Brits with BT, EE and Virgin given £48 warning - 'catching people off-guard'

Broadband customers have been warned to be caught "offguard" by rising bills as a number of providers prepare to ramp up prices this year. Leaders in the sector including BT, EE, Virgin Media, TalkTalk, and Plusnet will start applying a fixed annual price increase of £4 per month for new and renewed contracts from Spring 2026.

The move came after Ofcom introduced "pounds and pence" rules a year ago that require providers to state annual rises in clear monetary terms.

Many companies previously had inflation-linked midcontract increases that customers couldn't reliably budget for in advance, as well as a percentage on top. But according to Uswitch, the £4 monthly (£48 per year) fees some companies are introducing in response represents an 11.1% jump in price for the average user, when applied to the current average broadband bill of £35.90.

That increase around three times higher than the current inflation rate (3.2%).

It will start appearing on bills from late March/April. Other firms have also increased prices, the comparison and switching service says, with Three and Vodafone broadband customers set to add a flat rate of £3.50 to the normal monthly bill from April.

Meanwhile Cuckoo is adding £3 per month to bills and and Community Fibre is adding £2. However, Cuckoo is among a number of firms that offer fixed term contracts with a fixed price promise, meaning the standard monthly bill for these customers won't rise over the course of the contract.

Mobile users are also set to see additional costs from Spring. For some mobile plans, the changes represent a 13.4% uptick, four times the rate of inflation. Customers on EE, O2, and Vodafone are set for an additional cost of between £1.50 and £4 a month from around the start of April.

There is also a £1.50 rise for Sky Mobile customers. You can find a more detailed breakdown of the new pricing structure and how they work on Uswitch.com.

Mid-contract increases compound over time, and Uswitch encourages Britons to look for the best deal when their contract ends so their bills don't balloon over time.

Ernest Doku, telecoms expert at the firm said: "Flat-rate 'pounds and pence' increases appear to be being used as a smokescreen for price hikes that, in many cases, are much higher as a proportion of the bill than the current rate of inflation.

"For customers on newer contracts, these fixed jumps will have been clear from the start of the contract. But the scale of the increases could catch people off guard as they compound every year.

"The most important thing consumers can do is keep track of their contract end date.

Once you are out of contract, you can switch and reset the clock on your bills. By moving to a new deal, you can avoid these increases compounding on top of high out-of-contract rates, which can save broadband customers an average of £203 a year.

"There are still providers, such as Lebara for mobiles and YouFibre for broadband, that choose not to apply mid-contract rises at all. With these hikes hitting in spring, the time to act is now."

Firms have argued that the increase allows them to maintain their existing level of service, and put investment into improving their infrastructure, as per GoCompare.

For example, BT said on its website: "Our annual price change helps us continue to invest to bring you a better, more reliable experience and the best value for your money.

"It's also important as our own costs continue to increase, so the price change means we can continue to maintain the best networks and provide customer service in more ways than ever before."