PS23004 Drip pricing: Understanding prevalence - RAF115/2223

***** THIS IS AN AWARD NOTICE, NOT A CALL FOR COMPETITION *****

This procurement is being concluded following a mini competition under the Research & Insights DPS RM6126

Brief Description of Requirement

The aim of this work is to understand:

i. The prevalence of online and in-app drip pricing across the selected sectors in the UK for the most popular products or services purchased through these means ii. The types of dripped charges added and their proportion of the final price which may be used as a proxy for consumer harm. iii. How drip pricing strategies vary across the sectors examined, including how drip pricing interacts with the products, basket, price and purchase frequency

By answering these questions, the department will gain insight into how widespread the problem of online drip pricing in the UK is for the chosen sectors. It is not within the scope of this research to understand the prevalence of offline drip pricing.

The results of this analysis will be used to:

- Ensure future policy development is evidence based - Inform the development of any future CBA to help support policy decision-making, particularly in understanding the impacts various policy options may have on businesses and consumers - Act as baseline evidence for monitoring the effect of any regulatory changes, to assess the effectiveness of any future proposals