By Hugo Duncan for the Daily Mail
Published: 21:51 GMT, 4 January 2019 | Updated: 10:13 GMT, 5 January 2019
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Credit card debt hit a record high in the run-up to Christmas as British families splashed out, says the Bank of England.
Its figures show households had an outstanding bill of £72.5billion on their credit cards at the end of November – a sign that many people are living beyond their means.
That is up from £70.1billion a year earlier and from £57.2billion five years ago.
Bank of England figures show households had an outstanding bill of £72.5bn on their credit cards at the end of November – up from £70.1bn a year earlier and from £57.2bn five years ago
The surge in credit card spending pushed household debts, excluding mortgages, to an all-time high of £215.4billion, raising fears that millions of families will struggle to pay off credit cards and other loans after potentially crippling bills over Christmas.
Campaigners warned that 'persistent credit card debt' could become a major problem for households.
Families put another £400million on their plastic in November as major shopping events such as the Black Friday discounts
