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Check the small print: simple to say, much more difficult to do.

Broadband contracts are now near novella-length and the language they use seems to be becoming ever more opaque which is why we've put together this guide.

Here's our take on broadband contracts: what they are; how to get out of them and how to sidestep them altogether.

What's in a contract?

A broadband contract's primary purpose is to establish the basic level of service the consumer should expect and what the provider should expect in return.

Generally the provider promises to:

• Exercise reasonable care and skill to provide the agreed service
• Pay any damages they're liable for if the service isn't provided (these are usually minimal)

While the consumer must promise to:

• Use the service for a minimum period
• Use the service legally (no hacking, for example)
• Use the service reasonably (for example, within the download limit or fair use policy)
• Maintain any equipment the provider has given them

As you can see, contracts are heavily skewed: providers make it as difficult as possible for consumers to leave during the minimum contract period while taking little solid responsibility themselves for the level of service provided.

Tied up, tied down

The vast majority of broadband providers, even budget providers such as TalkTalk and Orange, now sign up customers up to a minimum contract of 12 months.

18-month contracts are more common among packages with a higher monthly price, primarily those that include digital TV.

Changing package - for example, moving to your provider's faster deal - often sparks a new mandatory contract. In general, that's the case no matter whether the change occurs before or after the initial period. Either way, it's worth checking with the provider before confirming the move.

After the contract

Once the initial contract period is over, most broadband providers move their customers to a 30-day rolling contract and require just seven days notice of cancellation.

A very small proportion of providers are the exception, they use Automatically Renewable Contracts (ARCs).

With an ARC, once you come to the end of your lengthy contract the provider gives you 30 days' notice and then you can choose either to renew or cancel and go elsewhere.

As of 31st December 2011 this year, the sale of ARCs for broadband will be outlawed by Ofcom. However, note that you could still have an ARC, and therefore have to renew within a small window, after this date.

Slamming

Distinct from an ARC is a practice known as slamming: simply, moving consumers to a new broadband service without their express consent.

In many cases, the first thing the customer knows about their new broadband provider is getting a bill from them in the post.

Never accept slamming. Signing up for more information from a provider or starting but not completing online registration does not constitute permission to switch and you're entitled to ask to be moved back to your original provider.

Make sure the company involved gets their just desserts by reporting them to Ofcom , too.

Getting out of a broadband contract

Broadband contracts are notoriously difficult to leave once you're tied in.

If you signed up to the broadband deal by phone, post or online and it's only been seven working days since the contract you may have a right to cancel under Distance Selling Regulations.

You also have rights if you're having serious problems with your connection or feel that you were mis-sold the broadband package. See our broadband complaints guide for more on this situation.

If none of these situations apply to you - you're just dissatisfied but there's no serious failing on the part of the provider, you're moving home and don't want to take the provider with you or you've simply seen a better deal elsewhere and want to switch early - paying a cancellation or early termination fee is likely to be the only way out of a contract.

Under the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contract Regulations Act 1999 as interpreted by Ofcom the cancellation cost must be less than the total cost of supplying the service to the end of the contract.

In practice, this means that most providers multiply the number of months you have left in your contract by slightly less than your monthly price.

So, say you have six months left and pay £10 a month you might be asked to pay £8 x six month which is £48.

Sidestepping a broadband contract

Charges like that make sidestepping a broadband contract altogether seem suddenly much more attractive.

But flexible broadband gets a bad press: short or no contract deals can come with prohibitive set-up costs that mean it's often easier and cheaper to just wait out a 12 month contract.

For the terminally indecisive and those staying in one place for less than nine months, however, no contract broadband offers the best value with the least stress.

With Plusnet's no contract option customers can cancel with just 10 days notice and won't pay any penalties.

Not only does that make them the purveyors of the UK's most flexible home broadband, Plusnet are noted for their good service and good-value deals, including the UK's cheapest fibre.

There's a £25 set-up fee to pay plus another £25 if you don't take Plusnet home phone.

If you don't have a router you can buy one on sign up for £20 (wired) or £40 (wireless) with £4.99 P&P.

O2 also offer a 30-day rolling option on all their deals.

Their big advantage over their no contract rivals is that O2 will throw in a wireless router for free.

This must be returned when customers give 30 days notice of cancellation on pain of a hefty hardware charge so a proof of postage slip is a must.

There's a £30.63 set-up fee for O2's no contract broadband and another £25.53 to pay for those that aren't O2 mobile customers (pay monthly or PAYG topping up by £10 every three months).

Zen also have one month rolling contracts available on all their ADSL deals (fibre customers must sign up for 12 months).

Zen's customer service reputation is spotless but customers pay for that level of service. Monthly prices are high and a router isn't included.

On the plus side, there's no set-up fee if you move to Zen from another provider, i.e. with a Migration Authorisation Code (MAC).

Finally, Eclipse Internet have one month options available with their two premium deals.

You'll have to supply your own router and set-up is £10 if you move from another provider or £59.95 without a MAC key.

See our no contract broadband comparison page to check availability and compare prices of these deals.

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