People give preference to credit cards

Not so long ago the well-known Citibank has conducted an independent survey and revealed that consumers prefer credit cards to personal loans though the latter have lower interest rates. People say that they cannot be bothered with the loan application, a survey reports.

Survey has covered about 1000 people, and one third of them (33%) said they would choose to pay for an item costing $3000 or more with a credit card. Only 10% of people chose taking a personal bank loan. The largest group of the polled people - 38%, is represented by the people who prefer paying from their personal savings. 20% of the responders said that while making large purchase they save money with their credit cards.

Citibank head of consumer lending Jacqueline Nissen said the two most important factors when people sought credit were the interest rate and ease of the application process.

"More and more customers are choosing to take out a personal loan because of the savings they can make, but people still rely on their credit card because it's quick and convenient," commented Mrs Nissen, head of consumer lending for Citibank. According to him the two most important factors when people seek credit are the interest rate and ease of the application process

It is interesting to note that a brand was the least important factor when selecting a personal loan