Times Newspapers Ltd Reviews 

1,070
TrustScore 1 out of 5

1.1

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Review summary

Created with AI, based on recent reviews

Looking at 158 reviews, most reviewers were let down by their experience overall. Consumers frequently experienced unexpected charges after promotional trial periods ended, noting that monthly payments were automatically taken from accounts without any advance notification or warning. Reviewers expressed deep frustration regarding hidden fees and restrictive terms that made managing ongoing financial commitments extremely difficult. Some reviewers were not happy with the complicated cancellation process, which forces customers to navigate lengthy phone queues instead of allowing simple online changes. People additionally described unhelpful customer service interactions, extended waiting times on helplines, and repeated refusals when requesting refunds for unwanted subscription renewals.

What people talk about most

Subscription

Customers consistently note negative experiences with subscription trials, often finding themselves... See more

Cancellation

Reviewers highlight negative aspects of cancellation, describing the process as a frustrating and archaic... See more

Customer service

People report overwhelmingly negative experiences with customer service, highlighting long hold times,... See more

Payment

Clients share negative opinions on payment, reporting frustration over unexpected charges after trial periods... See more

Customer communications

Reviewers mention negative feedback about contact and express widespread frustration regarding the inability... See more

Reviews shaping this summary

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Having signed up for an offer of £99.00 for a 1 year subscription, which I was happy with, I now find that I have been charged £30.00 as the first monthly payment of an ongoing subscription, which I d... See more

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Woeful customer service. 4 times I've contacted them, 3 times on chat funcrion, get left hanging for 35 minutes and then drops off. Then get fobbed off with non answers. Called customer service and my... See more

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Joining the chorus of other reviewers here. Fan of the paper but the practices employed when it comes to subscription renewal options are underhand. I agreed a 12 month package to then be auto renewed... See more

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Can't believe a national newspaper can get away with this. They know that no one would knowingly sign up to pay them £30 A MONTH !!! So they rely on people expecting reasonable charging and not readi... See more


Company details

  1. Newspaper Publisher

Written by the company

Thetimes.co.uk hosts the digital edition of The Times, Britain’s oldest national daily newspaper, and its sister title The Sunday Times. The Times was founded in 1785 by the editor and publisher John Walter I, “to record the principal occurrences of the times” for the service of the public. It was called the Daily Universal Register for the first three years, until it rebranded as The Times in 1788 – the first newspaper in the world to use the Times name. In his first edition, John Walter I explained that “like a well-covered table, it should contain something suited to every palate” including politics, foreign affairs, matters of trade, legal trials, advertisements and “amusements”. In its tone and political neutrality, Walter reserved the right of the newspaper “to censure or applaud either [political party]” and to cover contending issues with respectful “fair argument”. More than 200 years on, these founding principles hold true today. The Times has supported both New Labour and the Conservatives in recent times and supported Remain in the 2016 EU referendum. The titles are currently the biggest selling quality print newspapers in the UK and in 2018 The Times was named Britain’s most trusted national newspaper by the Reuters Institute for Journalism at Oxford University. In 2019 The Times and The Sunday Times won the Daily and Sunday newspaper of the year categories at the British Press Awards among several other prizes for their writing, reporting, investigations and campaigns. Both papers are committed to driving digital innovation in all areas of their world-class journalism.


Contact info

1.1

Bad

TrustScore 1 out of 5

1K reviews

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No recent history of asking for reviews

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1.1

All reviews

(1,070)

155 reviews in the last 12 months

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Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Misleading £1 offer - Total con

I signed up with The Times to read one article for £1, thinking it was a simple one off payment or short trial. What I didn’t realise, and what wasn’t made clear enough, was that it automatically turned into a full paid subscription at £30 a few months later. There was no reminder or email notification before the payment was taken from my PayPal account, and I only found out after the money had gone. When I contacted customer service, they confirmed I hadn’t even used the service since the initial article, yet they still refused a refund. The whole setup is misleading and unfair. A company as reputable as The Times shouldn’t rely on confusing small print and automatic renewals without proper notice. This feels like A TOTAL CON! Reading other reviews, it is clear that I am not the only one caught out by this. It seems to be happening to many people, which makes it feel even more unfair and deliberate.

24 October 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 3 out of 5 stars

It's ok

It's ok, but be prepared that the news items and articles are padded out with old material.
Makes a nonsense of the word "news".

