Credit cards could be the best option for foreign travellers
Credit cards could be the best option for foreign travellers.
Cash might still be the most popular way of paying for purchases when abroad, but holidaymakers have been advised that credit cards could be a better option.Research conducted by Santander shows 52 per cent of Britons took cash with them when they last went abroad, while 20 per cent primarily relied on credit cards, 15 per cent on debit cards and five per cent used traveller's cheques.
However, with considerable amounts of money being spent, Vim Maru, director of retail products at Santander UK, believes cash needs to be called into question.
Indeed, he reasons that credit cards offer the greatest advantages when it comes to making purchases abroad.
"The reliance on cash does raise some concerns: one, is it safe to carry large sums of money; and two, is cash the cheapest way to pay for items whilst out of the UK?" Mr Maru asked.
"Britons do believe that credit and debit cards do not get great rates of exchange, but this is simply not the case - the exchange rate on cards tends to be very close to the daily wholesale rates."
According to the study, the average person spends £207 a week when they are abroad.
Another way in which consumers can make use of credit cards is by taking out a zero per cent balance transfer credit card to help reduce interest payments on any debts accrued while on holiday.
However, Sun columnist Shaf Rasul advised recently that consumers should not use zero per cent balance transfer credit cards as an opportunity to go on another spending spree with supposedly "free" money, as this tactic could lead to serious problems in the future.
Posted by Barbara Wintergreen
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