Bank Holiday Bonanza

Don’t despair! May Bank Holiday is around the corner. The only question is whether it will rain or not! Bank Holidays are often a chance to go on a bit of a shopping spree, and that’s fine for many. But you really need to think carefully before using one of those courtesy cheques to have a bit of fun.

Here’s an interesting statistic: 1 in 5 customers mistakenly believes the interest rate on purchases with courtesy cheques is effectively the same as that of a credit card, according to a December 2005 survey by More Th>n.

The Office of Fair Trading supports these findings, estimating in March 2006 that courtesy cheques cost Britons up to £57 million a year in unexpected interest charges and fees.