The short answer
If a provider (or someone selling for it) misled you or put you under unfair pressure, and that was a significant reason you signed up, the law gives you a right to redress. You can usually reject the contract and get money back if you act within 90 days, or keep the service and claim a discount of between 25% and 100%, and sometimes claim damages for extra losses too.
This guide is general information as of October 2026, not legal advice on your own case.
What counts as being mis-sold broadband
"Mis-sold" isn't a legal term in itself. For the rights in this guide, what matters is whether the trader used a prohibited practice. Since 6 April 2025 the definition comes from the 2024 Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCC Act for short): the seller must have used either a misleading action or an aggressive practice.
Misleading information
A misleading action is giving false or misleading information about the product, the trader or anything else relevant to your decision, including true information presented misleadingly. An overall presentation likely to deceive the average consumer counts too, even if each fact is accurate.
Citizens Advice's list of misleading selling includes wrong information about the service, wrong advice about what would suit you, telling you that you need extras, exaggerating what something can do, fake "reduced" prices, and hiding or obscuring important information. The last of those needs care: see the limits below.
With broadband, that could look like this (illustrations, not real cases):
- A sales agent calls the package "full fibre" when the order is for part-fibre that uses copper for the last stretch.
- You're told the contract is 12 months when it is actually 24.
- You're promised a home speed far above the estimate the provider later records for your line.
- You're told you must add a TV box or Wi-Fi booster when you didn't need to.
Pressure selling
An aggressive practice uses harassment, coercion or undue influence. In deciding whether a sale crossed that line, the law looks at when and where you were approached, whether the seller used threats or abusive language or behaviour, whether they took advantage of a vulnerability, whether they threatened something they had no legal power to do, and whether they made using your rights onerous, for example by making cancelling very difficult.
If the pressure happened at your front door or on an unexpected call, our guide to doorstep and phone broadband sales covers checking a seller is genuine and stopping unwanted calls.
Four limits to know about
- It has to have mattered to you. The practice must have been a significant factor in your own decision to sign up or pay.
- It must be the kind of thing that sways people generally. It must also be likely to cause the average consumer to take a decision they wouldn't otherwise have taken (section 225(4)(a) of the DMCC Act, applied by the 2008 Regulations). A slip that wouldn't have changed most people's minds is unlikely to qualify.
- Leaving something out isn't enough on its own. "Misleading omissions" don't give you these personal rights. Because a deceptive overall presentation is a misleading action under section 226 of the DMCC Act, in our reading hidden or obscured information may still count if it makes the offer as a whole likely to deceive, but we found no official guidance or court decision saying so. So build your complaint around what you were told and how the deal was presented overall.
- Credit is mostly treated differently. Regulated financial services are excluded, but a "restricted-use" credit agreement, meaning credit that finances a particular purchase from the lender or from another supplier, can still be covered (regulation 27D(2)). As a hypothetical example, that could apply if a provider arranged finance for you to buy its equipment. A complaint about a mis-sold credit agreement goes to the Financial Ombudsman Service; the Communications Ombudsman says it falls outside its remit.
If your complaint is really about an advert you saw rather than what a seller told you, our guide to the rules broadband adverts must follow explains what has to be shown and who to report a misleading advert to.
Which law protects you (checked 14 October 2026)
The 2008 Regulations still give you your rights. Unwinding, the discount and damages come from Part 4A of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. The DMCC Act revoked those Regulations on 6 April 2025, but its section 252 keeps Part 4A in force until the first regulations under section 233 take effect. On 14 October 2026 legislation.gov.uk still showed the Act's replacement rights (section 232) as not in force, and we found no section 233 regulations. So Part 4A is the law to cite, with "prohibited practice" now defined by the DMCC Act.
What you were told can become part of your contract. Under section 50 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015, anything the provider, or someone acting for it, said or wrote about the service is a contract term if you took it into account when signing up, unless it was qualified at the time. If the service doesn't match, you can ask for it to be performed properly or for a price reduction, alongside remedies such as damages, but you can't be paid twice for the same loss.
Your Contract Summary is part of the contract too. Ofcom's rules (General Condition C1, as summarised by the internet and telecoms law firm decoded.legal) say you must get a free Contract Summary first, your contract starts only after you've expressly agreed to it with the summary in hand, and the summary then forms part of the contract, which can't be changed unless you both expressly agree. Compare it line by line with what you were told; our walk-through of each line of a broadband contract summary helps.
Your three remedies: unwind, discount or damages
You either unwind the contract or claim a discount, not both. Damages can be claimed alongside either.
Remedy | What it does | Catches |
|---|---|---|
Unwind (reject the contract) | The contract ends, you're both released from it and the provider must refund you | Only within 90 days; the refund can be reduced after a month of service |
Discount | 25%, 50%, 75% or 100% back on what you've paid and/or off payments still due | Only if you haven't unwound; once you claim it, you can't then unwind for the same practice |
Damages | Compensation for foreseeable financial loss, or for alarm, distress, inconvenience or discomfort | The provider escapes it if it proves a genuine mistake or similar cause despite all reasonable precautions |
Unwinding the contract within 90 days
To unwind, tell the provider clearly, in writing, that you reject the service. The 90 days begin with the later of the day you entered the contract and the day the service started. You must reject while the service is still being provided.
