EE and O2 to hike bills for millions of customers
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O2 and EE mobile phone customers are to see their bills rise in coming months, following a new wave of price hikes set to affect millions of those on pay monthly and sim-only plans.
Both firms have announced increases, with EE to push up prices in March and O2 to follow in April - both are related to inflation.
Telecoms firms and other big companies are allowed to impose mid-contract price rises because of a clause in their terms and conditions that warns customers about possible increases in line with the Retail Prices Index (RPI).
RPI is a measure of inflation published by the Office of National Statistics in January each year. It measures the change in the cost of a sample of retail goods and services.
O2 says it has always 'allowed' for annual hikes in line with inflation, while EE has told new customers that annual increases were a possibility since 26th March 2014.
EE's terms and conditions state:
Your Price Plan Charge includes an increase by the annual percentage increase in the Retail Prices Index (RPI). We will do this so the price increase takes effect in March of each year.
O2's conditions:
Each year your Monthly Subscription Charges will be subject to an annual adjustment by the RPI Rate. This adjustment could be an increase or a decrease and the adjusted amount will first appear on your April bill.
What's changing?
(Photo: Getty)
EE is pushing up bills for all pay monthly customers by 2.5% from March 30 2017 in line with the Retail Prices Index (RPI) announced by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in January.
O2 is increasing monthly bills for all pay-monthly and sim-only customers by 2.6% in April 2017, in line with the latest RPI figure announced this week.
The hikes do not affect pay-as-you-go customers from either network.
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An EE spokesperson told Mirror Money: "As the UK’s biggest and fastest mobile network we work hard to offer our customers great value.
"Like many service providers, our Pay Monthly plans increase by RPI annually. This year our customers will see a typical rise of less than 80p a month. We’re currently contacting our customers to remind them this will take effect from 30th March 2017."
The firm is currently in the process of contacting customers affected to inform them of the latest changes to their bills.
An O2 spokesperson said customers are told about this annual adjustment upfront when they upgrade or take out a new contract as detailed in its terms and conditions.
A spokesperson told Mirror Money: "During the application we advise customers that their prices will change each year in line with the RPI that’s announced in February by the ONS. As part of the application process, this is something customers confirm they accept before the contract is completed.
"We’ll be adjusting our monthly tariff charges by 2.6% in line with the RPI change that applies to our contracts each year - some other companies offering communication services have increased their monthly rentals by up to 9%.
"This adjustment means an extra charge of 46p per month for customers on our most popular pay monthly tariff and we’ll contact customers next week to let them know the change will be reflected from their April bill.
"We’ll continue to invest in our network and the services that matter to our customers while still offering great value for money."
O2 is will be contacting customers to inform them of the latest hike in due course.
What are my rights?
(Photo: Getty)
Telecoms regulator Ofcom states that customers can exit their plan penalty-free if a provider ups prices mid-term - without any warning when you took out the contract.
It states you may also be allowed to leave without paying a charge if the rise is of “material detriment”, for example a bigger rise than the RPI rate.
However, as customers were warned about these possible inflation hikes in the small print - it's unlikely you'll be able to use Ofcom to get out of your contract fee-free. Instead, you may have to cough up an exit fee - usually your monthly bill multiplied by the total number of months left in your plan, but minus VAT.
Instead you can:
Get in touch with your provider and ask what your options are if you cannot afford the hike.
If you're approaching the end of your plan, you might be able to switch to a cheaper deal - possibly even cheaper if you go sim-only. Do your homework, as this may mean signing up for a further 24-months.
Find out how long you've got left in your contract. If you're out of plan, you can exit penalty-free - providing you give your provider 30-days' notice.
I wasn't warned about the rise when I signed up...
This is common - and if you genuinely weren't aware of the possibility, don't just stand for it. Here are your options: