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The Government aim to stop people getting into further credit card debt by stopping credit card companies from raising unrequested credit card limits, and to ban the sending out unsolicited credit card cheques.

Credit card cheques may mean that their customers get into further credit card debt as these often carry a higher charge than using your credit card. The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) called for new regulations in 2006 which now means that there is a code of practice where by credit card companies agreed to “assess a customer’s suitability before sending credit card cheques” and provide accurate information about any costs.

The Government believes that restricting the use of consumer credit will promote a more responsible attitude to credit card lending, and the UK can hopefully start to see an decrease in the amount of personal credit card debt.

Consumer Affairs Minister, Gareth Thomas, commented: “We are concerned that people may be tempted to borrow irresponsibly if credit card companies increase borrowing limits without this being requested by customers, or send out unsolicited credit card cheques.”

Fighting back against the suggestions that credit card companies are encouraging deeper levels of credit card debt, UK payments association Apacs said that its members did not raise the credit card limits of borrowers with unaffordable debt problems.

UK Credit card debt management is a problem for 4.8million people who have experienced increases in the amount of money they owe to their credit card debt, according to Tesco Compare.

The outstanding credit card debt balance has increased by an average of £412, meaning that more people are worried about getting their UK credit card debt management into check. However, it seems that the idea of being free from credit card debt is seeming more impossible for some, as 11% of those polled admitted that they would be incapable of handling their finances without the use of credit cards.

However, it is not all doom and gloom when it comes to UK credit card debt management. The research also found that nearly half of credit card users are cutting their credit card spending by £100 a month. Many are cutting back on their credit card spending in a bid to reduce their debt levels and increase their savings. (more…)

As debt becomes a great burden for more people throughout the UK, almost tenth of British borrowers have missed repayments to one or more of their debts. As economic problems hit home, it seems that more and more people are having problems controlling their debt management issues.

According to MoneyExpert, almost 11% of people with a mortgage and unsecured debts, such as a credit card or unsecured loan, have missed these debt repayments within the last six months alone.

It appears that our unsecured debt is causing us the biggest worry, as credit cards and unsecured loans are offering us the biggest debt problems. Almost four million credit card holders admit that they have missed a payment to their credit card debt during the past six months, and over one million have missed payments to their unsecured loan.

Even more worryingly, the number of people who are missing payments to their credit cards equates to around 9% of the adult population in the UK.

Director of MoneyExpert, Sean Gardner, commented: “Interest rates may have been pushed down through 2008 but increased pressures from rising food and energy bills mean consumers are struggling to keep their heads above water.

It could take you up to 93 years to repay your credit card debt, according to statistics from a debt help charity which takes into account the average level of credit card debt that many UK consumers are faced with when seeking debt advice.

Citizens Advice believe that our credit card debt is much higher than any other forms of unsecured debt and many of us have no way of paying the debt off. The average person who seeks debt advice owes almost £17,000, which is nearly 18 times more than their monthly household earnings.

Worryingly, nearly half of all homeowners who contacted were behind on their mortgage or secured loan repayments, meaning that they would also need help with mortgage arrears so that they can avoid losing their home to repossession.

Citizens Advice chief executive, David Harker, comments: “The reality is that they are condemned to a lifetime of poverty overshadowed by an inescapable burden of unpayable debt.”

All of us long to become debt free, and money website fool.co.uk have predicted that 47 is the magic age! This figure represents the average age when the number of people without any unsecured debt surpasses those people who are in debt.

The antithesis of becoming debt free is at the age of 28, where over two thirds of UK adults (66%) have credit card debt. This number is likely to decline to about half the population by the time we reach our mid-thirties.

The forties are the most critical years in our life for those to be seeking debt management advice. Approximately 17% will be half way through their mortgage term and 22% will have an additional form of borrowing on their home, such as a debt consolidation loan.

There are other perks of being in our forties, as this research predicts that 41 is the age where our salary peaks, meaning that we can effectively tackle our credit card debt and enjoy becoming debt free.

