black Friday decisions this month will come down to a star rating. Since 6 April 2025, fake reviews have been banned outright in the UK under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCC Act), and the regulator is now testing the rules. In March 2026 the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) opened investigations into five businesses over fake and misleading reviews. On 14 October it said those cases are still progressing, and that it expects to give a further update "in the coming months".

The CMA's chief executive, Sarah Cardell, said: "Fake reviews strike at the heart of consumer trust." The CMA quotes Which? research showing that 89% of UK adults use online customer reviews when researching a product or service.

What's banned

Paragraph 13 of Schedule 20 to the DMCC Act lists review practices that are always treated as unfair. They include:

• Fake reviews: a review that claims to be based on someone's genuine experience but isn't.
• Hidden incentives: a review that conceals the fact it was paid for or rewarded, for example with a discount.
• Misleading presentation: publishing reviews, or the star ratings built from them, in a misleading way.
• Not policing them: anyone publishing reviews must take "reasonable and proportionate steps" to stop fake, hidden-incentive or false and misleading reviews, and to remove them.
• Buying or arranging them: commissioning or helping someone else to do any of the above.

The five investigations

When the CMA announced the cases on 27 March 2026, it said it was looking at:

• Autotrader and Feefo: whether a number of 1-star reviews moderated by Feefo weren't published on Autotrader and were left out of its star ratings.
• Dignity: whether the funeral firm asked staff to write positive reviews of its crematoria services.
• Just Eat: whether its ratings system inflated some restaurants' and grocers' star ratings.
• Pasta Evangelists: whether customers were offered discounts on future orders for 5-star reviews on delivery apps, without that being disclosed.

The CMA hasn't decided whether any of them broke the law, and says the cases could end in a finding, remedies or being closed. In its October update it added a warning for every business: asking staff to write reviews of their own employer's products or services could be unlawful.

How to spot a fake

Which?'s guide, updated on 1 July 2026, suggests these checks:

• Skip the 5-star reviews and read the 4, 3 and 2-star ones.
• Check the dates. A lot of reviews posted at the same time can mean a seller has drummed them up.
• Sort by "Most recent" rather than "Top reviews".
• Look for incentives, such as mentions of a gift card, a refund, or being asked to change a bad review.
• Watch for review merging, where reviews of a different product appear under the one you're looking at.
• Check the reviewer. Be wary if their account rates lots of very similar, or completely unrelated, products all highly. That can be a sign of free products given in return for reviews.

A worked example

This is an illustration. Ben is choosing between two heated throws at £39.99 each. One has 4.8 stars from 1,200 reviews, the other 4.3 stars from 300. Sorting the first by "Most recent", he finds hundreds of reviews posted in the same week, several mentioning a free gift, and a few describing a kettle. That's three of the Which? warning signs.

If the throw he'd bought had turned out not to match its description, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 would still give him 30 days to reject it for a full refund, whatever the reviews said.

What to do now

1. Read beyond the stars on anything you're buying for Black Friday, using the checks above.
2. Report reviews you think are fake to the site. Which? points out that Amazon has a report button on each review.
3. Report the business. Call the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 0808 223 1133, which passes reports to Trading Standards. That number is for England. Citizens Advice has separate advice pages for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
4. If what arrives isn't as described, ask the seller for a refund under the Consumer Rights Act, and go to your card provider if it refuses.

Questions

Can a site hide bad reviews? Publishing reviews or ratings in a misleading way is banned, and the Autotrader and Feefo case is about 1-star reviews that weren't published. If you think a genuine review of yours was suppressed, report it.

What can the CMA do? Under the DMCC Act it can decide for itself whether consumer law has been broken and fine a business directly, up to 10% of its global turnover, or £300,000 if that's higher.

Ways to save

Compare prices as well as reviews. Our Amazon and eBay pages list current offers. Also read our guide to fake countdown timers, pre-ticked extras and hidden fees.

When you shop through Voucher Magpie, part of the commission the shop pays us goes to the charity or club you pick. You pay the same price.

Sources: CMA: Fake and misleading reviews: 5 businesses under CMA investigation, 27 Mar 2026, CMA blog: Direct consumer enforcement: 18 months on, 14 Oct 2026, DMCC Act 2024, Schedule 20, checked 8 Nov 2026, Which?: How to spot a fake review, 1 Jul 2026, Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 22, Citizens Advice: If you need more help about a consumer issue, 8 Nov 2026, CMA: fines of £6 million for misleading sales tactics, 14 Oct 2026