Customer reviews and advertising rules for a tree business, by country
Customer reviews and ad claims are covered by consumer rules in each country. This page sets out what the US Federal Trade Commission rule, the UK Act and advertising code, Canada's Competition Act and New Zealand's consumer protection site say.
Checked against the sources at the bottom of this page on October 9, 2026. Rules, fees and pay change: the source has the last word.
This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. Each row restates the wording of one office. It names no firm and judges no review or advert.
The rules side by side
| Place and source | What it says about reviews and claims |
|---|---|
| United States: Federal Trade Commission, 16 CFR Part 465 | Unfair or deceptive for a business to write or sell a fake review or customer quote, to buy reviews of a chosen sentiment, to post insider reviews or quotes without a disclosure of the relationship, or to present a company-controlled site as independent |
| United Kingdom: Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, Schedule 20 paragraph 13 | Submitting or commissioning a fake review, or one that conceals it was incentivised; publishing reviews in a misleading way; publishing reviews without reasonable steps to stop fake ones |
| United Kingdom: CAP code advice on customer quotes in adverts | Documentary evidence that a customer quote is genuine, contact details for the person giving it, and permission to use it |
| Canada: Competition Act section 74.01 | Reviewable conduct includes a representation to the public that is false or misleading in a material respect |
| New Zealand: ministry page on the Fair Trading Act | Misleading or false statements about products and services, unsubstantiated claims, and false endorsements are covered |
| Ireland: Competition and Consumer Protection Commission | Businesses cannot pay for false or misleading reviews or post fake reviews themselves, and must take reasonable steps to confirm that reviews they display come from real consumers. The detail is on the page about consumer rules in Ireland |
| Australia | No official page found on October 9, 2026 |
United States
The federal rule on consumer reviews defines a consumer review as a consumer's evaluation of a product, service or business published on a site dedicated to receiving such evaluations, and says ratings count even without text. It says it is unfair or deceptive for a business to write, create or sell a review or customer quote that materially misrepresents that the reviewer exists, that the reviewer used the product or service, or the reviewer's experience. It bars giving compensation or incentives in exchange for reviews expressing a particular sentiment, positive or negative.
The rule also covers insiders. It says an officer or manager who writes a review of the business without a clear and conspicuous disclosure of the relationship acts unfairly or deceptively, with an exception for customer quotes where the relationship is otherwise clear. It says generalized solicitations to purchasers to post reviews or quotes are outside several of its paragraphs. It also covers company-controlled websites presented as independent, and fake indicators of social media influence, such as followers and views generated by bots.
United Kingdom
Paragraph 13 of Schedule 20 to the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 deals with consumer reviews. It defines a fake review as one that purports to be, but is not, based on a person's genuine experience, and treats a review as concealing that it was incentivised when a person was commissioned to write it and that is not made apparent. It also covers publishing reviews in a misleading way, with examples such as giving greater prominence to positive reviews over negative ones, and offering services to traders to do these things.
The Committee of Advertising Practice advice, which says it is not legal advice, reports rule 3.47 of its code: marketers hold documentary evidence that a customer quote is genuine and contact details for the person giving it. It reports rule 3.50 on permission to use a customer quote and rule 2.3 on not posing as a consumer.
Canada
Section 74.01 of the Competition Act says a person engages in reviewable conduct who, to promote a product or any business interest, makes a representation to the public that is false or misleading in a material respect. It adds a separate paragraph for statements about performance, efficacy or length of life of a product that are not based on an adequate and proper test, with the proof on the person making the claim.
New Zealand
The ministry page says it is illegal for a business to mislead or deceive about what it sells, including in advertising, and that businesses must not make claims without reasonable grounds. It lists endorsements or approvals, for example from celebrities, among the matters statements must not misrepresent. It says exaggeration is acceptable where a reasonable person would know it is obviously an exaggeration. Display of licence numbers in adverts is a separate topic, on the page about licence number display rules.
Sources
- Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, Misleading advertising, read October 9, 2026
- Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 16 CFR Part 465, Rule on the use of consumer reviews, current to October 7, 2026, read October 9, 2026
- legislation.gov.uk, Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, Schedule 20, paragraph 13, consumer reviews, read October 9, 2026
- Committee of Advertising Practice and Advertising Standards Authority, advice on customer quotes and endorsements, read October 9, 2026
- Justice Laws Website, Canada, Competition Act section 74.01, read October 9, 2026
- New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, Misleading prices or advertising, read October 9, 2026