Vodafone announces fixed price promise

Vodafone has announced a fixed price promise, meaning that customers will not have their bills increased during the term of their contract.

The network said the promise applies to all Vodafone pay monthly customers regardless of when they signed up and whether they are on a 12 or 24 month contract.

Vodafone polled 1,000 customers in April to ask them about increases.

"We asked our customers what they thought was fair when it came to charging, and the clear majority told us that it was unacceptable to increase monthly prices during the contract term," Cindy Rose, consumer director at Vodafone, said in a statement.

"So from now on, when you sign up with us, a deal's a deal, and we promise the monthly price you pay will stay the same for the period of your contract term, provided you stick within your allowance."

The promise relates to the cost of the allowance, so Vodafone noted it would still be entitled to change the rates to premium rate numbers, non-geographic numbers and calls, texts and data use outside of allowances.

Vodafone said it would let customers know if it made any changes to these outside of their allowance tarrifs.

Consumer watchdog Which? has welcomed the fixed price promise and hopes other networks will follow suit.

"This is great news for Vodafone customers and the 60,000 people who joined our campaign against mid-contract price increases," said Richard Lloyd, executive director of Which?

"The pressure is now on EE and O2 who we feel are acting against the spirit of Ofcom's new rules by increasing prices on supposedly fixed contracts. We hope people choose operators who are playing fair and offering fixed prices that really are fixed for the duration of the contract."