EE mobile customers will see their bills rise by 4.1 per cent from next month.

This will mean a customer paying £40 per month will see their bill increase by £1.64 a month, or almost £20 per year.

The rise affects pay monthly mobile and mobile broadband customers who joined or upgraded since March 29 2014.

EE has said it is increasing its costs in line with December's Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation figure from March 30.

The mobile firm is allowed to impose a mid-contract price rise because of a clause in their terms and conditions that warns customers about possible price increases in line with inflation.

Those who are unhappy with the rise and are outside the minimum term of their contract are allowed to leave for free.

However, those who aren't may have to pay a fee to change provider.

A spokesperson from EE told The Sun: “We go further every day to provide our customers with the UK’s best mobile network and great customer service, with 4G coverage in more places than any other operator.

"Like many service providers, our Pay Monthly plans increase by RPI annually, and this year customers on our most popular plan will typically see an increase of 85p a month.

"We’re currently contacting our customers to remind them this will take effect from 30th March 2018.”