Britons borrow an average £452 each on credit cards at Christmas

Survey by uSwitch finds that half of people worry they will still be trying to clear the debt by next December

The Christmas spending hangover means that Britons who splurged on plastic will start 2018 owing an average of more than 450 on their credit cards - with many fearful the debt will still be haunting them by next Christmas.

Nearly 8.5bn has been loaded on to cards to cover the cost of gifts and entertaining, according to research by the price comparison service uSwitch, which found nearly a fifth of consumers had exceeded their Christmas budget as they grappled with rising living costs.