UK prime minister targets subscription traps and fake discounts to ease costs

On 2 April 2026, the UK government unveiled a crackdown on subscription traps and misleading discounts that it said would save consumers around £400 million a year. For households, the change will show up in the simplest places first: fewer surprise recurring charges on bank statements, clearer renewal warnings, and an easier route out of services that have turned a free trial into a paid contract.

The package will require companies to be more upfront when selling subscription services and make cancellations simpler and less painful. It is also designed to stop people being silently rolled onto expensive contracts, a practice that has long frustrated customers who sign up for a trial or a low introductory rate and then miss the point at which the price rises.

The announcement went beyond subscriptions. Ministers also targeted fake or misleading discounting, including so-called pretend prices and rip-off discounts, after years of complaints that some retailers inflate a reference price before cutting it to create the illusion of a bargain. Tightening the rules is meant to help with the cost of living by stopping free trials from turning into pricey surprises.

Andy Burnham brought the measures forward as part of a broader push to ease pressure on households during a period of elevated prices. A House of Commons Library briefing showed average prices had risen 30% since 2021, underscoring why ministers are trying to frame consumer protection as direct economic relief rather than a narrow rules update.

The changes were not brand new policy ideas. Burnham was advancing a package first announced under his predecessor, Sir Keir Starmer, and using it as part of a UK tour built around cost-of-living announcements. Downing Street said the plans were meant to give people "some room to breathe," while Burnham has also argued that the government must be a "cost-of-living government."