New poll shows we pay too much credit card interest
Queenslanders Credit Union today urged local residents to get a better credit card deal after new research revealed many Australians didn’t know the interest rate they were paying over Christmas.
An Essential Research poll on Christmas shopping habits showed Australians use credit cards to buy Christmas presents, but few people know what the interest rate is.
The report commissioned by the Customer Owned Banking Association (COBA) found Australian consumers could have avoided a big credit card bill by finding out more about the better rates available.
“The research shows that people are unsure about the best deals and the current interest rates they pay,” Queenslanders CEO John Weier said.
“We don’t want our customers forking out for excessively high credit card rates,” he said.
“At Queenslanders we offer two award-winning credit cards, the Low Rate MasterCard and Platinum MasterCard. These both come with very attractive balance transfer offers and received accolades at the Money Magazine Consumer Finance Awards 2014.”
The Essential Research poll of 1000 people, commissioned by COBA, found:
- Australians buy seven Christmas presents and spend $570 on average
- More than a third describe paying for Christmas presents as “stressful”
- 65% don’t know who has the lowest credit card interest rates
- Around half said “Don’t Know” when asked the current rate they pay.
The research found a significant proportion of younger Australians wrongly think the big four banks offer the best rates – 16% of people aged 18-34 nominated the big 4 banks compared to just 7% of those aged 55 and over.
“We offer competitive deals on home loans, personal loans and credit cards, so there’s simply no reason to pay high interest rates,” Mr Weier said.
“At the start of the year I’d encourage people to take some time to compare the rates, products and customer service on offer and get a more competitive deal.”
