CMA Opens 'Drip Pricing' Probe into Trainline, Virgin Atlantic and RED Driving School
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
The CMA has launched formal 'drip pricing' investigations into Trainline, Virgin Atlantic and RED Driving School — its first heavyweight consumer-enforcement action under the new DMCC Act, and a warning shot to every UK brand that advertises a 'from' price and adds fees later.
What the CMA is actually investigating
On 19 August the CMA opened formal investigations into three household names over so-called “drip pricing” — advertising a low headline price and then adding compulsory fees later in the checkout. It named Trainline (booking fees of roughly £0.59–£2.79 on trains and £1.50 on coaches), Virgin Atlantic (resort fees and local taxes on package holidays that can run to hundreds of pounds) and RED Driving School (booking and digital fees of £7 or more).
Crucially, the regulator isn’t alleging these fees are illegal in themselves. Its concern is whether they are shown clearly and early enough for consumers to compare fairly — or whether they’re “dripped” in once shoppers are already committed. None of the three has been found to have broken the law; the investigations will decide that.
Why this is a landmark moment
This is the first heavyweight enforcement action using the CMA’s new direct consumer-protection powers under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Act, which came into force in April 2025. For the first time, the regulator can decide a business has broken consumer law and impose fines itself — up to 10% of global turnover — without going to court.
That changes the risk calculus. The CMA has already secured more than £1.95m in consumer refunds and levied fines approaching £6.2m under recent enforcement. For a business the size of Virgin Atlantic, a 10%-of-turnover ceiling turns a pricing-display technicality into a board-level issue overnight.
Marketing Minute’s read: ‘from’ pricing is now a compliance question
Drip pricing sits in an awkward space between marketing and legal — which is exactly why it’s been allowed to drift. The headline “from £X” is a conversion tool: it lifts click-through, wins the price-comparison box and pulls the shopper into the funnel. The mandatory fees then arrive when intent is highest and abandonment lowest. It works, which is why it’s everywhere.
The three-part test we’d give any UK advertiser: is the total unavoidable price shown at the first point a consumer sees a price? Are optional extras genuinely optional (pre-unticked)? And could you defend every fee to a journalist, not just a lawyer? If the answer to any is “no”, assume the CMA now has both the tools and the appetite to act.
What businesses should do now
Audit every “from” price, booking fee and “service charge” across your funnel, and move the all-in price as far forward as you can without killing the proposition. If a fee is genuinely unavoidable, it belongs in the headline number, not the final screen.
Smaller brands shouldn’t assume this is only a big-company problem. Including RED Driving School signals the CMA is targeting the practice, not just the biggest names — and a £7 booking fee shown late is structurally identical to a £200 resort fee shown late.
Quick FAQ
What is drip pricing?
Drip pricing is advertising a low headline price and then adding compulsory or hard-to-avoid fees later in the buying process, so the final price is higher than the one that first drew the customer in.
Can the CMA fine companies for drip pricing?
Yes. Under the DMCC Act, in force since April 2025, the CMA can decide a business has breached consumer law and impose fines of up to 10% of global annual turnover directly, without a court case.
Does this mean booking fees are now banned?
No. The issue is not the existence of fees but whether they are disclosed clearly and early. Unavoidable charges generally need to be included in the headline price consumers first see.
The uncomfortable truth is that drip pricing works — which is exactly why regulators are done tolerating it. The brands that win the next few years won’t have the cleverest ‘from’ price; they’ll be the ones customers trust to show the real number first. Transparency is about to become a competitive advantage, not a compliance chore. — Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing
If an unavoidable fee only appears at checkout, you no longer have a marketing tactic — you have a regulatory exposure the CMA can now fine directly.
Does your checkout show customers the real, all-in price from the very first screen — or does the number quietly climb on the way to ‘pay’?
If you would like to know more about this topic, please contact us on danieln@merxmarketing.co.uk
Sources: GOV.UK, Marketing Week, City AM.
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Written by Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing Ltd and Marketing Minute
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