Google faces £5bn UK lawsuit over claims it shut out rivals and overcharged advertisers

Google is facing a landmark £5 billion legal challenge in the UK, accused of abusing its dominance in internet search to stifle competition and inflate the cost of advertising for businesses.

The class action lawsuit, filed on Tuesday at the Competition Appeal Tribunal, alleges that Google unlawfully shut out rival search engines and leveraged its market power to charge British businesses significantly more for digital ads than they would in a competitive market.

Brought by competition law expert Dr Or Brook on behalf of thousands of UK businesses, the claim centres on the tech giant’s alleged manipulation of the search ecosystem — including contracts with Android phone manufacturers and Apple — to cement its control over both search results and the highly lucrative advertising space that surrounds them.

The case accuses Google, part of US-based Alphabet Inc, of paying Apple billions to remain the default search engine on iPhones, while simultaneously requiring Android device makers to pre-install Google’s search app and Chrome browser as a condition of using its operating system. According to the filing, this dual strategy eliminated viable alternatives and forced advertisers to rely almost exclusively on Google’s platform.

“This is about fairness in digital markets,” said Brook. “Businesses in the UK have had little choice but to rely on Google Ads to be seen. In doing so, many have paid more than they should have in a truly open and competitive environment. Google has been leveraging its dominance in general search and search advertising to overcharge advertisers, harming businesses and ultimately consumers.”

Google has rejected the allegations, calling the case “speculative and opportunistic”.

A spokesperson for the company said: “Consumers and advertisers use Google because it is helpful, not because they have no choice. We will vigorously defend ourselves against this baseless claim.”

The legal challenge comes as the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) continues its own investigation into Google’s search and advertising practices. That probe, launched in January, is looking into how Google’s search dominance — accounting for around 90 per cent of all UK internet searches — affects competition in digital markets.

The CMA has previously highlighted concerns over market distortion, with more than 200,000 British businesses currently relying on Google services to advertise online. Critics argue that the dominance of a single platform limits visibility and pricing transparency for advertisers, creating an uneven playing field.

Brook’s case echoes a wider global reckoning for Big Tech, as regulators in the US, EU, and UK step up scrutiny of dominant digital platforms and their impact on competition and innovation. It also signals a growing willingness in the UK to pursue large-scale collective actions on behalf of businesses harmed by anti-competitive behaviour.

If successful, the lawsuit could pave the way for thousands of British businesses — particularly small and medium-sized enterprises — to claim compensation for years of inflated advertising costs. The case will hinge on whether the tribunal agrees that Google’s conduct breached UK competition law and whether it led to measurable financial harm.

For now, the spotlight remains firmly on the search giant as regulators and courts weigh the balance of power in the digital economy. As Brook put it: “When a single company controls the gateway to online visibility, fairness becomes more than a principle — it becomes a legal imperative.”