A common question after a break up, and in some other circumstances, is whether a person can be liable for another person’s credit card debt.  Although the basic principle is that debt follows a person, there are some complications.
(more…)

When reducing credit card debt the first thing that a credit card user needs to remember is to spend less money than they are earning. This sounds simple and obvious but it is absolutely crucial in any process of paying off debt. Without this foundation then there is no real point in following any other strategy. (more…)

Credit cards were not invented on a blank sheet of paper.  They gradually evolved out of the payment card industry and through the growth of consumer credit.

Attitudes towards consumer debt gradually changed throughout the twentieth century.  At the beginning of the century it was not seen as respectable to use debt to finance the purchase of consumer goods.  It was done, but it was seen as the mark of a respectable person that they did not go into debt.  This was not a fixed attitude as it had been acceptable to buy a house with a mortgage (as middle class status was often tied up with property ownership) and in the 1920s with the growth of the motor car and many electrical goods there was a growth of consumer credit.
(more…)