Caught in a Free-Trial Subscription Trap? How to Cancel and Get Refunds (UK)

"Free trial — just pay postage." Then the charges start, and cancelling feels impossible. These subscription traps rely on confusion, but UK rules give you ways out and money back. Here is how.

What the rules require of them

Under consumer protection law, a trader must make the key terms clear before you sign up — including that the trial rolls into a paid subscription, how much it costs, and how to cancel. Burying that in tiny print or pre-ticked boxes can make the practice an unfair or misleading commercial practice, and payments taken without clear consent are challengeable.

Your cancellation rights

• For most things bought online, you have a 14-day cancellation right under the Consumer Contracts Regulations.
• You can cancel a continuous payment authority (a recurring card charge) directly with your bank — they must stop it when you ask, even if the trader makes it hard.
• If you were charged after an unclear "free trial", you can dispute the charges as taken without proper consent.

How to stop the charges and claim back

1. Tell the trader in writing you are cancelling and want a refund of charges taken without clear agreement.
2. Tell your bank to cancel the continuous payment authority, and ask about a chargeback for recent payments (or Section 75 if a credit card and over £100).
3. Report the trader to Trading Standards (via Citizens Advice) if the trial was misleading.

A cancellation & refund letter template

Dear [Company],

Re: Subscription [reference] — cancellation and refund

I signed up for a "free trial" on [date] and was not clearly told it would become
a paid subscription of £[amount]. I am cancelling with immediate effect and
withdrawing any authority to take further payments. Please refund the charges
taken on [dates], as they were taken without my clear, informed consent.

If you do not, I will instruct my bank to cancel the payment authority, pursue a
chargeback, and report the matter to Trading Standards.

Yours faithfully,
[Your name and contact details]

Move fast: cancel the payment authority at your bank so the charges stop today, then pursue the refund. Banks must act on a cancelled continuous payment authority regardless of what the trader says.