Charity’s pragmatism plea follows CMA review 

A major animal charity has urged veterinary professionals to take a more “pragmatic” approach to care as it reported a 4,000% jump in practices seeking help for their clients.

The plea from Blue Cross followed the announcement of plans for a full market investigation of UK household pet services by the Competition and Markets Authority.

Concerns about clients potentially overpaying and not having enough information to choose the right services for them were among the issues highlighted in the 60-page report.

But, following the document’s publication on 12 March, Blue Cross revealed the number of practices that had sought assistance for clients through its Veterinary Care Fund had surged from 25 last May to 1,000 now.

It also warned its own costs had increased by £1 million in the past year, because of factors including rising medicine costs and higher staff rates.

‘Unprecedented’

Paul Manktelow, the welfare organisation’s chief vet, said the surge in practice requests showed “just how much the sector needs our help”.

He continued: “The ongoing cost of living crisis is having an unprecedented impact on the veterinary sector, and we know practices are having to adapt to help meet the needs of pet owners.

“While the strain on the sector is outside of an individual practice’s or vet’s control, we’d encourage professionals across the sector to adopt a pragmatic and transparent approach with their patients – especially around the cost of treatments, and when sharing available treatment options available to them.

“Our goal is to help as many pets and people as possible, so we will continue to do all we can in difficult times for vets, and pet owners alike.”

Lack of understanding

The review report said respondents from within the veterinary sector – of whom the authority said there were around 11,000 – acknowledged that costs had risen and services were now less affordable for some pet owners.

But it referenced a lack of understanding of the cost of care, the growth in new pet owners during the Covid-19 pandemic, and limits in both insurance cover and income to afford certain types of pet as factors that influence interactions with clients.

The report also highlighted a view that client expectations were “driven by TV programmes such as The Supervet, where costs are never discussed”.

Several senior sector figures have highlighted the lack of an equivalent body for animals to the NHS for humans following the report’s publication and BVA president Anna Judson said practice costs were “a fair reflection” of their investment in staff time, medicines, supplies and equipment.

‘Healthy competition’

However, Dr Judson added: “We’re keen to see healthy competition and consumer choice, and so we are already taking steps to support vet practices to be more transparent both in terms of costs and practice ownership.

“It’s important that clients have as wide a choice of vet practices as possible so they can find a service that best suits the needs of themselves and their animals.”

Meanwhile, VMG leader Miles Russell said the report confirmed the need for the sector to be more transparent about pricing.

He said: “Greater transparency will give consumers easier access to clear information about what they’re paying for, why it costs what it does and the ownership of their veterinary practice – and this is to be welcomed.”