"Phone and internet customers may soon be allowed to escape their fixed contracts, without penalty, if the price is put up mid-contract.

The telecoms regulator Ofcom has started a consultation on such a rule, in response to hundreds of complaints about surprise price rises."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-20898289

"The majority of consumers who have complained about mid-contract price rises are doing so because they deem them 'unfair', regulator Ofcom has revealed.

Ofcom is currently holding a consultation into mid-contract price rises, having received more than 1,500 complaints between September 2011 and May 2012. All four operators have imposed these rises during the past year and defend them as a necessary reaction to inflation and increased costs.

The regulator published a breakdown of the complaints this morning following a request. It revealed that 25% of consumers complained about the principle of price rises during a fixed-term contract. A lack of transparency from operators was the next most complained about issue, at 24%. Around 22% expressed a 'general dissatisfaction' about the rises, followed by 16% who complained specifically about the amount of the price rise.

A decision is expected on the issue by June. One outcome could be allowing consumers to walk away from contracts if operators increase prices during their duration."  (16/1/2013)

http://www.mobiletoday.co.uk/News/23817/Consumers_deem_mid-contract_price_rises_as_unfair.aspx