UK credit card borrowing surges amid cost of living crisis

Concerns that low-income households are turning to expensive forms of lending as inflation soars

A surge in credit card borrowing to a record high last month has prompted concerns that low-income households are turning to expensive forms of lending to cope with rising costs of food, clothing and fuel.

Figures from the Bank of England showed credit card borrowing jumped by 1.5bn in February to 59.5bn - the highest since records began in 1993 - pushing the total amount of unsecured lending up by 90% on the prior month to 1.9bn.