Your Internet Provider Is Charging You More for Staying
Most families set up their broadband and forget it. But your provider is quietly raising your bill every year — and new customers get a better deal than you do.
Your broadband is probably the most expensive subscription in your home — and the one your family thinks about least.
Most households sign up, get a decent introductory deal, then quietly forget about it. Meanwhile, the bill creeps up year after year, while new customers signing up today are getting rates that are €15–€30 a month cheaper than yours.
That gap between what loyal customers pay and what new customers are offered even has a name: the loyalty tax.
Why Your Provider Loves Loyal Customers (But Doesn't Reward Them)
When you sign a 12 or 24-month broadband contract, you're protected from price changes for the duration. But once that initial term ends, most providers move you onto a rolling monthly arrangement — which sounds flexible, but is actually where they make their real money.
Out-of-contract customers are routinely charged £10–£20 more per month than the same provider's advertised deals for new customers. And because broadband is a "set it and forget it" kind of purchase, most families don't notice.
In the UK, broadband providers are also permitted to raise prices mid-contract using a formula tied to inflation plus an additional surcharge — often CPI + 3.9% or more. In April 2026, millions of households saw another round of these mid-contract hikes hit their direct debits.
The result: families that signed up three or four years ago on what felt like a reasonable deal are now paying significantly above the market rate. Consumer groups have called this an "unfair tax on loyalty" — and they're not wrong.
What a Typical Family is Overpaying
Here's how it plays out in practice. Suppose your household signed up to a 500Mbps fibre plan two years ago at €40/month. After an initial discount expired and two annual price rises, you're now paying €52/month. Meanwhile, the same provider is advertising the same speed to new customers for €35/month.
That's a €17/month difference — €204 a year — for being a loyal customer.
Now multiply that across a few subscriptions where the same pattern happens (mobile plans, insurance, gym memberships) and you start to understand why a periodic review of your recurring bills matters so much.
How to Find Out If You're Out of Contract
The first step is simply knowing where you stand. Check:
- Your original contract end date (it'll be on your original confirmation email or in your account portal)
- Your current monthly charge vs. what the same provider now offers new customers
- Whether you've had any letters recently about price increases
If you're more than 12 months past your initial term, you're almost certainly overpaying. SubManager's spending breakdown can help you see exactly how much broadband is costing you over the year — not just the monthly amount, which is easy to mentally minimise.
Three Things You Can Do Right Now
1. Renegotiate directly. Call your provider and say you're thinking of switching. Most have a retentions team whose job is to keep you — and they have access to deals that aren't advertised on the website. A 10-minute phone call often results in a €10–€15/month reduction, locked in for another year.
2. Use a comparison tool. Sites like Uswitch (UK), or equivalent national tools in your country, show you what's available in your area and what existing customers are being overcharged against. Even if you decide to stay with your current provider, this gives you real numbers to negotiate with.
3. Switch and save. Switching broadband is genuinely less painful than it used to be. Most countries now have processes that let new providers handle the switch on your behalf, with minimal downtime. A new customer deal can save your family €200–€360 over a year.
Set a Renewal Reminder — or Your Provider Will
The reason so many families end up overpaying is simply that broadband contract end dates are easy to forget. Unlike a subscription with a prominent "your plan renews on X date" notification, broadband bills just silently continue.
Setting a reminder in SubManager for your broadband renewal date means you'll review it at the right moment — when you have maximum leverage with your provider and the best options available, rather than months after you've drifted onto an inflated out-of-contract rate.
The Bigger Picture
Broadband isn't glamorous. It doesn't feel like an "optional" subscription the way a streaming service does. But it's often the single largest recurring household expense after energy — and it's one of the most negotiable.
Most families treat it like a utility and never question the bill. The families that do question it are quietly saving hundreds of euros a year — not by cutting something they love, but just by noticing what they were already paying.
That's the whole point of keeping track.