Choose a credit card to suit your needs, consumers warned
08 November 2007
It is vital that consumers give careful consideration to choosing the right credit card for them, Which? has claimed.
The consumer watchdog advised that credit card and store card users should look out for the card that not only suits them but the particular purpose for which their flexible friend is intended.
"Credit card companies charge interest and allocate payments in different ways," Martyn Saville, a spokesperson for Which? explained.
"It is essential to choose a credit card that suits your needs and it is often useful to have different cards for different purposes.
"For example, if you pay off the balance every month, you may be best to go for a cashback card. If, however, you have a large outstanding balance, you could look for a card offering a long zero per cent deal on balance transfers with a fee," he advised.
The comments come as MoneyExpert.com research shows more than 4.1 million credit card bills have been missed in the first six months of 2007, generally incurring a fee of £12 for each missed payment.
According to UK payments association Apacs, there are currently more credit cards in the UK than people, with 74.4 million credit and charge cards in the UK compared with around 60 million people living in the country.
