Credit card spending worth £11.3bn over Christmas

The amount of credit card debt accumulated over the course of Christmas 2007 in the UK was close to £11.3 billion, according to the latest figures.

Data compiled by the UK’s payment association Apacs has shown that there were around 192 million credit card transactions carried out nationwide over the festive period.

However, UK consumers’ credit card spending was lower in the most recent Christmas period than was the case in the previous year, while the scale of debit card spending increased.

As the country’s overall debt management mountain continues to rise, Apacs has attributed the fall in festive credit card spending to a more cautious attitude towards borrowing.

“People are thinking more carefully about whether they can afford to borrow,” said Sandra Quinn, Apacs director of communications.

In the run-up to Christmas 2007, Citizens Advice urged British consumers to plan their festive budgets carefully in order to avoid a new year debt management hangover.