Shocking amount each household loses each year on ‘subscription traps’ as ban looms

Many of us are too scared to do that audit of all our monthly outgoings, knowing that the three coffee subscriptions and 11 separate streaming accounts you have is probably starting to verge on overkill.

The only thing is, sometimes when you decide you want to leave, some companies make it near-impossible to do so – something that UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham is vowing to change.

So-called ‘subscription traps’ are what happens when people find it hard to cancel subscriptions or suddenly see contracts have been automatically renewed without them realising – often at a higher cost.

According to the government, these cost UK consumers a whopping £1.6 billion each year, with figures showing this amounts to an average loss of £14 a month – or around £168-£170 a year – for every forgotten or unwanted subscription.

Many people could do with checking just how much they're paying in subscriptions (Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

It’s easy to assume that you’re the one to blame, with many people scolding themselves for not being more on top of it as they spot another £20 has quietly floated out of our bank account without them realising.

But Burnham believes it’s simply not the case, placing the onus on the companies offering the product in the first place.

“Too many companies want you to sign up in seconds, but then make it feel impossible to leave,” he wrote in an opinion piece for the Guardian.

“It’s exhausting.”

The government is now cracking down on rules around subscriptions – of which there are around 155 million in the UK active right now.

“We are making it as easy to leave a subscription as it is to join, and businesses won’t be able to renew a subscription without notifying you,” Burnham explained, adding that the new rules will come into effect in January 2027, just in time for ‘when people often start new subscriptions, or cancel the ones they have, for the year ahead’.

While Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride hit out at Burnham’s ‘reheated’ plans, as the idea has previously been floated but moved back (from spring 2026 to autumn 2026, and then spring 2027), it is the first time the timeline has been brought forward.

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Many people are trying to cut costs and simply aren't aware of what they're spending (Getty Stock)

The government is also ‘putting an end to phoney bargains’ - that is, misleading deals like ‘half price’ bargains that were never full price in the first place.

“We are taking on poor practices that make people’s lives harder,” Burnham continued.

“If something is advertised as half price, it should actually be half price. We will make sure that when families snatch a deal, they can be confident they’re actually saving. That’s the least they deserve when budgets are so tight.”

He added: “Each everyday fix will be designed to put a bit more money back into people’s pockets, to make daily life a little fairer and to give people a bit more hope that politics really can work for them again.”

Every little helps, and all that...