Even after a decade of rock-bottom borrowing costs as low as two per cent, agencies that help Canadians overwhelmed by debt say their clients are still loading up on some of the most expensive debt in the market by borrowing on their credit cards.
Now as interest rates rise and sources of borrowing shrink, financial literacy experts worry that many more consumers will fall into the same trap of using that high-cost debt to cover day-to-day expenses.
Recent research by for-profit insolvency advisers BDO Canada Limited, conducted by the polling firm Ipsos, puts some colour on the Canadian credit card debt burden.