David Kuo, Head of Personal Finance at Fool.co.uk comments: “It only takes a minute to whip out your card and get into debt, but getting out of debt can take years. And after the gloom of finding that our forties and fifties won’t bring us the endless salary rises we hoped for, it’s nice to see light at the end of the debt tunnel, even if it’s only when we reach 47.”

Although this may seem like an obvious statement for most, credit card debt should be avoided as we are urged to not “fall back” on credit cards if we are unable to get our loan application accepted in the current economic climate.

The recommendation is to avoid credit card debt all together by living below our means. This is timely advice as the number of unemployed in the UK is expected to increase throughout 2009.

However it seems that more of us than ever are juggling more and more credit card debt, as research by Apacs found that credit card spending increased by 2% in 2008 and reached a total of £126.2 billion.

About avoiding credit card debt, David Kuo, head of personal finance at fool.co.uk, said: “People need to be very aware that there is a problem with the economy at the moment, there is a problem with the system.”

Credit card debts are being fueled shopping addicts (dubbed “shoporexics” by financial firm Kensington). Apparently this addiction is wide spread, even though the credit crunch has made it increasingly difficult to get accepted for loans or credit cards.

Being a sufferer of Shoporexia is characterised by an intense reoccurring desire to purchase unnecessary goods, regardless of any personal debt worries. Approximately half of respondents said they had credit card debts of over £2,500 as a consequence of their shopping habits,  and the same percentage admit that they lie to their partner about how much they have have spent.

A representative from the company said: “We wanted to investigate the extent of shopping-related debt and to give people a gentle reminder of the more serious issues involved. Shopping can be fun, frivolous and great escapism, but serious addiction – and escalating debt – is a very different story.”

Credit card holders are being stung by their issuers, as comparison website Moneysupermarket reveal that the APR (annual percentage rate) has gone up on nearly a third of all credit cards in the past 12 months.

The main culprits who have upped the APR for their existing customers are Egg, Capital One, Lloyds TSB, MBNA and Barclaycard. Egg have upped the APR for 11% of their cardholders. More worryingly, 27% of cardholders were unaware whether their APR had increased on their credit cards, meaning that more need help to manage debt to ensure that their finances do not spiral out of control.

Head of credit cards at Moneysupermarket, Steve Willey said: “Firms writing to customers telling them their APR is about to increase will only exacerbate the debt problem in this country.. Increasing the interest on purchases will only make those rising food, fuel and mortgage bills harder to pay, and lengthen the time it takes people to clear their debts.”

If you are struggling to clear your debt as you find your credit card payments unaffordable, give One Advice a call on 0800 048 1752. Our expert debt advisors will help you to go through your finances to find a debt solution which will make your credit card payments much more affordable.

Are you struggling with your credit card debt? If so, then you are not the only one. More people are finding that their credit card debt is harder to repay, and recent figures from the International Monetary Fund predict that 7% of all personal debt in Europe (totalling $2,467 billion) will be defaulted on.

Many of these defaults will be in the UK, as it is the largest nation of credit card debt borrowers besides the U.S. Coupled with a fluctuating house market, rise in unemployment and banks becoming more strict about who they offer secured lending to, many people are turning to credit cards and unsecured loans.

Author of the report,  Charles Geisst, who has investigated American credit card debt, says the average American has 13 credit cards and each. “Unemployment is the straw that will break the camel’s back. The default rates already are twice what they used to be. I think it’ll get worse.”

If your credit card debt is harder to repay, there could be a solution for you. A Debt Management Plan makes your credit card debt easier to repay by reducing the monthly credit card debt repayment that you need to make. Contact us now for further help with your credit card debt.

Over the past year, almost two million Brits have ‘cut’ credit card debt, quite literally, by cutting up their credit cards in order to avoid getting into unaffordable debt with their credit card provider.

Apparently 6% of the £52 billion credit-card market has taken the initiative to cut up their plastic credit cards to avoid temptation and sinking into financial trouble during the credit crunch. uSwitch also believe that a further 10 million have stopped using their credit cards but keep them in case of a financial emergency.

