@taedian1Check the contract you have with Plusnet and consider the following...
Plusnet are very unlikely to be in breach of contract or consumer law by withdrawing the free email service, provided they give proper notice (which they appear to be doing by giving a very long 2-year transition) for Plusnet customers before being charged
However, you may have rights to leave your broadband contract without penalty if Plusnet categorises the removal of free email as a “change that is not exclusively to your benefit” under clause 18.6, and if the email service is considered part of your “service” or part of a “package”.
But:
✔ Most ISPs treat email as a non-core, free additional service, and
✔ Clause 17.1.2 explicitly says free features can be withdrawn when the agreement ends, and
✔ Clause 18.1 gives Plusnet very broad variation powers, and
✔ Clause 18.5.3 says that changes to additional, non-package, non-core extras do not give termination rights unless they cause “material disadvantage”.
So in practice, Plusnet are on solid legal ground.
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Detailed analysis
1. Is email considered part of your contracted “core service”?
Plusnet’s Standard Terms define:
Broadband, phone, etc. through their specific Service Terms.
“Features or services that are provided for free with or as part of the service(s)” (17.1.2).
In consumer telecoms, free email is treated industry-wide as an “additional service”, not a core part of the purchased broadband service.
And you are not paying separately for it, so it isn’t a contractual consideration.
This matters because:
If it’s core → change must allow penalty-free exit.
If it’s an add-on → they can usually withdraw it.
Your contract clearly positions email as an ancillary feature.
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2. Variation clause – does the contract allow Plusnet to change or withdraw services?
Yes — and the clause is very broad.
Clause 18.1 allows them to change:
the service
the terms
the price
in response to technology, business, cost, structure, law, etc.
This is a permitted variation clause, and provided it is clear and transparent (which it is), the Consumer Rights Act 2015 allows it.
Clause 18.5.3 is crucial:
> “a change to an additional service that is not part of a package or an add-on and does not cause you any material disadvantage”
They are only required to notify you; they do not have to allow penalty-free cancellation.
Since email is:
free
not a paid add-on
not a package component
not essential for broadband delivery
—it falls squarely into this clause.
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3. Do you get a right to leave the contract without penalty?
Clause 18.6 sets out the limited cases where you can leave without penalty.
These include:
price increases on the core service
changes not exclusively to your benefit that relate to the core service or a package component
changes to terms that adversely affect you in relation to the core service
But free email is not the core service.
And email does not appear in your broadband “package terms”.
Therefore:
The removal of free email is not the kind of change that triggers 18.6 termination rights.
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4. Clause 17.1.2 – expressly allows withdrawal of free services
This clause states:
> “any features or services that are provided for free… will end on the same day as our agreement ends.”
This establishes explicitly that free features are outside the durable obligations of the contract.
While this clause refers to termination, it supports the general argument that free services are not contractually guaranteed, and can be removed or changed without breaching the agreement.
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5. Ofcom rules – is this a “material detriment”?
Ofcom considers a change “materially detrimental” if it affects the paid core service, such as:
price rises above agreed indexation
data caps
speed reductions
line rental changes
charges for mandatory equipment
Ofcom has never treated ISP-provided free email as a core service.
Virgin, BT, TalkTalk and others have all withdrawn or charged for email services over the last decade without being sanctioned.
So:
➡ Plusnet’s change is not a regulatory breach.
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6. Consumer Rights Act 2015 – is the variation fair?
A variation term must be:
transparent
not create a significant imbalance to consumer detriment
Plusnet’s clause 18 is clear, broad, and typical for telecoms contracts.
Also, Plusnet are giving two years’ notice, which is far more generous than the legal minimum (30 days).
Therefore:
➡ The variation term is likely fair and enforceable.
➡ The removal of free email is unlikely to be an “unfair term” under the CRA 2015.
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🧾 Final legal position imho
NOT a breach of contract:
✔ Variation clause permits service modifications
✔ Email is not core to the broadband service
✔ Withdrawal of a free, non-contractual extra is permissible
✔ Adequate notice (far beyond required minimum)
NOT a breach of consumer law:
✔ CRA 2015 fairness test is met
✔ Ofcom does not require penalty-free exit
✔ No misrepresentation unless Plusnet explicitly promised “email for life”
HTH
You can check out but you can never leave ( easily)
