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New laws to protect customers from “subscription traps” – how much could you SAVE?

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New laws to protect customers from “subscription traps” – how much could you SAVE?

Customers will be able to cancel subscriptions and get refunds for unwanted auto-renewals more easily under new rules announced by the government.

A nationwide crackdown on “subscription traps” could save customers £170 a year on average, according to the Department for Business and Trade (DBT).

Subscription services have grown by 47.5% since January 2020  and around 9 in 10 customers now have at least one subscription according to research from Barclays.

Under the new rules, customers will be given a 14-day cooling-off period after a trial ends or when an annual subscription automatically renews.

Companies must also provide:

  • Clear, simple information before customers sign up to a subscription
  • Reminders before a free trial, discounted trial or 12-month+ contract automatically renew
  • Straightforward cancellations including online exits for online sign ups

The changes are expected to come into effect from spring 2027.

There are roughly 155 million active subscriptions across the UK with around 10 million believed to be unwanted.

Over 3.5 million people are rolled over from free or discounted trials to full priced contracts. Of these around 1.3 million are caught out by auto-renewals.

These services include streaming platforms such as Netflix and Disney+ as well as games and online tools.

Clare West
Clare West Finance Editor

As a finance writer and editor, I can’t make decisions for you because only you know what’s right for you, and your personal priorities and goals. My role is to understand the things that are going to be important to you, remove anything that could work as a barrier to understanding, and then ensure you don’t miss a thing.

It’s an approach that has won me awards from professional bodies (‘Website of the Year’ at the Professional Adviser Awards 2021; Finalist – ‘Start Up of the Year’ at the UK FinTech Awards 2025) and seen me featured in the press as a commentator and expert.

Finances are about so much more than numbers on a page. Achieving your financial goals allows you to feel peace of mind, have confidence in your future, and achieve the things that matter to you. Financial wellbeing allows for life goal fulfilment.

I’ve spent more than a decade specialising in writing about financial services, so I know that in financial services, trust is absolutely vital. I am delighted, therefore, that everything we do at Investing Insiders centres around trust. Our mission is to write honest reviews based on our personal opinions and professional insights. We are not swayed in our opinions by incentives or influences from providers. Where we have a relationship with a provider that could affect our neutrality, we will let you know. But we are clear; whatever relationship we have with providers, our reader comes first. Simply put, we can’t be paid to change our opinion. My obligation is to you, the saver or investor, looking to build your wealth and protect your future.

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