Britain a nation of credit card loyalty

A new study indicates people in the UK tend to remain with their credit card provider for several years before switching.

14:32 01 June 2005

People in the UK tend to remain with their credit card provider for several years before switching, according to new research.

The Morgan Stanley credit card index has revealed that people in Britain tend not to be "rate tarts", staying with the same card company for six years before looking for a different deal.

As more and more credit card providers add charges to their zero per cent balance transfer offers, people in the UK are avoiding switching.

The survey showed that only eight per cent of the 30 million British cardholders are thinking about finding a new card in the next three months.

Only 19 per cent who have recently applied for a new credit card deal have been with their current provider for less than two years.

Marketing director for Morgan Stanley Consumer Banking, Patrick Muir, said: "Our research suggests that cardholders are wising up to short-term deals, as the majority of those currently switching or planning to switch are not moving from one short-term offer to another."