Ecommpay has published a playbook on reducing failed subscription payments, which it says cost subscription businesses an average of 9% of revenue.

The payments company argues that billing-system problems are pushing some customers to cancel services they intended to keep. Its analysis found that 7% of recurring charges fail on the first attempt, while consumers are also reviewing their subscriptions more closely.

The report focuses on what Ecommpay calls “invisible retention” – payment recovery processes designed to stop avoidable failures from turning into lost subscribers. It says the issue often stems from expired card details, temporary lack of funds and network timeouts, rather than dissatisfaction with the product or service.

That matters as subscription businesses face tighter consumer protection rules in the UK. New rules under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act will require greater transparency, renewal reminders and simpler cancellation processes.

Ecommpay says its approach is intended to work alongside those rules, not replace them. Customers, it says, must continue to have visibility over subscriptions and the ability to cancel at any time.

Roy Blokker, Head of Strategic Sales at Ecommpay, said the industry has focused too heavily on winning customers while neglecting payment failures that can quietly erode revenue.

“Subscription businesses have spent years chasing acquisition, but many are failing to plug the quiet leak of failed payments,” Blokker said.

“It is, of course, right that consumers can cancel a subscription if they no longer want the product or service. But many do not leave because the product disappoints them. Sometimes they leave because the payment layer gives them a reason to reconsider.

“The next subscription growth advantage will not come from another discount or win-back campaign. It will come from payment infrastructure that keeps customers connected when billing fails in the background. We call this invisible retention.”

Four areas

The playbook identifies four areas that can improve payment recovery in recurring billing: automated retries, network tokenisation, Direct Debit and Variable Recurring Payments through open banking.

On retries, Ecommpay says merchants should move beyond fixed schedules and instead use decline-code analysis and salary-cycle data to time another payment attempt when success is more likely. Its retry system, it says, can recover 15% to 30% of transactions that fail initially before the customer needs to take manual action.

It also points to tokenisation as a way to reduce disruption when cards expire, are lost or are replaced. Merchants using its tokenised subscription system are seeing renewal success rates improve by as much as 3%, according to comparative merchant data cited by the company.

For higher-value or business-to-business subscriptions, Ecommpay makes the case for Direct Debit over cards. It says Bacs and SEPA Direct Debit can offer greater stability for recurring collections, with success rates above 95% when programmes are managed well, while also lowering processing costs on larger transactions.

The fourth option is Variable Recurring Payments, or VRPs, based on open banking. Ecommpay says these let customers authorise recurring payments within limits they set and manage through their banking app, while giving merchants immediate settlement and avoiding card expiry problems.

Consumer control

Ecommpay repeatedly refers to customer control in its analysis, reflecting the wider regulatory debate around subscriptions. It says payment recovery should not interfere with the right to cancel, but instead help ensure customers who want to continue are not lost because of avoidable technical or administrative issues.

That distinction is likely to become more important as policymakers and regulators scrutinise renewal practices and cancellation journeys. Businesses that depend on recurring revenue are under pressure to make subscription terms easier to understand and easier to exit.

Ecommpay was founded in London in 2012 and provides payment processing, acquiring and orchestration services. It offers card payments, open banking tools, recurring billing and Direct Debit products through a single application programming interface.

Its analysis suggests that, for subscription businesses, payment operations are becoming more closely tied to customer retention rather than serving only as a back-office function. Failed-payment handling, it argues, can determine whether a subscriber remains active or uses a billing prompt as a reason to review and cancel a service.

For merchants, that puts greater focus on how retries are timed, how stored payment details are maintained and whether alternatives to card billing should play a larger role in recurring payments. For customers, the aim is to avoid disruption while preserving “full visibility of their subscriptions and the ability to cancel at any time”.

The administrators from bk plus ltd have released an update after it was announced that John Lewis of Hungerford was in financial trouble.

In the update they explain why the bespoke kitchen and cabinet business has struggled and confirm details of the sale to Rebecca Taylor Associates Limited.

They said: “Andreas Arakapiotis and Simon Wall of bk plus were appointed Joint Administrators of John Lewis of Hungerford Limited on 7 July 2026.

READ MORE: UK jobs ‘lost’ as John Lewis firm collapses with £3.8m debts

“Unfortunately, given rise in costs of manufacturing and the continued cost of living crisis, trading conditions remain very tough and margins continued to be eroded.

“Following a sales process, parts of the business were sold via a pre-packaged administration sale safeguarding 22 jobs.

“The Joint Administrators are working with their appointed agents to maximise realisations in respect of the remaining assets for the benefit of creditors.

John Lewis of Hungerford in Hungerford (Image: Google Maps)

“The buyer was Rebecca Taylor Associates Limited, a company owned by the director of John Lewis of Hungerford Limited.

“Unfortunately, 21 people were made redundant.

“The sale was completed on the 7 July, immediately following the appointment of administrators.”

