Friday 29 July 2011

Store cards 'more risky than credit cards', consumers warned




Many UK consumers are still getting themselves into bade debt through failing to treat borrowing on store cards sufficiently seriously, it has been claimed.

Just this month, the insolvency trade body R3 reported that two in three insolvency practitioners across the UK have had to help out people who have signed up for store credit cards without having any real understanding of the terms and conditions of such products.

And, according to the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS), many people don't even treat store cards as 'real money', meaning that they often fall into adverse debt conditions in the long-run.

Tom Howard, a spokesman for the CCCS said: "Store cards are a very real form of debt and, when mismanaged, can get you into as much as, if not more trouble as credit from high street lenders.

"Consumers need to be aware of what they are committing themselves to."

In particular, consumers need to weigh up any potential benefits with the possible risks they face should they default on repayments, he added.

The latest figures published by Credit Action reveal that total UK personal debt stood at £1,460 billion at the end of 2009.




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