Credit Card News

At least 2.4 million people are planning to spend Christmas and New Year’s Eve abroad, according to research by Post Office.

Using store cards for Christmas shopping will cost consumers £2.8 billion in interest in the next year alone, according to research by uSwitch.com. This is £892 million more in interest charges compared to those using a credit card.

Ungrateful Brits have admitted to dumping unwanted Christmas presents on charity shops, hiding them away in lofts and cupboards and even giving them to other people as Christmas presents, in a poll commissioned by Barclays Gift Card.

With Brits owing an astonishing £64.7 billion on their credit cards, the research by price comparison site moneysupermarket.com shows there is an additional mega-pot of £112 billion available to borrow.

With three weeks until Christmas, people are braving the shops to find the ideal presents. When deciding which credit card to use to fund these purchases, consumers often overlook the benefit that an extended warranty on electrical goods can offer.

More than 4.4 million credit card customers still haven’t cleared debts they ran up last Christmas as spending on this year’s festive period hots up, new research from MoneyExpert.com shows.

Commenting on the Barclaycard’s forthcoming trial of mobile phone payments for purchases of £10 or less, Rob Kenley, head of credit cards at price comparison website moneysupermarket.com, said: “Much has been made of consumer concerns around security surrounding the new breed of contactless payments and any initiative that helps allay these concerns is a welcome one.

Christmas shoppers are expected to spend over £5 billion online this December, according to APACS, the UK payments association.

Barclaycard is to become the first credit card provider to publicly trial mobile phone payments in the UK.

Consumers are stashing away money for emergencies but they are also burning money unnecessarily by carrying credit-card debt at the same time.

Premium credit card, RBS Black, is offering new customers the chance to experience all the luxury benefits of the product in a three month complimentary trial.

Commenting on the launch of FairFX’s new currency card, Rob Kenley, head of credit cards at moneysupermarket.com, said: "This card is good with its competitive exchange rate if you are going to spend big bucks. If that is the case, make sure you put at least £500 on it or you’ll be charged a £9.95 fee.

Over 22.5 million consumers (50%) have been sent credit card cheques making the industry a lucrative £660 million a year, according to new research from uSwitch.com.

Today is Children In Need, and while it is one of the nation’s biggest days of giving, there are still other ways of donating money throughout the year without even having to spend any extra, reminds Fair Investment Company.

Store cards are still charging average interest rates of up to 24.4 per cent despite recent action by watchdogs, a study conducted by MoneyExpert.com shows.