Banks - still forcing credit on the young

runninglea

My friends son whom has just turned 18 went into the bank to draw money out, whilst he was there the cashier looked at his statement realised he was now working full time and told him he was able to get a credit card.

He hadnt gone in with the intention of getting a credit card and never thought about one - no wonder we all get into debt with people throwing it as us especially when we are young and naive.

stephen88

I agree, my little sister,my girlfriend and myself all received a credit card when we just turned 18 and worst of all was that they just sent it through the door all we had to do was activate it and yet when i all goes wrong the bank blames those with the cards however i would like to see the stats on just how many of those in debt started when they were around 18-19

runninglea

Yes I know I did - first store card was Burtons when I only went in to buy a shirt and trousers, came out with a card but had 10% off.

Dont know how much that cost me over the years

kaz0705

I worked for Abbey when I was 18 and they told me to sign up for a credit card so they could meet their sales totals for the day! Wished I'd realised just how messed up that was!

barbiedoll

If you posted this on some of the other boards, you would no doubt get a lecture about if you're old enough to use a bank, you're old enough to not get yourself in debt, etc etc. But 18 yr olds are uneducated about money, are easily tempted by the thought of easy credit and as such, are sitting ducks for the financial industry who love to take advantage of them. The guy with the Burton's card is a classic example. Whenever I go to a clothes shop (not often now, sadly ), I'm always asked if I want a store card. And the 10% off is a tempting offer, although I'm now old enough and wise enough to know that 38% interest more than cancels out the discount! This is why Martin has been pushing for compulsory financial education in schools, it's a minefield out there for all of us, let alone young people. Pushing credit cards (or debt cards as we MSE folk call them!) onto kids is disgraceful, the banks should be made to stop this practice immediately. The hard sell by the banks is an outrage, especially at the moment, it's not like they're not making enough profit, without encouraging the next generation to spend their life in debt. Grrrrr :mad::mad:

vaporate

I'm afraid its a dog eat dog world.

The cashier is forced to meet targets by their employer , the bank.

They are punished no doubt in some way if they fail to meet targets.

At 18 I knew the traps about this and at 24 I still have not used a credit card once.

In fact, out of pure nosiness, I applied for a credit card with natwest to see what limit they would offer me.

Guess how much? £3000.

I declined to sign the credit agreement at the end, well tick the box on online banking application.

No thanks lol

I don't like the idea of having £2200 savings with natwest and a possible debt of £3000 wth them.

mummum2

Since I've been a DFW and finding this site, I have told my children (son age 21, daughter age 13) not to get a credit card. My son has no credit card(s), my daughter although young has the same mindset...i.e. "so if the bank borrow me £20.00, I have to repay them doubt that?" told her 'Yes' and her repay is "well I will make sure that I always save for what I want...if I don't have it will save...isn't that right mummy?" lol:lol...so education from us is key. But if I'm honest would probably not instilled this in my children if I didn't find my LBM back in 2006 and listened to :money:

I truly wished that my parents told me that when I was younger, my children understands that I made a mess of my finances and that I don't them to do the same.....I'm hoping/praying that their only debt will be a mortgage when ready. It's so nice to think yet buy now, pay if off later, but the compound interest is the killer and we must try and teach our children that! Don't mean to preach! but I truly think it's important.

MM2

LilacPixie

THink that just shows how important it is we teach our kids about financial responsibility, compond interest etc. Or alternatively to just say no.

scottishblondie

I agree that banks shouldn't be throwing credit at people, but I think the real problem is a lack of education when it comes to how credit works. There is nothing wrong with using it sensibly, but you have to know how to do that before you get into it!!

I was recently quite shocked when I called my bank to extend my credit card limit to pay for repairs to my car, and rather than a £1k limit increase was offered a £5k loan. I didn't actually need to use my CC to pay for the repairs (I just prefer to use cards to budget my spending, get the airmiles and have the money in the bank for a little longer) and the girl on the phone didn't seem to understand why I wouldn't want to take up their amazing loan offer!

runninglea

Well done to Vapourate but most young people will take the credit card and not think they will use it but they do and before they know it the limit is used

Watalie

Most young people will just take the "free money" I know I certainly did. I love my parents to bits but they were rubbish with Money and I inherited that lack of restraint.

I'm 34 this year and won't be debt free till I'm 36 which isn't too bad all told but it's still making it difficult for me to get a mortgage because of past mistakes.

I got my first credit card - a Nat West Visa, back in 1994, I was 18. I earned.... wait for it.... £4,500 a year - my credit limit was £2k. I shudder to think how long I spent paying it off.

What I'd really like to see is lessons in school about good money management. Although I will teach my kids from an early age about money responsibility. I don't want them to go through what I have been through these last few years, paying it all off.