7% of us are estimated to have between five and six unused credit cards which have a combined credit limit of £200bn.

If you are looking to cut the amount that you are paying to your credit cards each month, One Advice could help. We could be able to offer you a debt management plan which allows you to reduce the amount of debt that you need to pay on a monthly basis. Call us now for further information.

Credit cards debt are one of the most common causes of UK debt problems. As a country, Britain has more credit card borrowers than any other European country. Credit card debt is a growing problem, both in the UK and across the globe. There are a number of reason why it is easy to fall victim to mounting UK credit card debts:
* Multiple credit cards making it easy to spend money that you have not got.
* Missed payments lead to additional charges.
* High interest rates coupled with a low minimum repayment required.
* Lack of consumer knowledge when it comes to the consequences of the end of promotional introductory offers.

UK Credit Card Debts Advice

Knowing that you are struggling with UK credit card debts is the first wake-up call that needs to happen, as this allows you to come up with a plan to seek debt advice or start to repay your debt.

Budgeting: One of the first steps that you need to take when tackling mounting UK credit cards debts is budgeting. Devising a budget planner can help you work out how much money you have available for repaying debt after you have accounted for essential living costs and bills.

Work out where you can cut back on frivolous spending. Successfully learning how to cut back means that you can prioritise repaying your UK credit card debts or other unsecured debt. You may want to pay off the one with the highest interest rate firsts so you don’t build up unnecessary credit card debt.

One of the ways which you can ensure that you won’t be stung with charges from your credit card providers is to set up a direct debit to ensure that at least the minimum amount of your debt is paid.

Getting Debt Advice about your UK Credit Card Debts: Sometimes a simple budget plan is not a drastic enough solution to help you repay your debts. Perhaps even the minimum amount of debt is too high to pay once you have taken into account all of your living expenses and secured debt repayments. (more…)

Confused.com are advising credit card holders to treat their credit card debt as a priority debt and ensure that it gets paid off as quickly as possible. This is because credit card debt is often the most expensive form of personal debt, meaning that it often  incurs the highest rate of interest in comparison to other forms of debt.

The comparison website recommends that you switch to a cheaper credit card and ensure that you make more than the minimum payment each month so that your credit card debt shows signs of decreasing. Taking control of your debt management and making more than the minimum payment to your credit card debts are cited at top tips by the website.

It would take someone with a credit card balance of £5,000 at an interest rate of 14.9% 36 years to clear off their credit card debt if they only paid the minimum payment. During this time they will have racked up £7,000 worth of interest. By paying an extra £50 per month towards this credit card debt, the repayment time would be slashed to 6 years with less than £2,000 worth of interest debt being added.

Joanne Garcia, head of credit cards at the site, said: “If you can’t switch to a cheaper credit card, you can still make staggering overall savings by making more than the minimum repayment every month.” It is not possibly for everyone to switch credit cards in order to benefit from a lower interest rate; the main reason being that a low credit score combined with the credit crunch means that credit card lenders are a little more wary about new credit card debt applicants.

Do you have five or more credit cards?

More than 3m Brits do, with many spending way beyond their means and facing unpayable monthly bills. Typically the worst serial credit card offenders are those between 35 – 44 years old. Many are willing to freely admit that they were at breaking point with their finances, as they try to juggle multiple debt on multiple cards.

Credit Cards should only be used as an emergency backup and you should not ‘live’ on your cards. This will only lead to more debt, and high-interest repayments. One Advice believes that it is important that you get this type of spending under control as soon as possible. If you find that you need to pay your credit card bills with another credit card, or you regularly draw out cash as a means of living – you need expert help.

Credit Card Help is Available

There are ways to relieve the burden of debt and pressure from creditors who are demanding you to pay what you simply can’t afford. You might want to think about a Debt Management Plan which is suitable for those with multiple debts. One Advice can negotiate with creditors and find you a lower monthly payment, leaving you with more money in your pocket.

If you are facing debt over £15,000 then you might want to consider an IVA, this is Government legislation designed to reduce your debt. Contact One Advice today on 0800 048 1752.