How to stay ahead of the game: Consumer law in 2026

New rules governing fake / incentivised reviews came into force in 2025. The CMA is now tackling some of the most harmful practices head on with active, ongoing investigations into five different businesses. Ensure you've got a fake reviews policy in place and request a copy of Freeths’ compliance checklist.

Since new regulations came into force in late 2025 restricting promotions and the advertising of less healthy foods (LHFs), the Government has published guidance on the regulations and we're starting to see enforcement activity from the ASA. The ASA has confirmed that businesses with fewer than 250 employees are exempt and that incidental or background food imagery is unlikely to trigger the restrictions. Make sure you've got nutrient profiling modelling data for all food and drink that you market, so you know which are less healthy foods. Train your influencers, and consider focussing on promoting your brand rather than your products.

Brands want to tell consumers how effective their wellness products (cosmetics, food supplements, sleep aids etc) are, but need to be careful not to make medicinal claims about non-medicinal products. Unless it is regulated, avoid implying that your product can cure or treat symptoms of, for example, acne, the menopause, hair loss or anxiety. You can make sensory claims (for example “skin feels smoother”) that you can substantiate. You can also make general health claims about foods and supplements as long as they're accompanied by a specific authorised health claim. Check that your wellness claims stay in the wellness space and don't stray into the medicinal: don’t claim to treat or cure.

Your aim as an advertiser and promoter is to ensure that promotions are legal, fair, transparent, and not misleading. Think about how the ad will be understood by consumers. Your obligations as an advertiser don't stop after the initial ad, so look at the entire operation of the promotion. All significant terms and conditions (T&Cs) must be clearly communicated up front and can’t be changed part way through a promotion. Ensure your competitions are free to enter and/or skill is involved and check your T&Cs carefully.

To use a recommended retail price (RRP) in a savings claim, you must be able to demonstrate that the RRP represents the price that the product was actually sold at. If you're the only business selling a particular product (for example because it is an own branded product), use was/now pricing instead. Since April 2026, if you include the price of a product in advert, you also have to give the unit price in specified units, in proximity to a visual or written description of the product.

Subscription rules come into force in Spring 2027. Ensure that customers can easily see how much it costs to subscribe and how to get out of a subscription. Give them warnings when their auto renewal is coming up and give them opt-outs.

The CMA is scrutinising online customer journeys. Avoid misleading buttons, pre-ticked boxes, and artificial urgency messaging or countdown clocks that pressure consumers into buying. Check your flows, upsells and cancellation processes and make sure there's nothing that could trip up a consumer.

It's easy to use AI to generate marketing concepts and materials but using prompts that are potentially infringing could be very damaging. Confirm your marketing teams are trained on use of prompts and always get a human to check any output.

Your influencers need to know the latest consumer laws. Be very clear with them on what they can and can't do. Put a policy in place that they can refer back to. You want your influencers to understand how they can AI (and whether they are required to disclose use of AI to you), not to include less healthy foods in their content and to be really clear in relation to any green claims they might be making.

Greenwashing is a priority area for the CMA. Many UK companies are required to report on sustainability, but need to ensure that the green claims they make in consumer-facing reports are accurate and balanced. The ASA’s recent decisions relating to claims that fashion products were made of recycled materials show how narrowly the regulators are enforcing the rules.

Don’t make assumptions: consumer law is changing quickly. Check that your marketing is up to speed and get help where you need it. Freeths can help with every stage of the marketing process including reviewing claims and concepts, reviewing sustainability reports, and training legal, marketing and sustainability teams.