Hihi Price Increases: Why Trustpilot Says Costs Keep Rising

"10x the Quoted Monthly Price"

It is one of the most-repeated complaints on uk.trustpilot.com/review/hihi.co.uk. Customers say they were quoted one number at the sales stage, and a very different number landed on the bill. Sometimes on the first bill. Sometimes a year in. Sometimes only when discounts rolled off or price-rise clauses kicked in.

We are Compare The Networks, an OFCOM-regulated business telecoms comparison service. This article breaks down the components of a Hihi bill, the places where prices tend to rise, and the real total cost over the full 7-year lease.

The Anatomy of a Hihi Bill

Most Trustpilot reviewers who complain about pricing describe a bill that has many more line items than they expected at the point of sale. A typical Hihi deployment can include:

Monthly service charge — the cloud telephony platform
Handset finance lease — usually a separate line (or separate bill) from Propel / BNP Paribas, running 7 years
Per-extension / per-user fees
Line rental or "number rental" per DDI
Support / maintenance fees — sometimes bundled, sometimes separate
Call charges — if you are not on an all-inclusive tariff
Installation and commissioning — one-off but sometimes amortised
Admin / system fees

A £89/month "headline" can balloon to £400-£800/month once every line item is in. Multiply by 84 months and the full-term cost is often five figures beyond what the customer thought they were agreeing to.

See Hihi contract problems for the full breakdown of how the bill is constructed.

Where Prices Actually Rise

There are several distinct mechanisms by which a Hihi bill goes up. Trustpilot reviewers typically describe experiencing more than one of them over the life of the contract.

1. Intro Discounts Rolling Off

If you were sold a "first 12 months at a reduced rate" deal, month 13 hits and the real price arrives. Customers describe 20-50% jumps.

2. Annual Contractual Price Rises

Most UK telecoms providers now apply annual price rises. As of January 2025, OFCOM banned CPI/RPI-linked rises on consumer contracts and the industry standard is moving to fixed £-and-pence increases (e.g. £2.50 + VAT per line per month, every April). CTN contracts are technically B2B so are exempt, but the practice has been followed.

Check your Hihi contract for the exact escalation clause. Trustpilot reviewers describe escalations they say were not clearly disclosed at signing.

3. Add-on Creep

Features that were "free for the first 6 months" start being charged. Extra users are added at the going rate, not the initial deal rate. "Premium support" switches from included to optional paid.

4. Call Charges on "Unlimited" That Is Not Actually Unlimited

Fair-use caps, excluded number ranges (non-geographic, international, premium rate), and per-minute charges once thresholds are hit. Trustpilot reviewers cite surprise call-cost bills in the hundreds of pounds.

5. Renewal Trap

At year 3 (or whenever your service contract ends), Hihi/4Com may offer a "better deal" that extends the term. The new deal often comes with a new 3 or 5 year service contract alongside the continuing 7-year handset lease — you have just added years without saving enough to justify them.

See Hihi sales tactics for the renewal-trap pattern.

The True 7-Year Cost

Do this calculation before you sign anything with Hihi. If you are already a customer, do it now.

The Formula

Total 7-year cost = (monthly service charge × 84) + (monthly handset lease × 84) + (all other monthly items × 84) + (estimated annual rises compounded over 7 years)

Worked Example

Quoted to a 5-user business:

Service: £99/month
Handset lease: £85/month
Line rental: £25/month
Support: "included"
Calls: "unlimited"

Year-one cost (best case as quoted): (99 + 85 + 25) × 12 = £2,508

Trustpilot reviewer reality in year two onwards can include:

Support appearing at £40/month
Call charges for non-geographic numbers: £60/month average
Annual price rise of £2.50/line = £12.50/month per annual rise
Admin / line rental creep: £15/month

Realistic year-2+ bill: around £325/month

7-year total: around £26,000, not £17,500

That is a £8,500 delta from the quoted figure — and it excludes any £27k exit fee if you try to leave.

Why the Quote Doesn't Match the Bill

A few structural reasons:

Sales Structure

The sales meeting focuses on the headline. Full cost-of-contract figures, when requested, are often summarised rather than itemised.

Multiple Contracts

The service contract, the finance lease and any maintenance agreement are separate documents. A customer who thinks "my Hihi contract" is one document may be shocked to find three.

Price Rises Buried in Small Print

Annual escalation clauses are legal — but if they were not flagged at sale, and the monthly number you thought you agreed to rises every April, that feels like a price increase because to the customer, it is.

Add-ons Default to On

"Premium support", "call recording", "advanced analytics" features can be switched on by default at install, with a charge-grace-period. When the grace period ends, the charge appears, and the customer assumed they were "included".

How to Protect Yourself — Before You Sign

Demand a total-cost-of-contract figure in writing, itemised, covering the full 7 years
Ask for every annual price rise in £ and pence, not as a formula
Ask which items are included and which are billable — in writing
Read the finance lease separately from the service agreement
Get a second quote. Our VoIP quote returns comparable pricing from suppliers on 24-month terms.

How to Fight Back — If You Are Already a Customer

If the bill does not match what you were quoted:

Email Hihi requesting a line-by-line reconciliation of the quoted price vs the bill
Request the sales call recording via GDPR Subject Access Request — you are entitled to it
If the gap is significant, treat it as potential misselling (Hihi misselling article)
Escalate to CISAS after 8 weeks if unresolved
Keep everything in writing. Do not accept verbal reconciliations.

Frequently Asked Questions

How often does Hihi increase prices?

Most UK business telecoms contracts (including Hihi's as described by Trustpilot reviewers) include an annual price escalation clause. The industry standard since January 2025 is fixed £-and-pence rises rather than CPI-linked, but check your specific contract. CTN B2B contracts use £2.50 + VAT/month fixed increases each April.

Why is my Hihi bill higher than I was quoted?

Common reasons according to 1-star Trustpilot reviews: intro discounts rolling off, add-ons that were "included" becoming billable, call charges outside of bundle, annual escalation clauses, and line items not mentioned at the sales stage. See our Hihi contract problems article for the full anatomy.

Can I refuse a Hihi price increase?

If the increase is clearly written into the contract, refusing to pay is a breach. You can dispute it formally via a written complaint, and if you believe it was not properly disclosed, via CISAS after 8 weeks.

What is the real 7-year cost of a Hihi contract?

It varies by deal, but the full cost typically exceeds the quoted monthly price × 84 by thousands of pounds once add-ons, call charges, price rises and separate line items are included. Do the maths before signing.

Is a CPI-linked Hihi price rise legal?

Consumer contracts cannot use CPI/RPI-linked rises from January 2025 onwards under OFCOM rules. Business contracts are technically exempt, but many providers have moved to fixed £-and-pence rises voluntarily. Check your specific contract clause.

Stop Paying a Rising Hihi Bill

Get a free VoIP quote — transparent total cost of contract, 24-month terms, fixed £-and-pence price increases only.

Or read more:

Nearly 20 years helping UK businesses. Over 1,000 verified reviews on Trustpilot. OFCOM-regulated. Free.

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About this article. Claims reported here are attributed to public reviews on Trustpilot and similar platforms. They represent the opinions of the reviewers cited, not statements of fact by Compare The Networks. Brands named may dispute these claims. If you are a brand representative who believes any content requires correction, please contact us.

Hihi Price Increases: Why Trustpilot Says Costs Keep Rising (2026)