7 April 2009
Customers returning from holidays this Easter may find they have been charged heavily for using their cards abroad, new research shows.
Statistics from uSwitch.com reveal holidaymakers will be charged £754 million for using their cards overseas in this year alone, an increase of 6% on figures from the year before.
Debit card holders are set to be worst hit, it suggests, with their charges totalling £401 million.
One way in which people can avoid being stung by such costs is by comparing credit cards, which will enable them to see which product is best-suited to their needs.
At the moment, consumers incur an average charge of 3% on their transactions abroad, uSwitch.com states, which adds a total of £754 million to their final bills.
Recent research from Abbey found that Britons are needlessly paying out more than £9 billion pounds in credit card interest each year.