Are you one of Britain’s credit card addicts?

Over the years many Brits have become increasingly reliant upon credit cards, as these cards offer convenience, flexibility, and ease.

However, whilst many have used credit cards responsibly and repaid them in a way that will not involve them having to pay extortionate charges, other have ended up getting into deep levels of debt due to their credit card use, and this has affected everything from their financial freedom and quality of life to their credit rating and financial future.

In fact, despite the huge debt levels in the UK coupled with the tighter credit conditions resulting from the global credit crunch, a recent report has indicated that over three million people in Britain are currently juggling five or more credit cards, reflecting just how addicted to credit cards some people have become.

In the past year alone, a third of Brits have applied for another card, although in the last few months an increasing number may have been turned down due to more stringent lending criteria from card providers.

Experts are warning that if you are one of these credit card addicts that is juggling an array of cards, all of which have balances in them, it is time to take stock and try to eliminate your credit card debt, although this could be a long and arduous task for those with so many credit cards.

Much of the personal debt mountain in the UK has been attributed to credit card debt, and those that are not sensible about spending and repaying their cards could quickly find that their debts spiral out of control and become unmanageable, becoming yet another victim of severe debt.

The good news is that the Citizen’s Advice Bureau recently reported that whilst the first two months of this year saw general debt related enquiries rise by 35% compared to the same period last year, the level of credit card related problems actually fell by 10% compared to the same period last year, and this could indicate that perhaps Brits are in fact reining in their credit card spending.

On the other hand it could mean that fewer people have credit cards, due to the restricted accessibility to card resulting from tightened lending conditions.

There are steps that you can take to ensure that you enjoy the convenience and flexibility of a credit card without being hit with interest and without getting into huge, long term levels of debt. If you only have one credit card then you should make sure that you always stay within the limits, always make repayments on time, and always try and pay off the balance in full each month.

This way you can use the card, enjoy a short period of interest free credit, and then repay the balance when your statement comes through. Alternatively, if you want to have one credit card to spend on and you want to enjoy a longer period of interest free credit, then it is worth looking at a 0% purchase credit card, where you may be able to spread your repayments over 12 months of longer without being charged any interest.

If you already have a number of high interest credit cards with balances on them you need to take action. You should look at transferring the balances from all of these cards onto one 0% balance transfer credit card. You can then repay the combined balances over a period of time without having to pay any interest.

Cut up your old, high interest cards, and if you still feel that you need a credit card for spending on opt for a 0% purchase card, where you can enjoy longer interest free periods enabling you to spread your repayments. Never spend on your balance transfer card, as your purchase balance will get trapped behind the transferred balance, where it will sit and accrue huge levels of interest whilst your repayments are all applied to the interest free transferred balance.

Many officials are concerned about the reasons why people are using credit cards, as some seem to be using them to pay bills and even make mortgage repayments.

One official stated: ‘There has to be real concern if people are using cards to keep their head above water. It is entirely healthy if people are swapping debts from one card to another, taking advantage of 0% deals to ensure that they pay as little interest as possible. But anyone who is trying to juggle five or more credit cards and owes money on all of them is in real trouble.’