UK Consumers Win £89.99 Refunds, Share Tips to Avoid Subscription Traps

2 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Aug 13

£89.99 was refunded to 23-year-old Sophie Branscombe after a photo editor app's free trial rolled into a paid subscription; she recovered the money through Apple's "report a problem" system.
£16 and then £32 were taken from Hussein Zaaiter's account after a software trial, and he said the firm kept trying to charge him even after failed attempts to cancel by chat, email and phone.
£9.99 a month hit Rosalinda Kwafo-Akoto after a TV trial she thought had ended; she spent 90 minutes reaching customer service before cancelling and getting a full refund.
Set reminders, read terms carefully and get cancellation confirmation emails were the main lessons the consumers shared, saying free trials often become hard-to-exit subscription traps.
The accounts come as Prime Minister Andy Burnham pushes a crackdown on subscription traps, with the BBC seeking responses from the companies involved.