Credit card debt ‘number one problem’

Sue Edwards, senior policy officer for the Citizens Advice bureau, said that of 1.25 million debt problems dealt with each year, owing to credit card providers was the most common.

“Credit card debt now ranks number one in the 1.25 million debt problems our bureaux deal with every year,” said Ms Edwards. “More and more people are finding themselves on the wrong side of the fine dividing line between manageable credit commitments and serious debt.”

The announcement comes as Barclaycard, Britain’s first ever credit card, celebrates its 40th anniversary.

Personal debt now stands at over £1 trillion and credit card spending alone accounts for £300 billion each year.

In light of the growing amount of people that Citizens Advice have to deal with due to such debt, Ms Edwards called for better financial education for people.