Credit card rates ‘will go up’

Credit card companies are likely to steadily increase their interest rates over the course of next year, one expert has asserted.

Samantha Owens from Moneyfacts is convinced that borrowers will be faced with increased costs and the potential for further debt management difficulties in 2008.

Introductory offers are likely to be made available, but in general credit card service providers will be aiming to offset the impact of the so-called credit crunch by raising their rates, Ms Owens has suggested.

She said: “[Customers should] keep an eye on their credit cards, make sure they check their statements and the little leaflets that are in there, to make sure that the interest rate isn’t going up every three months and they could actually switch to a cheaper deal.”

At the end of October 2007, the UK’s overall debt management burden was worth close to £1,390 billion, according to data compiled by the Credit Action charity.