Consumers Immune To Credit Perils

12.02.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Wed 9th Jun 2004

Commenting on the introduction of new rules designed to make credit agreements and loan adverts clearer, Liberal Democrat Shadow Secretary of State for Trade and Industry Malcolm Bruce MP commented: "The blunt truth is credit companies have led the public by the hand into unprecedented levels of consumer debt.

"Consumers have been overexposed to easy credit and made immune to the perils of debt.

"Three out of four people don't even know the interest they are paying on their credit cards and credit companies have contributed to this lack of consumer awareness.

"It is frankly incredible that credit card companies are threatening to pass the costs of tighter legislation on to the consumers in terms of higher interest rates.

"These companies have been allowed too much freedom to exploit a credit-hungry public and regulations controlling their actions are long overdue.

"Banks and finance companies have been making excessive profits from interest rates which would have been more beneficial to the wider economy if retained in consumers hands."