Debt fear of new credit card boom

More Britons could be lured into needing debt management after it emerged that credit card firms are offering them more generous short-term offers.

Research from MoneySavingExpert.com and MoneySupermarket.com shows that the length of introductory interest-free periods averages at a little over a year (12.2 months), but at the end of that period, the interest on the debt soars.

So people who don't clear their debt levels with the new cards will be in potentially greater need of debt solutions once the card's true interest rate kicks in.

People are being lured into debt by these new cards at a time when a double-dip recession is still possible and it is feared that job losses have not yet peaked.

Kevin Still, director of Atlantic Financial Management, says: "This research coincides with the US banning huge charges for late credit card payments, fees for "under-use" of cards and inexplicable interest rate rises.

"Transferring credit card debts requires care and consideration to whether there is genuine debt relief in the short or long-term. Often tackling the debt spiral through a non-borrowing solution is the better option, as there is a temptation to use debt capacity on both the new and old card."

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