What Are Ofcom’s Mobile Price Rise Rules?
Since 17 January 2025, Ofcom has banned mobile and broadband providers from linking mid contract price rises to inflation or to a vague percentage. A mobile price rise now has to be set out in pounds and pence, shown to you clearly before you sign, at the point of sale. The idea was simple: stop bill shock by making the number obvious upfront.
Ofcom brought the rule in after research found barely anyone understood how the old system worked. Only 16% of broadband customers could explain how their annual increase was actually calculated, which isn’t much of a “clear and predictable” deal for anyone.
Fair enough in principle. The trouble is that fresh analysis this year suggests the fix has quietly made a lot of mobile price rise decisions worse, not better, for the people it was meant to protect.
Why Are Mobile Bills Rising More Under the New Rules?
MoneySavingExpert analysed roughly 47,000 mobile and broadband tariffs in June 2026. About three in four came out worse under Ofcom’s new pounds and pence system than they would have done under the old inflation linked approach. Not a small margin, and not the outcome anyone was promised.
Comparison site Broadband Genie put the average mobile price rise at around 10% under the new fixed fee model, against roughly 8% under the old RPI linked one. Cheaper SIM only tariffs seem to have taken the biggest hit, since a flat £2 or £2.50 rise is a much bigger percentage jump on a £10 plan than on a £40 one.
MoneySavingExpert founder Martin Lewis called the outcome “frustratingly predictable” and has argued Ofcom should go further and ban above inflation mid contract rises outright, rather than just requiring providers to state them clearly.
Mobile price rise figures, checked August 2026
| Detail | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Typical 2026 mobile price rise range | £1.80 to £2.50 a month | Ofcom, published February 2026 |
| Rise applied by O2 from April 2026 | £2.50 a month | Provider notice, reported by Ofcom and consumer press |
| Range across EE, O2 and Vodafone | £1.50 to £4 a month | BBC, 2026 |
| Tariffs worse off under the new rules vs the old ones | Around 3 in 4 | MoneySavingExpert analysis of 47,000 tariffs, June 2026 |
| Average rise, new fixe fee model vs old RPI linked model | Roughly 10% vs roughly 8% | Broadband Genie, cited June 2026 |
What Happened With O2’s Price Rise?
O2’s case is the one that got people’s backs up. Customers were originally told to expect a rise of around £1.80 a month, then O2’s actual 2026 increase landed at £2.50 a month instead, roughly £30 a year rather than the £21.60 first suggested.
That’s exactly the kind of gap a “clear, upfront” rule is supposed to rule out. Martin Lewis said the difference between what customers were told and what they actually got “makes a mockery” of the pounds and pence approach.
None of this means O2 broke the rules, and it’s worth being fair here: the criticism is about the design of Ofcom’s system allowing this kind of gap, not proof of wrongdoing by any one provider. But it’s a useful reminder that “clear pricing” and “cheap pricing” aren’t the same thing, and a mobile price rise can be perfectly compliant and still sting.
What Are Your Rights If a Mobile Price Rise Wasn’t Made Clear?
Your rights hinge on disclosure, not on how big the increase is. If your provider set the rise out properly, in pounds and pence, before you signed, then it’s enforceable, and leaving early before your contract ends will usually cost an exit fee.
If your provider didn’t make it clear at the point of sale, you’re entitled to at least 30 days’ notice of the change and the right to leave penalty free once it kicks in. That applies whether you’re on a SIM only deal or a handset contract taken out on or after 17 January 2025.
Contracts signed before that date are a separate matter again. Plenty of older deals still run on the previous inflation linked wording and will keep that until they end, so it’s worth checking your own contract dates rather than assuming the new rules cover you automatically.
If you think you’ve been mis sold or misled, your first stop is a formal complaint to your provider, and if that goes nowhere within eight weeks, you can escalate to an ombudsman under the updated mobile complaint rules.
How to Handle Your Own Mobile Price Rise
Key takeaways
- Check when you signed your contract. Deals from 17 January 2025 onwards must show any mobile price rise in pounds and pence upfront.
- If the rise wasn’t disclosed clearly at sign up, you can usually leave penalty free within 30 days of being told.
- Cheaper SIM only tariffs tend to feel a flat fee mobile price rise more, percentage wise, so it’s worth comparing again even if the pound figure looks small.
- Being out of contract removes the mid contract price rise question entirely, since new deals are priced upfront rather than adjusted later.
- Keep any price rise letter or email. You’ll need it if you want to challenge how or when it was disclosed.
If you’re coming to the end of a contract, or you’ve decided a rise just isn’t worth absorbing, comparing what’s currently on offer, much like broadband customers now do with broadband mid contract price rises, is usually a better use of ten minutes than waiting to see what next year brings.
Mobile Price Rise FAQs
- Can my provider still raise my mobile bill mid contract?
- Yes. Providers can still apply a mobile price rise mid contract, but for deals taken out on or after 17 January 2025, the exact pound amount has to be shown to you clearly at the point of sale, rather than tied to inflation.
- Why did Ofcom change the rules if bills are rising more?
- Ofcom’s aim was clarity, not necessarily lower rises. Its research found most customers couldn’t work out the old inflation linked increases, so it swapped that for a fixed, disclosed figure, even though MoneySavingExpert’s 2026 analysis suggests that figure often ends up higher.
- What can I do if I wasn’t told about a price rise before I signed?
- You’re entitled to at least 30 days’ notice and a penalty free exit if your provider didn’t set the rise out clearly in pounds and pence before you signed up. Complain to your provider first, then to an ombudsman if it isn’t resolved.
- Do these rules apply to contracts from before 2025?
- Not automatically. Many older contracts still run on the previous inflation linked terms until they end, so check your own start date rather than assuming the new rules apply.
- Is switching provider a way to avoid a mobile price rise?
- Being out of contract sidesteps the mid contract rise question, since a new deal is priced upfront. It won’t undo a rise already applied, but it stops the next one catching you out.
