Having a credit card can be a great way to help manage your finances, so long as consumers use the credit card in the correct way. Credit card holders can take advantage of using their card to help protect them when making purchases and budgeting. So long as they have enough money in their bank account to pay off their monthly credit card balance every month, they can help budget your money.It also gives protection to purchasers when using their credit card under the Consumer Credit Act which can be a great advantage.So long as consumers don’t use their credit cards as a source for money if they do not have the money in their bank account to pay off their monthly balance, they can be a great way to manage your money. But if you are not able to pay off your balance every month you could run into debt problems, and you don’t want that. Make sure you can pay off your monthly credit card bill every month. See our credit cards comparison table for the latest offers. Plus, reading our guides and tips pages can offer consumers more detailed information and money saving hints.
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.
Well known UK financial services company CIS has been looking at the state of the credit card market and seeing how we as a nation use them.
One of the first things that came to light in the CIS survey was the amount of money spent on the busiest day of the week, namely Saturday. The average Brit will spend over GBP500,000 over the course of their lifetime on that one day alone. Looking at situations when credit cards are used it is the usual suspects of clothes and shoes that top the list, closely followed by social activities like dining out and visiting bars.
The person responsible for credit cards at CIS felt that the findings were very representative of how we live our lives. After a hard week at work Saturday is the day to let our hair down and live a little.
The very best credit card interest rates can be found online at Moneygossip.co.uk – Take a look at the comparison tables there and find the best credit card to suit you.
