UK subscription traps face new cancellation rules

UK subscription traps will face new cancellation rules from January 2027 as Prime Minister Andy Burnham seeks to tackle hard-to-cancel contracts and misleading discounts, Downing Street said on Sunday.

The government said businesses will have to give customers clearer upfront information, regular reminders and an easier way out of contracts. It also announced a new 14-day cooling-off period to let consumers cancel after a trial or a long-term contract renews, though it did not describe how the measure would be implemented.

Burnham said people were “sick and tired” of discounts he described as rip-offs and subscriptions that are difficult to cancel or renew automatically at higher prices. He said his government would make it “as easy to leave a subscription as it is to join”.

Downing Street said British consumers are estimated to spend £1.6 billion, or $2.2 billion, a year on subscriptions they do not want.

Burnham also promised action against misleading discount claims based on inflated full-price figures. His office said the announcement came as he prepared to return to work after a vacation and start a tour of the country to discuss people’s financial pressures.

The Mirror newspaper reported that Burnham’s cost-of-living tour this month would cover all of the United Kingdom’s constituent regions and include Port Talbot in Wales.