OFT to assess credit card APRs

Consumer publication Which? raised concerns recently that there are 12 different methods for calculating APR among the UK’s top 20 financial product providers, which could be leaving thousands of Brits heightening their levels of credit card debt.

And as a result the OFT has made clear its plans to investigate the potential problems surrounding the complaint from Which? and reveal its plan of action – if one is deemed necessary – within a period of 90 days.

Commenting on the issue, as spokesperson for Which? said: “If you are a consumer and you want to find out which credit card is the cheapest then the customer would probably look to the APR as an indication of which was the cheapest option.

“The problem is that the lowest APR will not necessarily mean the lowest charge.”

Rising levels of bad credit card debt have led to many people being refused access to financial products as lenders get tough, financial comparison service MoneyExpert suggested last week.