Credit card debt soars as Britons ‘to borrow £100bn’ to cope with cost of living crisis

More than 5 million expect to seek credit to pay for daily expenses, YouGov survey warns, as borrowing rises at fastest rate since 2005

Credit card borrowing has risen at its fastest rate in 17 years as Britons are expected to borrow £100bn to cope with the cost of living crisis. The Bank of England monthly report showed annual growth of 13 per cent in credit card borrowing in July this year, its highest since October 2005.

It comes as a YouGov survey found that Britons expect to borrow a vast sum over the coming year, with 40 per cent saying that rising prices for fuel, food and energy will force them to seek credit in some form.

More than a fifth of those who expect to have to borrow – the equivalent of 8 per cent of the entire adult population, or 5.5 million people – said that they would do so to cover day-to-day expenses.