1m credit card users could face low use fee

The UK’s largest credit card provider has confirmed that it is considering charging low spenders an annual fee.

Barclaycard, which has 9.8 million customers is mulling over plans to charge people who have "low usage" on their cards an annual £20 fee.

About 15 per cent of all UK credit card holders have a Barclaycard and the fee is thought to apply to about one million of them.

A spokesperson for the bank said: "We are considering a fee for a minority of customers that simply do not use their card. Details aren’t yet final but we expect the amount to be between £10 and £20 – less than £2 per month."

However, one price comparison website said that given Barclay’s market share, their decision could start a trend.

Lloyds TSB introduced a policy of charging "low usage" customers a fee of £35 in February.

Nick White, director of financial services at uSwitch, told the BBC that credit card users should close down inactive accounts.