- The incoming bill increases will add £3.50 to most broadband bills and £1.80 for mobile.
Virgin Media O2’s broadband and mobile price increases have been described as “difficult to justify” by consumer experts.
Virgin Media broadband customers will see their bills increase by £3.50 a month from April 2025, with prices applying to deals from January 2025.
O2 mobile phone customers will see their airtime bills rise by £1.80 from the same point, and mobile broadband and smartwatch customers will pay an extra 75p. There is no increase for pay-as-you-go customers.
This broadband price increase is the highest in the UK, while the mobile phone bill increase is the highest overall.
Adding up: The latest increases in broadband and mobile phone bills come on top of a host of other high costs that are putting more pressure on consumers’ pockets, from energy bills to food.
The next most expensive broadband price rise is £3, from EE and Plusnet, while for mobile Vodafone will also charge an extra £1.80 next year.
In July 2024, regulator Ofcom banned inflation-linked price increases from January 17, 2025, saying they caught many customers off guard.
Instead, telephone and broadband companies have to prominently display medium-term price increases in pounds and pence.
But while Ofcom set out rules for how price increases would occur, it did not impose any requirements to limit them.
A Virgin Media O2 spokesperson defended the price increases, saying they were clear to understand and good value for money.
The spokesperson said: ‘From January, we will change the way we communicate and implement price increases. All future price changes will be included in customers’ contracts in pounds and pence, giving them even more certainty about how their bills may change over the course of their contract.
“For less than the cost of a takeaway coffee or a sandwich, this represents excellent value for the connectivity our customers are using more than ever, while we invest more than £5 million a day in our networks and services to deliver.” “We give our customers the fast and reliable connectivity that they increasingly rely on.”
But comparison company Uswitch has criticized the price increases, calling them “difficult to justify”.
Ernest Doku, telecoms expert at Uswitch, said: ‘Virgin Media O2 has just announced the biggest broadband price increases we’ve seen among all providers so far: £3.50 for all broadband customers and £1 .80 per month for mobile customers.
‘While Virgin Media O2 references investment and growing demand for data as reasons behind its price increases, with inflation falling significantly since last April, this decision still seems difficult to justify.
“These new increases suggest Virgin Media O2 is taking Ofcom’s rule change as an opportunity to make price increases larger than they would have been from 2025.
‘The new flat rate increases mean that from January 2025, new or re-signed Virgin Media customers taking a cheaper broadband package at £25 a month would see a 14 per cent price rise each year. Customers on a £15 a month mobile deal would see a 12 per cent increase per year.’
Find the fastest, cheapest broadband and see if you can save
Broadband, TV and phone contracts are notoriously rigid, with customers often allowing deals to remain in place for many years while providers raise prices.
But you might get faster broadband, a better TV package and a better phone deal, while saving money every month.
It is always worth comparing prices to see if you can save, especially when the cost of living crisis worsens.
This is Money has teamed up with Broadband Choices to offer readers the opportunity to easily search for the best and cheapest deals on broadband, mobile and TV.
> Can you save? Compare broadband, TV and phone deals