Ernest Doku, telecoms expert at Uswitch.com comments:
“Today’s RPI announcement heralds bad news for the majority of Virgin Media customers whose bills will soar by 7.5% from April.
“Virgin Media broadband customers paying the average broadband cost of £355 per year will see their bills rise by £26.
“This inflation-linked increase only applies to Virgin Media customers who took out their contract before 9th January 2025.
“Virgin Media customers who took out a contract after 9th January will be subject to a ‘pounds and pence’ price rise following Ofcom’s ban on inflation-linked mid-contract price increases in January. This will be £3.50 per month for broadband customers, making these the steepest of providers' mid-contract price rises this cycle.
“If you’re one of the estimated two million Virgin Media customers who are out of contract or coming to the end of your existing deal, you don’t need to put up with price rises.
“The launch of One Touch Switch means it’s never been easier for broadband customers to vote with their feet and switch providers. Smaller, regional broadband providers like Hyperoptic and Trooli don’t raise their prices mid-contract and customers can save on average £181 a year by switching providers.
“You don't have to let price hikes slide - it only takes a few minutes to run a comparison and see what other options are out there.”
ENDS
Notes to editors
The 7.5% price rise figure is calculated based on January 2025’s RPI rate (3.6%) plus the additional 3.9% added on by Virgin Media. January inflation info can be found here - https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/bulletins/consumerpriceinflation/january2025
Average figures for broadband yearly costs taken from Opinium survey of 20,000 people in December 2024.
Broadband: Respondents were asked ‘How much do you currently pay for your home broadband?’, with the average figure being £29.60. £29.60 x 12 = £355.20.
Average broadband costs taken from Opinium data December 2024, a survey of 20,000 mobile and broadband customers.
Estimated out-of-contract Virgin Media O2 customers = Ofcom data (Pricing trends for communications services in the UK December 2024) states that 36% of broadband customers are out of contract. Virgin Media has 5,726,900 broadband subscribers. 36% of 5,726,900 = 2,061,684.
£181 savings figure: Switching to a new broadband deal after your initial contract has ended could save you £181 (£180.83) a year. This calculation is based on the average 12-month out-of-contract cost calculated in January 2025 between Sky Superfast Broadband, Sky Full Fibre, Virgin Media M125 Ultrafast Broadband, Vodafone Fibre 2 and Vodafone Full Fibre 500 , (£546.96), compared to the average yearly cost of the most popular five new deals (Sky Superfast at £357.00 per year, Sky Ultrafast Plus Broadband at £429.00, Virgin Media Ultrafast at £324.00, Vodafone Full Fibre 500 at £393.00 and Vodafone Fibre 2 at £333.00). Calculations include mid-contract price rises. Correct as of 1st January 2025.
For more information
Harriet Atkinson | Telecoms PR Manager
harriet.atkinson@rvu.co.uk
Twitter: @UswitchPR
About Uswitch
Uswitch is one of the UK’s top comparison websites for home services switching, including energy, broadband and mobiles.
More people go to Uswitch to find their energy, broadband and mobile deals than any other site, and we have saved consumers over £2.7 billion off their bills since we launched in September 2000.
Free mobile app Utrack also helps households manage their home energy usage and make potential savings.
Uswitch is part of RVU, a group of online brands with a mission to empower consumers to make more confident home services, insurance and financial decisions.