Consumers cautioned over Christmas credit
This year, with many people planning to put Christmas on credit, consumers are being warned not to take on more debt than they can afford.
A new report from MoneyExpert says that Christmas is an extremely tempting time to take out debt, with analysis from 1993 to 2004 showing that credit card expenditure in December increased by 19.8 per cent when compared to the rest of the year.
The Consumer Credit Counselling Service says that on January 4th this year, its debt helpline received a record number of calls.
Sean Gardner, chief executive, MoneyExpert says that the key to using credit is to plan ahead and shop around for the best deals.
'If you are financing Christmas on plastic, be really choosy about how you do it. Store cards should be avoided if you don’t aim to pay off the balance straight away.
'Choosing the right credit card can be a good way to spread the cost of Christmas if you can’t pay it off in January.
'However, as always, it’s important to choose the right card for your needs as the wrong one can add to the cost of the holiday period in the long-run and can also cause considerable stress.'
He added that choosing a credit card with an interest free facility might spare borrowers from having to make high repayments in the new year. | 