Broadband is a continuous service, so there's a catch. If more than a month passed between the service starting and your rejection, the provider can reduce your refund by the market price of what you received. That deduction shouldn't be made if it isn't appropriate given how the seller behaved and the impact on you. In practice: reject within the first month of service for a full refund; after that, the refund can be reduced.
Unwinding ends your service, so line up a replacement first. You can compare deals at your postcode while your complaint is under way.
Under Ofcom's One Touch Switch process you contact only the new provider, and your current provider must send you switching information, including any early termination charge. If it lists an exit charge you believe the mis-sale means you shouldn't pay, challenge it in your complaint.
Claiming a discount
If you'd rather keep the service, or you're past the 90 days, you can claim a discount: money back on payments made, a cut to payments still due, or both. A cut to future payments covers only as many of them as is appropriate given how serious the practice was, so it may not run to the end of your contract. The bands are:
- 25% if it was more than minor
- 50% if it was significant
- 75% if it was serious
- 100% if it was very serious
Seriousness depends on the behaviour of whoever used the practice, the impact on you and the time since. We found no official guidance on grading broadband cases, so nobody can promise you a band. Pick the one you think is fair, explain why, and show which payments and amounts you're claiming.
Claiming damages
Damages cover financial loss, or alarm, distress, physical inconvenience or discomfort, that you wouldn't have suffered without the practice. The loss must have been reasonably foreseeable, and damages don't cover the difference between the market price and the price you agreed. Citizens Advice says reasonable extra expenses count too, so keep receipts.
The provider avoids damages only if it proves the practice was down to a mistake, someone else's information or default, an accident or a cause beyond its control, and that it took all reasonable precautions and due diligence. That defence doesn't affect unwinding or a discount.
Quicker routes that may apply first
These routes don't need you to prove you were misled, so check them first.
You signed up in the last 14 days
If you ordered by phone, online or from a seller at your door, you normally have a legal right to cancel within 14 days without giving any reason. For a service, the legal minimum ends 14 days after the contract was made. Where the service began inside those 14 days because you asked for it to, you can be charged for the part you used. Shop sign-ups don't carry this right. Our broadband cooling-off guide covers how each major provider counts the days.
The problem is your speed
Under Ofcom's voluntary broadband speeds code, a provider that has signed up must let you leave without an exit fee if your speed drops below the minimum guaranteed speed you were given and it can't fix this within 30 days. If your speed is above that minimum but below what you were told, Citizens Advice suggests asking for a discount. If your provider hasn't signed up to the code, it doesn't have to act, but Citizens Advice says you can still ask for a discount and, if you leave, ask for the exit fee to be waived. Our minimum speed guarantees guide explains the figures you should have had; record evidence with our broadband speed test.
Step by step: putting your claim together
- Write down what you were told, now. Note the date, the channel (call, chat, shop, website, doorstep), the seller's name and their words, as closely as you can.
- Gather the paperwork. Contract Summary, order confirmation, welcome email, first bills, texts and chat transcripts. Highlight every difference from your notes.
- Capture the website. If you signed up online, screenshot the product page before it changes.
- Ask for the call recording. If the promise was made on the phone, use a subject access request (your data-protection right to a copy of the information an organisation holds on you) to ask for the sales-call recording. The Information Commissioner's Office says the provider normally has one month to reply; if your request is complex, or you've made several, it can take up to two months more, but it must tell you within the first month and explain why. CISAS warns that providers may not send recordings to it themselves, and suggests holding off on a case until you have them.
- Decide what you want. Unwind (within 90 days) or a discount, plus any damages. Work out the amount and show your workings.
- Complain in writing. Say it's a formal complaint, ask for a reference number and keep a dated copy. The ombudsman wait runs from when you first told the provider about the problem, so keep a note of that date, and of any calls or chats about it since.
Citizens Advice suggests citing the 2008 Regulations and showing the misleading information. Wording you could adapt (an example to edit, not a real case): "Please log this as a formal complaint under your complaints code. On [date] your [sales adviser / website / shop] told me [what you were told]. My Contract Summary shows [what it actually says]. This was a significant factor in my decision to sign up. Under Part 4A of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, I am [rejecting the contract and asking for a refund / claiming a discount of [25/50/75/100]% because [reason]]. I am also claiming [£ amount] for [expense or distress], worked out as follows: [workings]. Please reply within [14] days."
