The UK’s media regulator has criticised O2 for raising its prices by more than it promised customers when they took out their phone contracts.Ofcom said it was “disappointed” with the firm, and said it was going against “the spirit of our rules” around being transparent to customers about price rises.In January, new rules were brought in to stop phone companies raising prices in the middle of a contract without warning.O2 has been contacted for comment.”Today, we’ve written to the major mobile companies reminding them of their obligations to treat customers fairly,” the regulator said.”We encourage any customer who wants to avoid these price rises to exercise their right to exit without penalty and sign up to a new deal.”On Wednesday, O2 emailed its customers to say it would be increasing the price of their contracts by £2.50 a month from April 2026.It had previously advertised that monthly prices would only go up by £1.80.O2 said customers had 30 days to leave their contracts without any termination charges – though if their plan included a handset, they would still have to pay that off in full.Ofcom’s rules were brought in to protect consumers and stop unexpected price rises occurring in the middle of a contract.They stated companies had to tell customers how much their bill would rise by “in pounds and pence” before they signed up.At the time, Ofcom’s director for networks and communication, Natalie Black CBE, said: “Our new rules mean there will be no nasty surprises, and customers will know how much they will be paying and when, through clear labelling.”But O2 is able to raise prices because it is allowing customers to leave penalty-free within 30 days of being told about the hike.”It seems that O2 is pushing the boundaries of what the regulator stipulated,” telecoms analyst Paolo Pescatore of PP Foresight told BBC News. “This is extremely unfortunate, given that the mobile operator should be focused on retaining customers in a cut-throat market, as underlined by its latest quarterly earnings.”
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Ofcom slams O2 over unexpected mobile phone contract price rise
