Britain’s biggest telecommunications company has announced price hikes impacting customers all over the country - for the third time in 18 months.

Millions of people with BT landlineand broadband services will see their monthly costs increase for the third timein 18 months.

Britain’s biggesttelecommunications company has announced price hikes of over 5% for line rentaland almost 7.5% for the cost of calls, impacting customers all over thecountry.

The rise comes less than a yearafter news of price increases across most of BT’s services in July 2015 andmeans that the majority of BT’s 7.9 million broadband customers will have topay approximately £43 more a year.

The telecomsgiant has written to customers informing them of the hike and giving them thechance to escape their contract penalty-free, under new laws introduced by theregulator last year. In order to take advantage of this get-out-free option,customers must cancel their contract within 30 days of receiving the letter.

BT customerswho want to switch providers will have a 14-day notice period but those whohave paid upfront for their BT package will have to wait until the end of theyear to receive their refund.

A ‘sneaky’catch in the small print of BT’s basic broadband deal has also been uncoveredthis week. The clause, buried in BT’s Terms and Conditions, means somecustomers will be hit with a 33% price hike after one year, rising from £13 to£20. On top of this, there is a monthly charge of £18.99 for line rental.

BT’s tacticsmake it incredibly difficult for customers to work out the cheapest option forbroadband packages. Low cost, attention grabbing offers often last between sixand twelve months, and many customers don’t look at the small print to decipherexact costs thereafter. 

The industrywatchdog, Ofcom, now forces providers to let customers walk away from theircontracts if they don’t deliver what is promised, such as a change in price orfaulty connections.

However, ifthe price increase is stated in the terms and conditions, customers will not beallowed to walk away with no penalty fines.

When lookingfor a broadband supplier, it is always advisable to shop around for the bestdeal. BT is one of the most expensive packages and it is advisable forcustomers to look for more cost-effective alternatives, or to haggle the price.We also recommend always looking at the small print before signing a contract,especially in light of these recent discoveries.

A spokesman for BT told This is Money: ‘We support the aimof the ASA to make things clear for customers and will adopt the new rules theyhave outlined.

‘We follow the current rules on advertising and always tryto ensure our customers know exactly what they’re getting for their money.

‘Our broadband pricing is clear and we give our customerspersonalised speed estimates before they buy.’