If the provider says no
Our guide to complaining about your broadband provider covers the full process. In short:
- Ombudsman (ADR). Every provider uses CISAS or the Communications Ombudsman for free alternative dispute resolution (ADR); its complaints code tells you which. You can go to it once six weeks have passed since you first raised the problem (eight if that was before 8 April 2026), or at once with a deadlock letter. Once you have a deadlock letter, apply within 12 months: both schemes set that limit (CISAS allows longer only if you and the provider both agree). The Communications Ombudsman can award up to £10,000, and its decisions bind the provider only if you accept them; with CISAS you can accept or reject the decision.
- What the schemes may not look at. CISAS lists "the creative content and messaging of websites, advertisements, calls, emails, SMS or messages" among the things it can't help with, which may cover what a seller said on a sales call or in an email. Neither scheme says, in what we read, whether it rules on claims under the 2008 Regulations. If a scheme won't take your case, court remains open.
- Trading Standards and the CMA. Misleading or pressured selling can be reported to Trading Standards, with reports made through the Citizens Advice consumer service. They can investigate and prosecute but won't get your money back. Since April 2025 the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) can also rule on breaches itself, order redress and fine up to 10% of global turnover. See which body regulates what in UK broadband.
- Court. You can enforce Part 4A rights with a civil claim. In England and Wales you can claim in the county court online or by post. Fees depend on the amount (£35 for a claim up to £300, checked 14 October 2026), and help with fees may be available. The time limit in England and Wales is six years, as for a contract claim; Northern Ireland applies its own Limitation Order the same way. Scotland and Northern Ireland have different court processes.
Citizens Advice runs a free consumer helpline on 0808 223 1133; in Northern Ireland, contact Consumerline.
Card payments and Direct Debits
Upfront costs paid by card. Paid by credit card for equipment or an upfront charge? Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act may let you claim from the card provider, including for being misled, where one item cost over £100 and up to £30,000. With a debit card, or where Section 75 doesn't apply, you can ask for a chargeback. If your card provider refuses, the Financial Ombudsman Service can look at it.
Monthly Direct Debits. The Direct Debit Guarantee gives a full and immediate refund for payment errors, such as the wrong amount or date, but it doesn't affect your contract, so it isn't a way to dispute a mis-sale. Don't cancel the Direct Debit or stop paying while you argue your case: the Communications Ombudsman warns this can lead to a default on your credit file. Keep paying and claim the money back through your complaint.
Signing up again without being caught out
- Get promises in writing. Ask the seller to confirm by email or on the order anything that matters to you.
- Read the Contract Summary before you agree. Check speed, price changes, contract length and exit charges against what you were told.
- Compare on your own terms. Compare deals at your postcode, look for a lower bill on our cheap broadband deals page, or read up on each company in our broadband providers hub. A comparison partner supplies the deals; you sign up with the provider, not with us.
- Know the exit routes. Our rundown of when you can leave early without an exit fee lists when walking away costs nothing.
Mis-sold broadband FAQs
Can I cancel a broadband contract if I was mis-sold it?
Usually, yes, if false or misleading information or unfair pressure was a significant factor in your decision and would have swayed the average consumer. You can reject (unwind) the contract within 90 days for a refund, which can be reduced after more than a month of service. After 90 days you can claim a discount instead.
How long do I have to reject a mis-sold broadband contract?
You have 90 days, starting from the later of the day you entered the contract and the day the service began, as long as the service is still being provided. After that you can't unwind, but you can still claim a discount of 25%, 50%, 75% or 100%. A court claim in England and Wales generally has a six-year time limit.
Does it count as mis-selling if the salesperson made an honest mistake?
Yes. Citizens Advice says misleading selling still counts if the seller did it by mistake or had been misinformed, so you can still unwind or claim a discount. The provider may avoid paying damages if it proves the mistake happened despite all reasonable precautions and due diligence.
Do I still have rights if I signed up in a shop?
Yes. Citizens Advice says the rights to a refund or compensation for being misled or pressured apply wherever you bought, including in a shop. What a shop sign-up doesn't give you is the 14-day cooling-off right, which covers only phone, online and off-premises sales, such as on your doorstep.
What if I can't get a recording of the sales call?
Ask for it with a subject access request first. If the call wasn't recorded or nothing arrives, write down what you remember, including the date and the seller's name. CISAS says that if you've only spoken to the company, you can send a summary of those calls with your application. Your Contract Summary, order confirmation, texts and emails are evidence too.
Can the broadband ombudsman deal with a mis-selling complaint?
Possibly, but not always. CISAS says it can't help with the creative content and messaging of websites, adverts, calls, emails or texts, which may rule out a complaint resting on what a seller said, and the Communications Ombudsman sends mis-sold credit agreements to the Financial Ombudsman Service. Complain to your provider first, then apply to its scheme within 12 months of any deadlock letter; if it won't take the case, court remains open.
Has the DMCC Act changed my right to redress?
Not yet, as of October 2026. The DMCC Act revoked the 2008 Regulations on 6 April 2025 and now defines which practices count, but it keeps Part 4A, with its unwind, discount and damages rights, in force until regulations under section 233 take effect. We found none when we checked legislation.gov.uk on 14 October 2026.
