Cashback the most popular credit card feature

Over 7 million credit cardholders (23 per cent) plan to reduce the number of credit cards they have and consolidate them onto a single card that offers them good value according to research from Abbey Credit Cards.

Brits currently have on average two credit cards at any one time and 22 per cent hold three or more. This is all very well if they use them all, but the average credit cardholder has between one and two credit cards (1.24 to be precise) that they have not used at all in the last year.

Abbey’s research shows that these people are planning to clear out their wallets in the next 12 months and find one credit card that they can stick with.

Which credit card will they choose?

But how do people make the decision about which card to keep? Abbey’s research shows:

Top of the list is cashback, with 20 per cent of cardholders choosing this as the feature they value most

16 per cent said they’d be looking for a card with a low APR

8 per cent want a consistently low flat rate

6 per cent value shopping discounts the most

4 per cent want a card that offers free air miles

Just 1 per cent would pick a card with an affiliation to a charity

Abbey looks set to benefit from this trend, having recently launched a new cashback service on its credit cards. Until the end of January 2008, Abbey credit card customers will benefit from five per cent cashback on the first £1,000 of purchases from major supermarkets bought with an Abbey credit card. The average household spend in large supermarkets is £190.23 per month, so the £1,000 limit covers over five months worth of shopping.

Roger Lovering, Managing Director of Santander Cards Limited UK, said: “Unless a person is using all of their credit cards, many don’t want to keep them up and running. In the current climate, people are becoming more and more savvy about the impact numerous cards have on their credit rating, and a significant number of cardholders are now looking to consolidate all their credit cards. Abbey looks set to benefit from this as cashback is the feature people say they value most.”

As well as the 5 per cent cashback on supermarket spending, other features of the Abbey credit card are:

0 per cent balance transfer for 12 months, with a 2.5 per cent fee (minimum £3)
0 per cent on purchases for 3 months
Low ongoing purchase rate of 15.9 per cent
Daily ATM withdrawal allowance of £300

For customers who are interested in applying for an Abbey credit card, visit Abbey.com.