Founded in 1972 by John Lewis in Hungerford, Berkshire, the firm specialises in designing, kitchens and cabinetry for around the home.

Everything they make is crafted by hand and is bespoke designed to the client, with its work recognised by the industry most recently by a highly commended for the Ideal Home’s Kitchen of the Year Award 2026.

John Lewis of Hungerford in Fulham (Image: Google Maps)

It has a number of showrooms, including in Hungerford, Fulham, Cobham and Grove Business Park near Wantage, where it is officially based.

One in Winchester closed recently.

In its latest accounts, to June 30, 2025, it listed creditors falling within a year of £3.8 million a rise of around £1 million from the year before.

In addition it said its average number of employees was 52 down from 64 the year previous.

In the directors’ report for those accounts, the challenges facing John Lewis of Hungerford were acknowledged.

The directors said: “The trading environment remains difficult, with fragile consumer confidence and ongoing inflationary and interest rate pressures.”

John Lewis of Hungerford in Grove (Image: Google Maps)

In addition, they said that the business is a ‘going concern’ which means they expected to stay afloat for the next 12 months.

READ MORE: More than 100 UK jobs lost as Ben Stokes-backed cricket bars close

They added: “The forecasts indicate that the company has adequate financial resources to continue operations for at least 12 months from the date of approval of these financial statements.

“While the broader economic environment remains sensitive to interest rate movements and consumer confidence, the current trajectory indicates a recovery in the company’s key markets.”

However, it seems the year did not go as expected, as it fell into administration earlier this month.

SOFIAH NICHOLE SALIVIO

News Editor

Virgin Media O2 has joined the Media In Service of Nature movement and will direct part of its advertising spend to UK nature recovery projects.

The move makes Virgin Media O2 a strategic partner in the industry initiative, which aims to channel media and marketing budgets into environmental restoration. Media In Service of Nature was launched by Ecologi, giffgaff and MG OMD and is seeking to raise £200 million for UK-based projects.

The scheme calls on brands and media buyers to allocate a minimum share of campaign spending to projects that restore biodiversity and help communities cope with the effects of climate change. In Virgin Media O2’s case, the programmes it backs will focus on biodiversity restoration, nature recovery and climate resilience in the UK.

Its first funded projects have yet to be named, with details due later this year.

The decision extends Virgin Media O2’s environmental agenda beyond its own operations and supply chain. It follows the launch of the group’s Green Transition Plan and sits within its wider Responsible Business Plan, which covers environmental and social targets across the business.

Businesses across sectors have faced growing pressure to show how they will respond not only to emissions targets but also to biodiversity loss, which has moved higher up corporate risk and reporting agendas. Advertising budgets have emerged as one area where companies can redirect a small proportion of spending towards external environmental projects, rather than limiting action to operational changes.

Media In Service of Nature is built around that idea, encouraging the media industry to put at least 0.1% of marketing and campaign expenditure into projects intended to improve climate resilience and support habitat restoration in the UK.

The latest move also aligns with Virgin Media O2’s membership of the Conscious Advertising Network, where it has signed up to ethical and responsible marketing principles. That places the decision within a broader debate over how advertising and media buying can contribute to environmental goals.

Simon Valcarcel, Marketing Director, Virgin Media O2, said: “We want to use the power of our brand to have a positive impact on the planet and the communities we serve.

“That’s why we’re proud to join the Media In Service of Nature movement and work with the advertising ecosystem to invest in projects that support climate resilience and nature recovery, and in turn help to protect the communities we operate in, preserving green spaces, wildlife and nature for generations to come.”

Industry push

The initiative’s backers argue that even a small redirection of media expenditure could unlock a new source of funding for conservation work. That matters in a market where nature restoration has often depended on public funding, charitable giving and carbon-related schemes.

Tim Pritchard, Head of Responsible Media, MG OMD, said: “We firmly believe in the power of our media industry to create positive impact and we’re delighted to see the movement we founded with giffgaff growing and scaling, with Virgin Media O2 now on board.

“The support and collaboration we’ve seen from across the industry is testament to how strongly people have responded to the simplicity of the initiative. The ambition is to make this approach an industry standard, and we welcome those considering joining to build on this momentum and sign up.”

Ecologi, which helped launch the movement, framed the issue as part of a wider gap in financing for environmental recovery in the UK. It said private sector participation will be needed if restoration targets are to be met.

Nick Allport, Head of Climate Impact Growth, Ecologi, said: “Media In Service of Nature is a call to action to the advertising industry to collectively participate in the recovery of UK nature.

“Virgin Media O2’s inclusion in Media In Service of Nature marks a significant milestone in the recovery of the UK’s depleted ecosystems.

“The UK faces a £5.6 billion annual funding gap to protect and restore the ecosystems that we all depend on. Media In Service of Nature provides an industry-backed and credible avenue for businesses to participate in nature’s recovery.”