Credit card debts continue to be the most common form of debts that consumers continue to struggle with and seek debt help advice on. This is most commonly due to the high interest rates and the increasing credit limits which encourage consumers to spend beyond their limits. The government has identified this problem and has announced new rights for credit card users, which will apparently save consumers millions of pounds and give them more financial control.

This is excellent news for consumers with credit card debts who seek advice on credit card debt reduction. The new rights will be implemented this year as soon as possible and the government estimates this will save consumers almost 300 million pounds a year. Gordon Brown said ‘These new rights will put an end to the irresponsible lending practices that people have been most concerned about, and help cut the cost of borrowing’.

The new rights will mean that consumers with credit card debts will pay the most expensive debt first, reversing the current practice. As well as this consumers will now be able to choose not to receive credit limit increases and the right to reduce their limit at anytime. They will be given more time to reject increases in their interest rate or their credit limit. This will help to cut and reduce consumer overspending on credit card debts.

There is also good news for consumers who are seeking debt help advice on taking out future credit, as there will be a new annual statement that will be sent out to consumers seeking credit card debt advice which will allow them to conduct an easy cost comparison with other providers.

Consumers seeking advice on debt through debt management, will welcome the ban on credit limit increases and rises in interest rates to protect people at risk of financial difficulties. The new rights can only be a good thing for consumers with credit card debts, let’s just hope that the government can implement these changes efficiently  and effectively in order to have the best possible impact on credit card users.