Help offered to UK’s credit card consumers

Apacs, the UK payments association, has introduced the ‘understanding your credit card statement’ guide with the aim of explaining financial terms such as APR to those who may not be aware of the implications.

Sandra Quinn, director of communications at Apacs, said: “Although people are getting better at checking their statements, our research suggests that there is still a lot of work to be done.

“Armed with this advice guide we believe consumers will be better equipped to get the most from their credit card statement.”

Figures from Apacs suggest that around 47 per cent of people do not thoroughly check their relevant statements, which highlights one potential reason for Britain’s high levels of credit card debt.

Overall, the UK’s personal debt management mountain is rising by close to one million pounds every four minutes, according to Credit Action.