According to accountancy firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers, consumers in the UK face higher interest rates and fees on credit cards due to lenders struggling to cope with bad debt, funding constraints and a lower appetite for personal borrowing .
PWC said that the current model of fee-free credit cards was unsustainable, especially if the government continues its increasing regulation of the financial services industry. PWC partner Richard Thompson was reported as commenting: "Lenders will be unable or unwilling to increase supply sufficiently to match demand. This will leave consumers surprised at both the cost of credit and the difficulty in gaining access to it."
He reportedly commented on the bad debt situation: "This would have enormous implications for the profitability of credit cards in the UK market. Large-scale change within the sector over the next few years is inevitable."




