New customer joins BT on March 1st. £3 price increase on March 31st??

[boonjj]

My virgin contract is running out in April. I would like to switch from Virgin to BT.

BT currently offer 500mb for £32. But it has listed a price increase of £3 in just 31 days time, which is awfully quick considering its a 24 month contract all in. 

Is this how it is supposed to work or is there some pricing error here? I would like to join BT but ideally wait a full year before being hit with the £3 increase.

Thank you.

[jac_95]

Yes, for broadband, there will be an increase of £3 per month applied every 31st March

This is detailed when signing up and also detailed in the link below:

https://www.bt.com/help/account-and-billing/about-annual-price-changes 

[iniltous]

If you don’t want to be affected by this years  annual increase , wait until the end of March before joining , however it’s quite possible that by then the price will not be £32 but £35 with the £3 increase applied March 2026, so  potentially little to be gained by waiting.

FYI , this is pretty much industry standard practice, most major ISPs do this annual increase , it’s not unique to BT, so joining anyone close to when they apply the annual increase will result in a change in the price paid pretty soon after joining .

[boonjj]

Thanks for the information.

It makes more sense to me that prices increases be based on individual contracts, eg. £3 increase 1 year into your contract or something. It doesn't feel right to enter a 24 month contract and be hit with a price rise within 31 days.

Even the link you provided states that BT base on this Ofcoms suggestion regarding "mid-contract" price rises, which to my understanding is short for "middle of your contract". 31 days is hardly the middle, but maybe BT are using a different definition:

This approach also aligns our pricing with Ofcom’s approach  recommendation on mid-contract price rises.

[boonjj]

The final date of my virgin contract is mid-April so I have to make a decision about my broadband 1 month prior, meaning I can't wait until after March 31st to sign up to BT.

[gg30340]

"Mid-contract" sounds better than "during contract every 31st March"

Ofcom does not call them Mid Contract rises. They are "rises during the contract"

"Providers may increase their prices during the contract period and the new rules do not restrict their ability to set the level of their prices. However, they will prohibit providers from including inflation-linked, or percentage-based, price rise terms that apply to the Core Subscription Price in new contracts. This will give consumers clarity and certainty about the price they will pay, helping them choose the best deal for their needs.

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/bills-and-charges/review-of-inflation-linked-telecoms-...

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/bills-and-charges/ofcom-bans-mid-contract-price-rises-...

What Ofcom should have done was to ban rises during the course of a contract however there is no doubt the ISP would just have loaded it at the start of the contract, increasing the cost when you start your contract or they would add it into the price when you go to renew your contract.

Either way the ISP wins.

[boonjj]

Might sounds better but it's not accurate. Surprised that's an official BT using wording like that instead of just following ofcams language. 

Cheers for the info, that's good to know. Another possible solution is allowing customers a 1 month grace period to freely cancel their contract whenever a price rise is forced through. That used to be a thing, I don't know if it is anymore.

Anyway, I think I've got my answer now. Cheers. I abroad currently but will be ringing BT when I return home and will mention this £3 increase within 30 days of signing up. They might be understanding and waive it, who knows.

[gg30340]

You can no longer leave a contract because of a price rise.

This ability to do that was stopped when Ofcom introduced the above as long as the ISP told you about the price rise prior to you starting the contract.

[Paul608085]

@boonjj 

This may be of interest to you:

https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2025/02/isps-bt-ee-plusnet-and-vodafone-tweak-uk-broadband-pri...

.

[allanraymond]

@iniltous 

I saw information on my phone earlier today in which Martin Lewis mentioned that BT amongst others providers would not be increasing the broadband by £3 (or whatever depending on the ISP) in 31 March 2025 if the contract was set up in March. Unfortunately I can't find the information to provide chapter and verse. I wonder if any others on the forum also saw the information?