UK subscription contracts: the Government publishes the missing detail

Ten weeks. That is how long businesses may now have to get ready for the UK’s new subscription contracts regime. After months of uncertainty, the Government has filled in the blanks, laying two draft statutory instruments before Parliament on 19 October 2026 and publishing 77 pages of draft guidance covering cooling-off rights, refunds, reminder notices and “easy exit”. Most importantly, the regime is currently set to bite on new subscription contracts from 1 January 2027, significantly earlier than the “spring 2027” previously signalled.

Where are we now?

The subscription contracts regime in Part 4, Chapter 2 of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA) has received Royal Assent but is not yet in force (see our previous article). The Government has this week laid two draft affirmative statutory instruments: the Consumer Subscription Contracts (Cancellation and Information) Regulations 2026 (Subscription Regulations), comprising 41 regulations and a Schedule, and the Consequential Amendments Regulations 2026 (which make largely technical changes to ensure that existing legislation works alongside the new regime). Both are drafted to come into force on 1 January 2027 and will apply only to subscription contracts entered into on or after that date. The Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (DBIST) has also published extensive draft guidance (Guidance), to be finalised once the Regulations are made.

The DMCCA set the framework and this new package supplies some further details, particularly in relation to cooling-off rights. For in-scope contracts, the new rules will apply instead of the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 (CCRs). The CCRs continue to apply to other types of business-to-consumer contracts (subject to exclusions), including subscriptions entered into before 1 January 2027, as well as other relevant consumer protection legislation including the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and the DMCCA unfair commercial practices rules.

What will businesses actually have to do?

• Pre-contract information built into checkout. Traders must give the prescribed key pre-contract information together and separately from other information, and give or make available some more detailed information, known as full pre-contract information. The relevant requirements are extensive, and traders also need to consider the applicable requirements in terms of how the information must be provided. For example, online, consumers cannot be required to take any extra steps to read the key pre-contract information, except for the steps necessary to enter into the contract. In practice, that means that the key pre-contract information can’t be behind a link or dropdown, unless clicking that link or dropdown is necessary to sign up.
   
• Reminder notices. Reminders are required but the trigger for sending them depends on various factors. For example, for a subscription involving monthly payments, reminders should be sent  every six months. Reminders are also required before a concessionary period (such as a free trial or discounted period) ends. The Subscription Regulations include some new requirements:
   
  • Where a discount spans several payments, the reminder is tied to the first payment at the higher price (reg. 33).
  • Notices must be on a durable medium, clearly identifiable as reminders and more prominent than any accompanying information (reg. 34 and Guidance section 4.4). Non-retrievable push notifications and generic service emails are unlikely to suffice.
     
• Straightforward exit, including online. Consumers may end a subscription at any time (reg. 32), and without the process must be straightforward and not involve any steps that are not reasonably necessary. Where sign-up was online, exit must be available online; the Guidance states that offering only an email address is not enough. Retention offers are acceptable in principle but should not prolong exit, any feedback requests must be optional, and an end of contract notice must follow (within 24 hours for online exit, otherwise 3 working days).
   
• 14-day cooling-off periods. Consumers can cancel a subscription with immediate effect during an initial period and potentially one or more renewal periods, the latter after a trial or concessionary period ends or after each renewal onto a term of 12 months or more. If a trader fails to give the required cooling-off information or notice, the period is extended, potentially by up to 12 months (regs. 5 and 6). Such failure can therefore leave a cancellation right open for many months. It would also prevent a trader from deducting certain amounts from the refund due to the consumer (see below). For digital content subscriptions, the initial cooling-off right can be lost when supply only starts, but only if the consumer gives express consent to supply beginning and acknowledges such loss, and if the trader gives the consumer written confirmation of such consent and acknowledgment on a durable medium (reg. 7).
   
