Vodafone Promises To End Mid-Contract Price Rises
Vodafone says all contract customers will benefit, not just ones who signed up after 23 January
Vodafone has pledged that it won’t increase any of its contract customers’ monthly fees for the duration of their service agreement.
Communications watchdog Ofcom has recently implemented guidelines that forbid mobile operators from introducing mid-contract price rises, however this only affects deals signed after 23 January 2014.
Vodafone says all of its pay monthly customers will benefit from the pledge and that it came to the decision after it surveyed a number of its customers who, funnily enough, were against price increases.
Vodafone contracts
“We asked our customers what they thought was fair when it came to charging, and the clear majority told us that it was unacceptable to increase monthly prices during the contract term,” says Cindy Rose, consumer director at Vodafone. “So from now on, when you sign up with us, a deal’s a deal, and we promise the monthly price you pay will stay the same for the period of your contract term, provided you stick within your allowance.”
Vodafone still has the power to change prices outside the contract, such as calls to premium rate numbers or out-of-allowance calls, texts and mobile data, but the operator said it wanted to be more transparent.
“Technically, the Ofcom guidelines allow operators to increase their prices every year in line with inflation if they’re clear about it upfront, but we don’t think that’s in keeping with the spirit of the regulations and neither do the majority of consumers we asked,” says Vodafone’s Mark Howe.
Consumer benefits
The move has been welcomed by consumer groups and telephone experts who have been calling for the end to such charges for some time as many consumers have been unaware such price increases were allowed and that they were entering a fixed contract.
“It’s a welcome move and clearly a result of Ofcom’s announcement which came into force in January that enabled customers to walk away from mid-contract prices hikes,” says Ernest Doku, telecoms expert at uSwitch. “Hopefully this step will make other providers follow suit, but for now, Vodafone and Three are leading the way.”
“This is great news for Vodafone customers and the 60,000 people who joined our campaign against mid contract price increases,” adds Richard Lloyd, executive director at Which? “The pressure is now on EE and O2 who we feel are acting against the spirit of Ofcom’s new rules by increasing prices on supposedly fixed contracts.
“We hope people choose operators who are playing fair and offering fixed prices that really are fixed for the duration of the contract.”
