Loans 'relied on by 2% at Christmas' - 16/11/2007

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The number of UK consumers who are depending on loans and credit cards to pay for their Christmas activities is just two per cent of the population, it has been stated.

A new study by Alliance & Leicester Mortgages found that two per cent of the 2,090 adults surveyed planned to fund the festive season with credit - a figures said by the institution to be evidence that people are planning for Christmas with greater efficiency.

"It is very encouraging to see that many people are planning ahead to budget for their moving costs and saving in advance to ensure it doesn't have a big impact on their Christmas," said director of mortgages at Alliance & Leicester Stephen Leonard.

The study found that 22 per cent of people choose the 12 weeks preceding Christmas to move house, with eight per cent expressing a willingness to move home during December.

About ten per cent of home-movers said that they had saved earlier in the year in order to cover the expenses associated with their move, while nine per cent planned to cut back on Christmas spending to compensate for the move's costs.

Chris Tapp, director of Credit Action, recently remarked that consumers are being forced to "tighten their belts" as credit becomes harder to acquire and more expensive to pay off.

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