• Detailed refund and deduction rules. Regulations 11 to 22 govern refund entitlement when a consumer cancels during a cooling-off period, with specific rules for returnable, sealed, mixed, hired and perishable goods, services and digital content. If a consumer cancels during the initial cooling-off period, any ancillary contracts (including linked credit) are automatically cancelled (reg. 22). Where a consumer exercises a cooling-off right in relation to services, or a renewal cooling-off right in relation to digital content, a trader may retain a proportionate amount for the service or digital content supplied (regs. 19 and 20). However, this is subject to conditions, which include a requirement that the trader gave the required cooling-off information or notice. In line with existing law applicable to consumer contracts, refunds must be made without undue delay and within 14 days, using the original payment method unless the consumer expressly agrees otherwise (reg. 21).
   
• Cancellation for trader breach. Compliance with certain DMCCA requirements is an implied contractual term (s. 262 DMCCA). Where a trader breaches one of four “relevant” implied terms (relating to key pre-contract information, reminder notices, a reasonable reminder window and straightforward exit), the consumer has a right to cancel without penalty (s. 263 DMCCA), which must be exercised within 12 months (regs. 23 and 24). The Schedule to the Subscription Regulations also lists certain specific acts and omissions (such as missing key information, missed or incomplete reminders, or an unreasonable reminder window) – where the contract is cancelled for one of these, the consumer is entitled to a refund of payments from the relevant date until cancellation. For other acts and omissions which represent breach of the relevant implied term, the consumer is only entitled to a refund if the act or omission caused them to make a payment under the subscription that they would not have otherwise made (regs. 25 and 26). The refund may be reduced if the consumer unreasonably delays in cancelling (reg. 27). Separate rules govern overlapping cancellation rights: in essence, where the consumer could exercise multiple cancellation rights, a trader should apply the right which has the most beneficial outcome for the consumer. Procedural failures therefore carry specific consequences in addition to presenting a risk of regulatory enforcement.
   
• Renewal payment timing. Regulation 37 treats an auto-renewing contract as renewing on the first day of each contract period; terms fixing liability earlier are of no effect (s. 273(2) DMCCA).
   
• Exclusions. The Subscription Regulations make various changes to the list of excluded types of subscription contract in Schedule 22 to the DMCCA. A new exclusion covers subscriptions for cultural and heritage charity memberships. The medical prescription exclusion is narrowed so that it no longer covers optical appliances (for example, contact lenses and spectacles). Subscriptions for utilities, financial services, telecoms, gambling, childcare and micro-grocery businesses remain excluded.
   
• Enforcement. The CMA can enforce directly, with fines of up to £300,000 or 10% of annual global turnover, whichever is higher, and has been exercising its new powers aggressively. The CMA has issued fines totalling more than £12 million since the DMCCA came into force (see our articles on CMA enforcement and price discounting for more information on some of the initial fines). Enforcement by other regulators, such as Trading Standards, and consumer claims via the courts are also possible. 

Next steps and what businesses should do now

Both drafts must be approved by resolution of each House before they are made, and final guidance will follow. Around ten weeks remain until 1 January; any slippage in parliamentary approval could delay commencement. The detail may still change, although we do not expect substantial change. Businesses have a limited window of time if they want to try to influence the final guidance. 

Businesses should now finalise the necessary compliance changes, including in relation to sign-up, cancellation, notification and refund processes, and implement them from 1 January. Sufficient time should be allowed for making the necessary technical changes, legal review, and internal alignment. 

Businesses who might not be fully compliant by 1 January might find some comfort in a recent CMA blog post, where the CMA said that its initial focus will be on supporting businesses with compliance and that enforcement will focus on the most egregious conduct. In particular, we anticipate that the CMA will focus initial enforcement activity on material failures to provide required information on sign-up, send reminder notices, and non-compliant cancellation processes. However, the post warns businesses not to assume there will be a grace period for enforcement, so we recommend ensuring compliance by 1 January, or at least substantial compliance by that date, with full compliance to be achieved as soon as possible after. 

Article co-authored by Emily Spain, Trainee Solicitor.