Published: 7/14/2010
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.
There are many situations where people have to deal with unexpected situations that need to paid for, breakdowns in the home or car for example. However around 7.5 million people in the UK say they need their credit card to cover these problems say the Alliance and Leicester. With a washing machine costing around GBP300 and a boiler over GBP1,000 such problems can become far larger when there are insufficient funds to cover the costs. Around 25 percent of those surveyed by the Alliance and Leicester said they could not manage anything over GBP100, while around half said GBP500 would be the most they could cover. These people look to their credit card to cover such costs, though the recent credit problems are making this a little more difficult than before. Alliance and Leicester credit cards or alternatively a regular savings account can help cover these situations and get customers through a difficult situation.
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. Find the best credit card for you - compare credit card rates at Moneygossip.co.uk
Foreign exchange rates can be costing consumers money according to an Abbey National credit card division survey. The survey has found that around 38 percent of people would pay in Sterling on their credit card whilst abroad, believing they would not incur exchange costs. This is not the case though since dynamic currency conversion means the transaction is converted to the local currency automatically. It is also often the case that it is the receiving bank that levies the charge, often at quite high rates. Again this is something most people are unaware of according to Abbey National, finding over 60 percent falsely believing this to be the case. The Abbey National credit card Zero is an exception to this foreign exchange scenario and as such it is hoped that either more consumers will use this particular card or that other credit card providers will follow the Abbey National lead.
