Borrowers warned over credit card debt

The finance comparison site said that credit card holders who are always in the red and who only make minimum repayments would be shocked by the amount of interest they are amassing.

In fact, the firm recently carried out research that found cardholders who only make the minimum monthly repayments on a spend of £360 could still be paying off the debt in 2017 because of the additional £322 accrued in interest.

“It is shocking to imagine what the length of repayment and interest could rise to if this pattern of behaviour was repeated every month,” Moneysupermarket said.

Borrowers should speak to impartial advisors such as Citizens Advice about debt, cut down on spending and find credit products with lower interest rates.

The Association of British Credit Unions has said that borrowers could be better off applying for a properly structured personal loan instead of a credit card, which can be a “dangerous tool in the wrong hands”.