Retail Price Index

Everything you need to know about the RPI Increase

What is the Retail Price Index?

The Retail Price Index (RPI) is a measure of inflation, which is the rate at which prices for goods and services are rising. The RPI rate is published by the Office for National Statistics.

How does the RPI affect my iD Mobile plan?

Your monthly line rental cost will be adjusted each April by the RPI rate published in February. Price adjustments do not affect add-ons or additional charges.

For 2022, the RPI rate is +7.8%.

Does the 2022 RPI increase apply to me?

The RPI increase will apply if you've upgraded or purchased a new iD Mobile 24-month handset plan between the 1st of March 2020 and 1st of February 2022.

You'll also receive a text from us confirming the 7.8% increase, which will apply from your April bill.

RPI Price Increase Calculator

You can use our handy calculator below to estimate your new monthly cost.

Tell us what you're currently paying each month (excluding add-ons or additional charges), and we'll show your new estimated monthly cost from April 2022 onward.

Note: If you're on an iD plan purchased before 1 March 2020, your plan costs won't be affected by this years' RPI price increase.

For more info, please view iD Mobile’s terms and conditions (clause 12.23).

RPI FAQs

Why are you increasing prices?

Every year, the majority of mobile phone networks increase their prices for customers. Some do so at a standard rate, others a standard rate plus inflation.

At iD Mobile we increase prices yearly in line with inflation only. We use the Retail Price Index for this measure, and will be increasing prices for Pay Monthly handset customers by 7.8% from April 2022.

For the last two years iD Mobile have implemented the lowest price increase when compared to major networks (EE, Three, O2 and Vodafone) and this year only one network is raising their prices by a lower amount.

Despite this increase in monthly cost, iD Mobile customers will still benefit from fantastic value, with our handsets on average £12 a month cheaper vs major networks. They will also continue to receive Data Rollover, Roaming and 5G at no extra cost. The price increases also allows us to continue investing in our service, ensuring that we are constantly improving for over 1.1m iD Mobile customers.

Why is RPI (Inflation) so high this year?

The UK is currently experiencing high levels of inflation, with some metrics reaching their highest rates in 30 years.

According to ONS, the government agency responsible for measuring inflation in the UK, this continual rise in the level of inflation has been influenced by significant supply chain issues and rising energy costs. These issues, caused mostly by the pandemic, have resulted in the continuous rise in the cost of goods and services throughout the UK economy in 2021.

As RPI reflects the year-on-year difference in the price of goods and services for both companies and consumers, RPI has unfortunately increased over the past year, with the RPI figure reflecting this with an increase from 1.4% in 2021 to 7.8% in 2022.

How have you calculated the rate of increase on my plan?

We've used the RPI increase of 7.8% published in February 2022. This is a measure of the average change in prices for consumers across the country over the last 12 months.

What if I have a discount on my monthly plan?

If you have a discount, it won't change. The price increase is applied to your original price plan charge, and your discount is applied afterwards.

What happens if I upgrade to another plan?

You won't get an RPI price increase this year if you’ve upgraded to a new plan after the 1st of February 2022. However, an RPI adjustment will apply in 2023.

Can I cancel my iD plan?

We’d love you to stay but yes, you can cancel your plan by giving us 30 days' notice. Please note: you may need to pay an early termination charge if you cancel before the end of your contract. You can cancel your plan and check any possible early termination charges in the iD Mobile app.

How can I check my bill?

The RPI adjustment will appear on your April bill. To view your latest bill, sign in to the free iD Mobile App or visit My Account online, then go to 'Billing', 'Current month'.

If you need more information on how your bill works, check out our understanding your bill webpage.

I upgraded or purchased my iD plan before 1st March 2020. Will the price of my plan increase?

No. It'll stay the same.

How exactly does RPI work?

The RPI is a measure of inflation. The figure is based on hundreds of items we spend money on, and it tracks changes in the cost of these items over time. It combines around 180,000 price quotes for over 650 representative items in 150 different areas across the UK. This is known as the 'basket of goods' and is regularly updated to reflect changes in the things we buy. Examples include food, drinks, clothing, cinema tickets, furniture, cars, public transport, holidays, telecoms, electricity and water.

The published RPI rate between January 2012 and January 2022 has ranged from 0.7% to 7.8%.

The annual rate of inflation shows how much higher or lower prices are compared with the same month a year earlier. So if the inflation rate is 3% in January, for example, prices are 3% higher than they were 12 months earlier. Or, to look at it another way, we need to spend 3% more to buy the same things.

We compare this to the annual change recorded in the previous month to get an idea of whether price rises are getting bigger or smaller. If the annual rate has risen from 3% to 4% from one month to the next, prices are rising at a faster rate, if the rate has fallen - say from 3% to 2% - prices of the things we buy are still higher, but haven't increased by as much.

For further information, including RPI figures and publication dates, go to www.ons.gov.uk