Football supporters are being advised by the Abbey National that credit cards that are affiliated to clubs could cost consumers more than regular cards.
Taking the recent Manchester United versus Chelsea Champions League final as an example, Abbey National found that supporters heading for the match would face foreign exchange fees of between 2.75 and 3 percent on a football club affiliated credit card. The Abbey National credit card charges no fee for foreign exchanges, as well as no fees for balance transfers or cash advances either.
As the Managing Director of Abbey National credit cards said, It can be nice to have a credit card that is associated with your favourite football club, but there are costs associated with them that other cards do not charge.
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The Summer months are expected to be a busy time for those with credit cards according to Sainsburys Bank, with consumers expected to hit the cards hard to cover their spending.
Estimates put total consumer spending at around GBP7.9 billion for the Summer months, a little lower than last year but still a lot of money bearing in mind the difficult economic conditions. Of this total spend Sainsburys Bank predict approximately 42 percent will be put onto a credit card.
There are benefits to be enjoyed through paying by credit card of course, including cash back offers, points that can be redeemed to collect rewards and 0 percent interest too. The key is to clear the balance before it becomes costly and this is what Sainsburys Bank hope consumers will do.
Barclaycard is acknowledged as being the most powerful credit card brand in the UK according to an independent study of the market.
The survey, carried out by the ACG, looked at the number of people having a card, how often it was used, customer thoughts on quality and how the brand is perceived. Having taken all these factors into consideration Barclaycard came out on top, thanks to it being the best known credit card in the country and also the second most used.
A spokesman for ACG, commenting on the results, said that Barclaycard would stand out strongly in the current economic climate since consumers look to the best known names in times of difficulty, feeling that there is less to worry about with a credit card brand they know and trust.
