Credit used 'to appear wealthy'

Fri 18 Apr 2008 - Published in Credit Cards

Consumers across the country opt to take on more debt in order to appear wealthier to others, it has been claimed.

New research has revealed that quick decisions regarding someone's wealth are made when people first meet and therefore consumers are willing to splash out on goods in order to appear richer than they in fact are.

Clothes, jewellery, watches, shoes and a good haircut were all noted as indicators of wealth and Britons said they would splash out on these items in order to give the right impression, the study from Credit Expert found.

As well as this, gadgets such as iPods and BlackBerrys were also leading Britons to look for loans to carry on with their spending.

Jim Hodgkins, managing director of the firm, said: "Using credit to fund a lifestyle you can't really afford can lead to huge financial problems."

He added that it is important to keep up with payment on borrowing through loans and credit cards in order to ensure individual credit ratings do not slide.

Earlier this year, the firm said that fears over an economic downturn were leading to people deciding against moving house.

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