Millions of households could save as Government takes aim at subscription traps and ‘fake’ discounts

Millions of households could be set to claw back money from their monthly budgets as the government moves to make it easier to escape unwanted subscriptions and crack down on misleading discounts.

Ministers have announced a series of changes aimed at tackling some of the everyday costs that can quietly eat into household budgets, from forgotten subscriptions to sales that aren't quite the bargain they appear to be.

The government says these “everyday fixes” are designed to help people keep more of their money, with the first measures focusing on subscription traps and misleading pricing.

Forgotten subscriptions could become easier to escape

Signing up for a free trial can take seconds. Getting out of it isn't always quite so simple.

The government says there are around 155 million active subscriptions in the UK, with people estimated to be spending £1.6 billion a year on subscriptions they don't actually want.

New rules due to come into force in January 2027 are intended to change that.

Businesses will have to give customers clearer information before they sign up, send regular reminders and make it easier to cancel. There will also be a new 14-day cooling-off period allowing customers to cancel following a trial or when a longer-term contract renews.

The government estimates the changes could save people an average of £14 a month for every unwanted subscription.

That could add up to £168 over a year, although what you actually save will depend on what you’re paying for in the first place.

‘Half-price’ deals will also face scrutiny

The government is also turning its attention to the way retailers advertise discounts.

It wants to tackle practices where a price is increased before an item is put into a sale, making the saving look bigger than it really is.

It also wants to address cases where something is advertised as discounted even though the supposedly reduced price is the same as the price charged before the sale.

A consultation is due to launch this autumn on whether practices including fake “was” prices, invented discounts and misleading recommended retail prices should automatically be treated as unfair under consumer protection law.

For shoppers, the change could mean having more confidence that a saving advertised on the shelf or online is actually a saving.

Why this matters when money is tight

For households already watching their spending, it's often the smaller costs that are easy to overlook.

A forgotten subscription might only be £8 or £10 a month. A handful of them, however, can quickly turn into hundreds of pounds over the course of a year.

And discounts can work in a different way. A big “50% off” message can make something feel like an opportunity to save, even if it wasn't something you planned to buy in the first place.

The government's argument is that people shouldn't have to be experts in pricing or spend hours battling with a company to get out of a subscription.

You don't have to wait until 2027

The new subscription rules aren't due to come into force until January 2027, so the changes won't immediately stop payments from unwanted subscriptions.

But households can still check what is leaving their bank account now.

A quick look through your bank or card statements could uncover payments you've forgotten about or no longer need. And if you're tempted by a big sale, it is worth remembering that a discount only saves you money if you were going to buy the item anyway.

The new rules are intended to make some of these everyday traps harder to fall into, but they won't remove every way that money can slip out of your household budget.

More changes are on the way

The government says the subscription and discount measures are just the start of a wider programme of “everyday fixes” aimed at easing pressure on household budgets.