The ‘E‘ of ESG: Greenwashing under the spotlight – recent trends in the UK

As set out in our EU greenwashing trends blog post, many jurisdictions are stepping up scrutiny of greenwashing. The UK is no exception: greenwashing is drawing increasing attention from UK regulators, who are leveraging both existing and new enforcement powers and guidance to tackle misleading environmental claims, in most cases using existing regulatory regimes. 

Regulatory updates and trends

There is currently no UK legislation that regulates greenwashing expressly and specifically (except in the context of financial products or services provided by FCA-regulated firms - see below). However, there are a number of broader laws which have the effect of regulating greenwashing, so much so that proposals to impose new, specific controls have been deemed unnecessary. For example, during the passage of the landmark Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (the DMCCA), a proposal to make greenwashing an automatically unfair (and therefore prohibited) commercial practice was debated, but ultimately rejected. It was considered that such practices were already sufficiently covered by general protections for consumers against unfair commercial practices, including misleading statements or omissions by businesses in their marketing. 

Enforcement and litigation

Notwithstanding that existing more general laws have in effect regulated greenwashing practices for some time, recent changes to enforcement practices and mechanisms mark a significant shift in the risk profile associated with greenwashing. In particular, under the UK’s DMCCA, businesses can now be fined up to 10% of their global annual turnover for breaches of consumer law (see further here). The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) can also now investigate and enforce against DMCCA breaches directly, without having to litigate before the courts. Given the CMA’s ongoing scrutiny of greenwashing, we expect to see investigations under the DMCCA regime incorporate greenwashing aspects in the coming months and years. 

Greenwashing is also an increasingly key area of focus for a range of other regulators in the UK:

• The Advertising Standards Authority’s (ASA) 2024 annual report noted that it has seen an increase in compliance by businesses with its guidance on environmental claims, but it continues to closely monitor a range of sectors for potential greenwashing (see further here). It has investigated and upheld complaints in respect of a range of green claims in 2025, including most notably in the natural resources and travel sectors. A key focus of the ASA is whether the overall presentation of claims is misleading: for example, whether context is missing that means factually accurate claims may nevertheless be likely to deceive the average consumer as to the overall environmental impact of the product, service or business. It typically assumes a relatively low bar of understanding for green claims directed at the general public, and considers the average consumer in this context to be susceptible to vague, incomplete or exaggerated claims.
• As noted above, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) put an anti-greenwashing rule (accompanied  by guidance) into effect from May 2024 (see further here). No enforcement action under this rule has yet been publicly announced, but the FCA continues to monitor compliance closely, and has confirmed it intends to take action through supervision and enforcement where appropriate. The FCA can also investigate and enforce against greenwashing using its general market oversight rules (and currently has at least one such investigation ongoing).
• Other notable UK regimes, although not specifically designed to manage greenwashing, have the potential to capture such activities. For example, the UK Government’s Failure to Prevent Fraud guidance explicitly cites greenwashing as a potential risk area that could be caught under the new offence.
• The CMA published its green claims code in September 2021 (see further here).  Since then, it has investigated a number of sustainability claims made by businesses, primarily in the fashion and fast-moving consumer goods sectors (where it obtained undertakings from a number of retailers), and has published additional guidance specific to the heating and insulation industry. As noted above, the CMA now has significantly strengthened powers to enforce breaches of consumer protection law, including misleading statements or omissions, and we expect to see it start to use these powers to tackle greenwashing in appropriate cases going forward. Echoing the ASA’s approach in this context, the CMA’s guidance on unfair commercial practices under the DMCCA states that “consumers who are particularly concerned about the environment, may be more susceptible to misleading environmental claims”. Whether this assumption holds true, given the scrutiny environmentally-engaged consumers are likely to apply, remains to be seen.

Litigation in the English courts, including group claims, relating to greenwashing has been limited to date. Cases with a greenwashing angle have typically been pursued through other legal frameworks, such as alleged breach of statutory duty and contract, or alleged breach of directors’ duties in ClientEarth’s claim against Shell’s board of directors. Quasi-judicial routes, such as complaints to the UK National Contact Point for the OECD Guidelines, have also been used by NGOs and other activist groups to pursue greenwashing allegations.

However, the continued regulatory focus in this area, bolstered by recent enforcement changes under the DMCCA, may result in follow-on litigation in the event of regulatory decisions finding that greenwashing has breached consumer law. 

More broadly, it is worth noting that the UK’s proposed ISSB-aligned “UK Sustainability Reporting Standards”, which are expected to be finalised in 2026 (see our update here), will impose an express obligation on companies to provide a “faithful representation” of sustainability issues in corporate reporting – potentially further expanding the ability for the FCA, FRC and private stakeholders to take recourse against alleged greenwashing.

Outlook and key takeaways

In summary, although the UK has imposed express and specific regulatory controls on greenwashing in only one narrow context, recent developments relating to the enforcement of existing laws, including the DMCCA and intensified scrutiny by regulators such as the CMA, ASA, and FCA, are significantly transforming the compliance landscape for businesses making sustainability statements.

See our latest posts on how these trends (and others) are playing out in the EU and the US.

This blog is part of ‘The ‘E’ of ESG’ blog series. Click here to explore more blogs of our series. You can read more about our Environment, Social and Governance offering here.