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Broadband customers could pay £150 more than they expected to over two years due to “unpredictable” mid-contract price rises, consumer group Which? has warned. Which? has called on regulator Ofcom to ban the practice altogether as it found that BT, EE, Plusnet, Shell Energy, TalkTalk and Vodafone customers could see increases of more than 8% on average in 2024 while Virgin Media customers could see rises of more than 10%, based on analysis of Bank of England inflation forecasts. Many of the biggest broadband firms – such as BT, EE, Plusnet, Shell Energy, TalkTalk, Virgin Media and Vodafone – raise prices every April in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or the Retail Price Index (RPI) plus an additional 3%, 3.7% or 3.9%. Customers wanting to avoid these hikes can be charged punitive exit fees to leave their contract early. From working and school to online banking and social media, a good broadband and mobile connection is essential to everyday modern life Rocio Concho, Which? Based on average contract amounts from the Which? 2023 broadband survey; Virgin Media, BT and EE customers could see the biggest annual increases of £50.52, £43.68 and £43.68 respectively in the year from April 2024, the watchdog calculated. Shell Energy Broadband customers could see the smallest annual price hike of £27.16 on average. These hikes would come on top of the more than 14% mid-contract uplifts many consumers faced in 2023. Which? also calculated how much extra these two rounds of price hikes could cost a customer for each provider who took out a deal in January 2023 over the course of their 18 or 24-month contract. Based on average amounts from the Which? 2023 broadband survey, BT and EE customers who took out a contract in January 2023 could see some of the highest average price hikes of £147.43 and £147.31, while Vodafone and Plusnet customers could see rises of £122.38 and £117.87 respectively. TalkTalk customers could see a smaller hike of £76.09 on average over the course of shorter 18-month contracts. Shell Energy Broadband did not apply its 2023 inflation-linked price hikes of 12.5% to customers who joined from January to March 2023. However, if a Shell Energy customer joined before January 2023 then, based on average amounts from the 2023 broadband survey, they would pay an extra £45.27 a year from Spring 2023 to Spring 2024. Ofcom should also use their review to finally ban these unpredictable mid-contract price hikes that harm consumers and undermine competition Rocio Concho, Which? Virgin Media did not use inflation-linked price hikes in 2023 but some customers’ prices did increase by an average of 13.8% per cent due to ad hoc price rises, according to Which? According to Virgin Media, customers who signed up after November 2022 would not have faced the ad hoc price rise in Spring 2023. Those on a fixed-price promotional deal – like those offered to new customers – would also not have seen the price hikes take effect until after their deal ended. Which? argues that it is unfair for consumers to be signed up to deals that do not give them certainty about how much they can expect to pay over the course of their contract, and then face exit fees if they want to leave early. A survey by the group found that 78% of consumers believe that mid-contract price hikes are always unfair and that people overwhelmingly value pricing certainty for broadband contracts. Which? has launched The Right to Connect campaign calling for clearer and fairer pricing for telecoms customers and an end to unpredictable mid-contract price hikes. Ofcom is currently reviewing inflation-linked, mid-contract price rises and is due to publish its consultation in December. Rocio Concha, Which? director of policy and advocacy, said: “From working and school to online banking and social media, a good broadband and mobile connection is essential to everyday modern life. While we know that price changes are never welcome, against a backdrop of rising costs, increased usage and continued investment, we have openly and directly set out to customers that we are introducing inflation-linked price changes Virgin Media spokesman “That’s why it’s outrageous that unpredictable mid-contract price hikes have been allowed to continue in the telecoms industry for so long – especially when so many have been struggling to make ends meet during the cost-of-living crisis. Consumers must have certainty about the total cost of their contract. “Which? is calling on all providers to do the right thing and cancel 2024’s above inflation price hikes. “Ofcom should also use their review to finally ban these unpredictable mid-contract price hikes that harm consumers and undermine competition. “Consumers need to know exactly how much their contract will cost when they sign up.” We understand that price rises are never wanted nor welcomed but recognise them as a necessary thing to do given the rising costs our business faces BT spokesman A Virgin Media spokesman said: “We are always clear and transparent with customers about any price increases. We wrote directly to all customers who received a price rise this year to notify them of their exact increase, and gave them the right to cancel without penalty within 30 days if they wished. “While we know that price changes are never welcome, against a backdrop of rising costs, increased usage and continued investment, we have openly and directly set out to customers that we are introducing inflation-linked price changes from April next year. This widely used format will provide more certainty on when and how any future increases will occur while fuelling the investment required to ensure we keep providing the fast and reliable connectivity our customers rely on.” A BT Consumer spokeswoman said: “We understand that price rises are never wanted nor welcomed but recognise them as a necessary thing to do given the rising costs our business faces. “Our price rises are annual, contracted and transparent and we make this clear when customers sign up or renew their contract. With the average price increase just above £1 per week in 2023, and some of our customers exempt from the rise, we’re also doing all we can to ensure our services are accessible to the widest group of customers possible through our market leading social tariffs.” A TalkTalk spokesman said: “The preventable CPI-linked price rise in April 2023 was a direct result of Ofcom-regulated wholesale cost increases. In order to prevent the same thing happening next April, we are again calling on Ofcom to act and reduce the wholesale increases that lead to these price rises. “These are exceptional circumstances, and families and business across the UK need the regulator to act.” Read More Rise of AI chatbots ‘worrying’ after man urged to kill Queen, psychologist warns William hails ‘amazing’ eco-friendly start-up businesses Royal website subject to ‘denial of service attack’, royal source says TikTok finds and shuts down secret operation to stir up conflict in Ireland Spotify will not ban all AI-powered music, says boss of streaming giant Vehicle scam reports surged by 74% in the first half of 2023, says Lloyds Bank

