Phone and broadband mid-contract price surprise rises banned

Ofcom said, as of April, about six in 10 broadband and mobile customers were on contracts subject to inflation-linked price rises.

Many were unaware of the rates of inflation – which chart the rising cost of living – and so found it difficult to estimate the effect on their payments.

However, some providers were offering fixed-price deals in what the regulator described as a competitive market.

Consumer groups were circumspect about the change in the rules.

Tom MacInnes, from Citizens Advice, criticised Ofcom for the time it had taken to reach the decision. In the meantime, billions of pounds had collectively been added to bills when many people were struggling.

“While we welcome steps to ban inflation-linked hikes, the announcement falls short of a full ban on prices rising mid-contract,” he said.

“Ofcom has also left the door wide open for mobile and broadband providers to sneakily include ‘prices may vary’ small print in their contracts, leaving consumers exposed to wholly unpredictable price rises. That’s why we’ve always been clear that fixed should mean fixed.”