Credit card offers are recipe for disaster

Despite the fact that UK credit card rates are still in excess of 20%, we have seen a number of "special offers" hit the market over the last few weeks. The average interest free period on offer for those looking to switch credit cards has grown to around 12.2 months which is a longer period than that seen at the height of the last credit card boom. So what does this mean for the future?

As more and more households up and down the UK continue to struggle to make ends meet, the temptation to buy now and pay later using an interest free credit card may be too much for some people. For those struggling at the moment, the transfer of additional debt to a credit card is simply storing up more problems for the future and hiding the problems of today.

The Office for Budget Responsibility has also issued a report today suggesting that the average family in the UK will borrow in excess of £24,000 over the next five years and household debt is expected to top £1.8 billion by 2015.