UK watchdogs need to step in on rip-off bills, which are bad for consumers and the economy

Better regulation is needed to ensure customers are not shortchanged. Photograph: Tunaru Dorin/Getty Images/500px

Ever felt swizzed by the small print in your mobile contract, bamboozled by a plethora of insurance products or locked into a subscription you signed up for by mistake?

Then you are far from alone: a paper on the UK’s productivity predicament suggests the way the markets for some key services work is not only a monumental pain for consumers but bad for the economy, too.