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ARTICLE · 12 NOVEMBER 2026

Is This The End Of Subscription Traps?

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Most of us have been there. A free trial we forgot to cancel, a gym membership that carried on long after our last visit or a streaming service that quietly renewed at a higher price. Often the first we knew about it was a line on our bank statement, followed by a frustrating search for the cancel button.

United KingdomConsumer Protection
Hans Schumann
Hans Schumann

Most of us have been there. A free trial we forgot to cancel, a gym membership that carried on long after our last visit or a streaming service that quietly renewed at a higher price. Often the first we knew about it was a line on our bank statement, followed by a frustrating search for the cancel button.

The government and the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) have recognised how widespread this problem is. From January 2027, businesses that sell subscriptions to consumers will have to comply with a new regime under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA). The rules were originally expected to come into force in spring 2027, so businesses now have less time to prepare than they may have planned for.

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