- The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched investigations into five companies as part of its ongoing crackdown on fake and misleading online reviews.
- The companies under scrutiny are Autotrader, Feefo, Dignity, Just Eat, and Pasta Evangelists, with probes initiated to determine if consumer laws have been breached.
- Since April last year, companies have been prohibited from using tactics such as fake posts, undeclared paid-for reviews, and suppressing negative feedback.
- Specific concerns include Autotrader potentially not counting one-star reviews, Dignity possibly asking staff to write positive reviews, Just Eat potentially inflating star ratings, and Pasta Evangelists possibly offering discounts for undisclosed five-star reviews.
- The CMA stressed that no conclusions have yet been reached regarding whether these businesses have broken consumer law.
IN FULL
