The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCC) came into force in stages. The digital markets and competition aspects came into effect on 1 January 2025 and the consumer law aspects, including new enforcement powers for the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), came into force on April 6, 2025.
This Act has important implications for private landlords when letting their properties.
The new Act introduces some significant changes to consumer protection laws. These have an impact on the property market and landlords. The key changes this legislation brings are the updated rules on unfair commercial practices and how the Act gives enhanced enforcement powers directly to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).
Landlords and property agents now need to be aware of these changes to ensure that they fully comply with the new regulations. The legislation contains provisions to prohibit unfair commercial practices. It replaces and updates the previous Consumer Protection regulations under the Unfair Trading Regulations 2008.
The new DMCC legislation hands over direct enforcement powers to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) – previously with Trading Standards Services - giving it the authority to act on breaches of consumer protection rules, including requirements for providing material information.
A final version of the full guidance to the DMCC has now been published (4 April 2025) - Unfair commercial practices: CMA207: Guidance on business conduct that the law on unfair business-to-consumer trading prohibits under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024
The Act has implications for landlords, buy to let investors and letting agents mainly in that failing to disclose key information when marketing a property to let, or any information that could influence a tenant's decision to rent, is considered an unfair commercial practice. This includes omissions and commissions, misleading actions, or aggressive behaviours towards consumers.
The Act applies principally when advertising and managing properties. It replaces the Consumer Protection under The Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 and otherwise strengthens consumer protection laws. It means landlords and letting agents are expected to be transparent and honest in their dealings with tenants, or risk facing penalties from the CMA.
Key terms in the legislation are “material Information” and “transparency” which in practice means supplying all information which is “material” to the renter’s decision to enter a tenancy for a property.
The information supplied might be, for example: rent payable (this will feature in the new Renters’ Rights Bill) council tax payable, EPC standards, any neighbour / noise issues, parking restrictions, flood risks, tenancy details or any other issues which tenants may find detrimental to their enjoyment of the property once they occupy it.
Exaggerated or misleading wording in advertisements are obviously banned as are specifically any other misleading or aggressive practices, including the failure to disclose any relevant information.
As of 8 May 2025, the National Trading Standards’ Material Information guidance was withdrawn following the enactment of the 2024 DMCC Act. So, The DMCC Act supersedes the previous Consumer Protection guidance under the Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, in which the original “Material Information” guidance was established.
With this legislative update, the responsibility for enforcing consumer protection in property transactions has transitioned to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The CMA now holds direct enforcement powers, including the ability to impose fines or and act without going through the court process.
For landlords and property investors the new Act means ensuring that all relevant information about a property is transparently communicated during the letting or selling process
The withdrawal of the previous guidance could have led to some confusion and uncertainty within the property industry, but the CMA has now published – after a consultation exercise – its general guidance on unfair commercial practices to assist property businesses in understanding their obligations under the new law – see above.
Industry bodies, such as PropertyMark and The Property Ombudsman have produced their own guidance to help property professionals interpret and enforce the new standards which apply in a practical setting.
Landlords and buy to let investors should work closely with their letting agents to ensure all material information is accurately and transparently disclosed to them, or if letting themselves, to their potential tenants.
The DMCC Act prohibits what it calls "drip pricing". This is where additional fees are revealed incrementally throughout the rental process, bearing in mind that most fees in the lettings process are already banned under the government’s Tenant Fees Act 2019: guidance This guidance explains how this legislation affects tenants, landlords and letting agents. Any legal non-optional fees must be disclosed in advance.
The CMA now has the power to enforce consumer protection laws directly, without recourse to the court, to investigate and impose fines for breaches of the DMCC Act.
All letting agents are directly affected by the DMCC Act as they act as intermediaries between landlords and tenants. They must ensure they are passing on accurate and complete information about property concerned.
Landlords and agents must pay specific attention to the information they provide through their advertising to ensure they are fully compliant with the DMCC Act, namely providing information which is accurate and not misleading or exaggerated.
Inn more detail, schedule 20 of the DMCC Act 2024 details 32 circumstance which are more widely deemed to be unfair commercial practices - Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024
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