United Kingdom: Office of Communications (Ofcom) adopted rule banning mid-contract telecoms price rises

On 19 July 2024, the Office of Communications (Ofcom) published a rule declaring that telecom customers must be told up-front about any price rises included in their contract, including mid-contract price rises linked to future inflation. This rule comes into effect on 17 January 2025. This follows a review of telecoms contracts where, in April 2023, Ofcom found that 4 in 10 broadband customers and over half of mobile customers were on contracts subject to inflation-linked price rises. It also found these contracts could cause substantial consumer harm by complicating price comparison, limiting consumer engagement, and reducing the consumer benefits of competition.