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Date Published : Monday, March 17, 2008
More than 375,000 people in the state of Victoria have three of more credit cards in order to juggle their growing debt problems, new research has revealed.
According to a study by Research Finance Intelligence, as many as 825,000 Victorians have more than one credit card, while 100,000 people across the state have five or more credit cards to pay for their lifestyles.
The growing problem of debt which is being put on to credit cards has been highlighted by the regional research, which also suggests that as many as 1.5 million Australians may have three or more plastic cards in their wallets.
In one case, a family owed $150,000 on seven different credit cards, all with varying rates of interest to pay back.
The Australian Financial Counselling and Credit Reform Association chairwoman Jan Pentland told the Herald Sun: "Many people who cannot afford [credit cards] are taking out more cards simply to pay off debts on others.
"It's not unusual for people we see to have six or more credit cards.
Ms Pentland added: "They come to us when they have exhausted their credit. These borrowers are desperate. They are taking up unsolicited offers on cards that they cannot afford to pay for.
"This is certainly an increasing and very worrying phenomenon."
Earlier this month, figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that credit card applications were falling slightly as a result of the recent interest rate rises from the Reserve Bank.
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As the global economy takes a battering, Australians could be forgiven for fearing the worst when it comes to their own nation's money matters.
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As the global economy takes a battering, Australians could be forgiven for fearing the worst when it comes to their own nation's money matters.
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