Broadband, phone and pay-TV companies must alert customers when their contracts are about to come to an end, and inform them of the best available deals, according to new rules announced today by Ofcom.

According to the broadcasting authority over 20 million customers have gone over their initial contract, and many of them could be paying more than necessary.

Under the new regulations, telecom and pay-TV companies will issue warnings to their customers between 10 and 40 days before the end of their contract, by either text, letter, or email. These alerts will include:

• when the contract ends;
• the price paid before this date;
• any changes to the service and price paid at the end of the contract;
• information about any notice period required to end the contract; and
• the best deals offered by your provider, including telling existing customers what prices are available to new customers.

Ofcom's research suggests that one in seven customers don’t know whether they are still tied to their original deal, while around one in eight believe they are still in contract, but don’t know when that contract ends.

Moreover, people who bundle their landline and broadband services pay around 20% more when they're out of contract, which rises to 26% for customers that also include their television package in the same contract.

“We’re making sure customers are treated fairly, by making companies give them the information they need, when they need it" said Lindsey Fussell, Ofcom’s Consumer Group Director. “This will put power in the hands of millions of people who’re paying more than necessary when they’re no longer tied to a contract.”

Last month, Ofcom also rolled out voluntary regulation that means customers of BT, Sky, TalkTalk, Virgin Media and Zen Internet will receive automatic compensation if they experience delayed repairs, installations or missed engineer appointments.

Hyperoptic and Vodafone will also join the program later this year, while EE will start in 2020.