The only problem with this logic is that unless you ban them, the networks would slowly move that way and you would have been left with no choice even if you wanted a shorter contract.

I remember when the 18month contracts first came out, generally they just existed for those who wanted to pay less per month, but slowly they became the norm with 12m contracts becoming prohibitively expensive. The same is happening now, the norm is moving away from 18m to 24m and the price point at 18m is becoming much higher.

good, i have to buy a new phone every 12 months cos i cant have the same phone for 24 months thats like ages!! android FTW

Someone has a gun to your head?

banning 3 year contracts is protecting the consumer from themselves.

i wonder if this has any implications for the adding part of your current contract on to your next one. i know a couple of kids that have had to have had the latest iPhone as soon as it came out and have been getting 24 months contracts + whatever was remaining on their current....

2 or 3 years is a long time. in that time you could move house or start dating. imagine being in a house with no signal for 3 years.

The only network I've seen to offer them was orange and for that it was a cheap nokia that's about £20 on pay as you go and then £5 or £10 a month depending on which tariff was taken. I can't imagine they got many takers

It's good the networks aren't allowed to move to 3 year contracts given their progressive phasing out of 12 month and now attempting to phase out 18 month contracts. The networks blame higher phone prices but an iPhone and the like isn't any more expensive to buy sim free than the latest nokia was 10 years ago. Least the networks always used to quote replacement costs of £400-£500 when trying to flog you insurance. If anything factoring inflation into account phones are actually less expensive now

Correct, but i hope they also ban 3 year conteracts for stuff like broadband and T.V, BT is doing 18 month contracts on their packages, if they can get away with it, they will go for 2 years.


i think 18 months is long enough to be honest and if even 2 years was banned, mobile phone service providers and ISPs for that matter would still do offers as they want 6to get customers.

I think a lot of it is fixed anyway, the difference between contracts from one phone supplier to another is pretty small.

My mate went to Orange broadband mobile phone his phone contract is for 3 years, but as you said it is a cheap phone and the contract cost him a fiver a month.

The internet is only 12 months I think.

I got a 2 year contract on my Vodafone mobile contract, i stuck with it now for another 21 months, I think i will go for another sim only after and keep the phone if it is still working at that time.

wow 3 years is a long time I can barely cope with a 2 year contract!

Good on ofcom to ban that before they all start to offer 3 year contracts and phase out 18 months.

it is a long time, 2 years is long enough, and with things changing like they do with people losing jobs.

I don't think any company need to do longer contracts than 12 months to be honest.