25 October 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Very difficult to cancel this…

Very difficult to cancel this subscription. I had not realized that I had taken up the offer of £1 for 3 months then £25.99 was taken from my bank account last week. This was put through on a card number that had expired and was changed. I contacted my bank when I saw it was pending and they could not cancel it and advised me to go through to the times. I emailed them straight away and got a response that was irrelevant. Have called 5 times since and told today they can’t refund me and I have to cancel separately. I did this after holding on for so long . I am a pensioner and have a limited amount to live on each month. They said they couldn’t give me a refund even though I contacted them whilst it was pending. Good job I cancelled it they would take £25.99 every month to read this online. I didn’t even read it as I thought I had no subscription. Please avoid these offers. They do not remind you before they take this money and I think this is exactly what they expect to achieve people thinking the subscription expired only to be shocked when the money goes out of their bank account

15 October 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

If I could give 0 stars I would

If I could give 0 stars I would. After paying £1 a month for 12 months The Times then automatically without any notice started taking £10 a month from my account. I called on the day it changed and they would not refund the money it had taken. There was no notice the would change the amount they took. Awful customer services from an ethically bankrupt company. I will never do business with them again.

25 October 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Horrible experience

Horrible experience
Very difficult to unsubscribe and they wouldn’t refund me when it was actually their fault!!!!
Also very Overpriced…….not value for money

24 October 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Dodgy business practice

Cannot believe there is no way to cancel subscription online, and they won't issue a refund if you forget to cancel your subscription which they are banking on that. Horrendous experience overall I would recommend to stay away from the Times.

15 October 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Happy to take money online, not so happy to do cancellations online

Echoing others to say that in this day and age requiring people to cancel a subscription by calling (wheras they are MORE than happy for people to purchase a digital subscription online) and then not offering any courtesy communications to say that a trial is ending and that people are now into full payment (leaving me £30 out of pocket for a subscription I barely used). It screams dodgy gym practices from days of yore, or the type of stunts Virgin and Sky used to pull. Even expressing my dissatisfaction with both these things on the phone, the person putting through my cancellation was still trying to upsell to me. Ridiculous.

21 October 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Avoid at all costs

Avoid at all costs. Very difficult to cancel subscription - have to call them and person on the phone asks a lot of questions and talks you through a lot of unnecessary offers. Should be a cancellation button on the website itself.

11 October 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 3 out of 5 stars

Declining quality of journalism

I have subscribed to the Times digital for 4 years now. Successfully negotiated down to an annual fee of £89,which has risen slightly. However, I have found the quality of journalism decreasing so decided to cancel my subscription. Having to phone to cancel is annoying, but I avoided any chat from the rep by simply stating their journalism is appalling and on a level of the Daily Mail.

3 October 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Never again

Never again. One hour to cancel and even then saying payments will continue for another year on an agreement I wasn’t aware I’d signed up for.

I would never have dreamt of first checking The Times on Trustpilot. I had the impression, as I am sure almost everyone else had, that it was a thoroughly reputable business. But look at the masses of negative reviews. Something is seriously wrong with management when the word scam appears in comment after comment. What use are a newspaper and its journalists if readers desert it through the dreadful antics of its circulation department? The bottom line is most of us here will never return as readers. Gone for good.

6 October 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Lord help me

Lord help me their cancellation policy is beyond horrific. I would have resubscribed but they have lost a subscriber for life now.

6 October 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

They steal from subscribers!

News UK steals from subscribers! They take a £10 monthly charge after the trial period has ended, even when the subscriber has cancelled the subscription well before the end of the trial period. Their response to customer emails is dishonest.

9 September 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Absolutely unacceptable that a…

Absolutely unacceptable that a newspaper like this forces you to call a number to cancel your subscription. If you can join online then you should be able to leave online too.
I had to interrupt the call handler twice to stop her selling me "packages" and "deals".

Also unacceptable that the email informing us of a 25% increase in subscription does not come with a link to cancel.

8 September 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Told them to cancel and they still did not

I said on live chat, I want to cancel. They told me I had to call them. I could not call them because I was aboard and now I am changed again. It is disgusting that they keep charging for a service you tell them you want to cancel, and they won't let you.

1 August 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Fleecing customers

No follow up email to say we will now take £25.99 after your £1 trial for 3 months which I’m sure I cancelled. Login didn’t work. Customers service declined to take my call asking for a refund. Sharp practices indeed. What a thoroughly unpleasant way to treat people.

21 August 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Sharp practices

Sharp practices, can only cancel through telephone with endless options. So dated, think this is the final death nell for newspapers. Steer clear and go on Youtube.

20 August 2025
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Poor app updates Camcellations

Last update to app has been a nightmare. Unable to read comments on articles and puzzles section keeps crashing.
If you want to cancel you have to phone. I would have thought since the subscription was done on
Line that would be the way to cancel but apparently not. Get it sorted out Times
Would give a minus 5 star

19 August 2025
Unprompted review

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