Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department have made of the potential impacts of a 14-day cooling off period for all online subscriptions on the number of people that cancel their subscription after visiting a site run by a charity in a 14-day period.

The requirement for a 14 day cooling off period for distance contracts is an existing requirement under the Consumer Contract Regulations 2013. The government has consulted on the implementation of the subscriptions regime in the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Act 2024. The consultation received over 70 responses including 15 from charitable organisations, and the government is engaging closely with the sector to understand the impacts on both consumers and these bodies.

The impact assessment for the subscriptions chapter in the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Act can be found here: Subscription traps: annex 2 impact assessment. Together, the subscription measures are anticipated to provide £400m of consumer benefits per year and the estimated net direct cost to businesses is £171m per year. Sector-specific analysis has not been conducted.