Broadband firms have been urged to cancel “exorbitant” mid-contract price rises for vulnerable customers less than two weeks before they are due to take effect.
Millions of broadband and mobile phone customers can expect to face monthly bill increases of at least 14% from April. Providers often link their annual price rises to January’s consumer price index (CPI) or the retail price index (RPI), which were 10.5% and 13.4% respectively.
BT, EE, Plusnet and Vodafone broadband contracts allow prices to go up by CPI plus 3.9%. At TalkTalk, it is CPI plus 3.7%, while Shell Energy can add CPI plus 3%. Sky and Virgin Media contracts allow mid-contract price increases but they do not stipulate a pricing formula in the same way as rivals. BT has confirmed an increase this year of 14.4% – CPI of 10.5% plus 3.9%.