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England coach Sarina Wiegman says the Lionesses are under no illusions about what is expected of them these days, insisting England are ready to keep producing victories game after game. A stellar run over the past few years has seen the women’s national team win the European Championship and reach the Women’s World Cup final, where they lost to Spain. Now they are targeting success in the Uefa Nations League – and a place at the 2024 Paris Olympics too for Team GB – and face Belgium in their fourth Group A1 game. Wiegman says the squad are comfortable with the pressures on them, and believes they can improve on the 1-0 victory over the same opposition last week. “The expectations are very clear. Everyone expects us to win,” said Wiegman ahead of the game in Leuven. “We expect ourselves to win but we want to improve on our game. That makes the chances of winning higher. “I was happy with how we played Friday. We could have made it a little bit easier for ourselves, but how we were on the pitch, how we wanted to play out of possession and in possession, we did really well. “What we want to do in possession is be a little better in the final third. We create chances but the final pass, the final position and the execution, we want to do better. “What I really liked on Friday, there was so much energy in the team. You saw real intention. If we lost the ball, we really wanted to win it back. We had only one stage in the game [where] we dropped a little bit, then picked it up again. I want to see the same energy, intention of the whole team and the togetherness.” England are two points ahead of Belgium heading into the match and level with Netherlands, with Scotland bottom. Meanwhile, midfielder Georgia Stanway suggested the Ballon d’Or ceremony must be better planned in future to allow the top women to attend, given many are preparing for an international match on Monday night when the awards are dealt out. Regarding the upcoming match, she noted that England’s progression play was impressive, but more could be done in the final third to improve further. “The Belgium game we played the other day was a real show of who we are,” said Stanway. “We dominated possession and created a lot. But we didn’t get it over the line as many times as we wanted to. “After losing a [World Cup] final, it’s sometimes not motivating to turn up to training every day, but I think we hit the ground running. “Everybody has been firing in training. We have Fran Kirby back, which is also a real highlight. I love playing with her, so it’s important to have numbers all over the pitch.” Read More Fran Kirby felt like she’d never been away on return to England side England come out on top but it’s far from a complete performance against Belgium Mary Earps reveals difficulties with fan relationship with rise of women’s football England vs Belgium LIVE: Women’s Nations League latest updates Beth Mead ‘not close’ to England recall, Sarina Wiegman admits Fran Kirby returns to Lionesses squad as Sarina Wiegman reveals Beth Mead decision

Tottenham are expected to complete the permanent signing of Dejan Kulusevski this summer, the PA news agency understands. The Sweden forward moved to Spurs from Juventus on an initial 18-month loan in January of last year and enjoyed a strong finish to the 2021-22 season. Kulusevski has struggled for form this season and reports in Italy this week suggested there were doubts over his long-term future at Tottenham. When Kulusevski joined from Juve, an obligation for Spurs to make the transfer permanent for 35million euros at the end of this campaign was inserted should Tottenham qualify for the Champions League this term. Tottenham’s difficult season means a top-four finish is no longer attainable, but the option to sign Kulusevski for 35million euros (£30m) remains and it is understood the club are still set to secure the services of the attacker on a long-term deal. Spurs acting head coach Ryan Mason admitted he was not involved in any talks over what the future holds for Kulusevski but backed the 23-year-old to bounce back from a tough campaign. A hamstring injury sidelined the former Atalanta player for a large chunk of the first half of the season but he has only scored twice in 34 appearances where he has been in and out of the starting line-up. “The general feeling is that Deki is a Tottenham player so those conversations, like many other conversations about other players, will come at the end of the season,” Mason said. “I love Deki as a player. I think he’s got so much room to grow and be a top, top player, even though he already is a top, top player. “At the same time when you play for a club like this, I feel it’s important that you feel you have to earn the shirt in every moment. “Naturally when you play for a club like this there’s competition. At the moment, last week, you could see he was on the bench but he came on and helped the team get the result. That’s important.” Kulusevski has scored seven goals and provided 15 assists in 54 appearances for Spurs overall.

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