High prices lead to highest average credit card spend and balances since FICO records began

The FICO UK Credit Card Market Report for December 2023 reflects the usual season trends in spending and payments. However, it also reflects the impact of continued high prices on card balances. This latest report shows the highest levels of both average spend and average balances since 2006, when FICO first analysed credit card use and payments.

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The latest FICO UK Credit Report shows the highest levels of both average spend and average balances on UK credit cards since 2006, when FICO first analysed credit card use and payments. (Graphic: Business Wire)

Highlights

Average spend increased by 5.9% on the previous month, to £850
Average balances rose by 2.2% month-on-month and 7.2% year-on-year, leading to an average balance of £1,780
14.8% more customers missed a credit card payment month-on-month and 0.5% more compared to the same month in 2022
There has been a 1.3% decrease in the average balance for those customers missing one payment

Key Trend Indicators – UK Cards December 2023

Metric	Amount	Month-on-Month Change	Year-on-Year Change
Average UK Credit Card Spend	£850	+5.9%	+2.9%
Average Card Balance	£1,780	+2.2%	+7.2%
Percentage of Payments to Balance	36.6%	-0.2%	-4.9%
Accounts with One Missed Payment	1.7%	+14.8%	+0.5%
Accounts with Two Missed Payments	0.3%	+0.9%	+1.9%
Accounts with Three Missed Payments	0.7%	+7.7%	+5%
Average Credit Limit	£5,615	+0.1%	+0.8%
Average Overlimit Spend	£90	0%	-4.4%
Cash Sales / Total Sales	0.8%	-10.2%	+0.7%

Source: FICO

FICO Comment

Increases in spend always occur in December, and 2023 was no exception with a 5.9% month-on-month rise, taking the average spend to £850. This is the highest spend since FICO records began in 2006.

The average balance continued to trend upwards, as expected in the lead up to Christmas. December 2022 saw record average balances. In December 2023 that record was broken with average balances up 2.2% month-on-month and up 7.2% year-on-year. The average balance now stands at £1,780. It is anticipated that this trend will fall post-Christmas, however with prices remaining high lenders will want to monitor closely how much it will fall, and for how long it will remain lower.

Another pattern typical of December was the amount paid off credit card balances as shoppers focussed their cashflow on Christmas spending. In December 2023 the average balance paid off dropped slightly, by 0.16%, month-on-month. However, this measure has been trending down since July.

Pre-COVID, the average payment compared to the overall balance was approximately 30%, but with lockdown and increased savings this rose to 42%. The FICO data now shows this dropping back, although it is currently still 6% higher than before the pandemic.

Another sign of pressure on finances was the number of customers missing one, two and three payments. This increased from November to December 2023, with the largest increase seen for those missing one payment: a 14.8% increase month-on-month and a 0.5% increase compared to 2022. Again, seasonality influences results with similar volumes expected in January as a result of the post-Christmas spending hangover. Lenders will also want to be mindful that higher numbers of customers missing one payment in December are likely to roll over into two payments in January.

Issuers should note that established customers – those who have had their credit card between one and five years – are the most likely to miss payments. This group contains customers whose 0% offers have expired, and they are now paying off balances at the standard rate. FICO recommends monitoring this group for signs of vulnerability and indebtedness. Now is a great time to review existing collections strategies and examine whether anything more can be done to proactively identify and assist financially distressed customers.

These card performance figures are part of the data shared with subscribers of the FICO® Benchmark Reporting Service. The data sample comes from client reports generated by the FICO^® TRIAD^® Customer Manager solution in use by some 80% of UK card issuers. For more information on these trends, contact FICO.

About FICO

FICO (NYSE: FICO) powers decisions that help people and businesses around the world prosper. Founded in 1956, the company is a pioneer in the use of predictive analytics and data science to improve operational decisions. FICO holds more than 200 US and foreign patents on technologies that increase profitability, customer satisfaction and growth for businesses in financial services, insurance, telecommunications, health care, retail and many other industries. Using FICO solutions, businesses in more than 100 countries do everything from protecting 2.6 billion payment cards from fraud, to improving financial inclusion, to increasing supply chain resiliency. The FICO® Score, used by 90% of top US lenders, is the standard measure of consumer credit risk in the US and other countries, improving risk management, credit access and transparency. Learn more at www.fico.com.

FICO and TRIAD are registered trademarks of Fair Isaac Corporation in the U.S. and other countries.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240222259009/en/

For further comment on the FICO UK Credit Card activity contact:
FICO UK PR Team
Wendy Harrison/Parm Heer
ficoteam@harrisonsadler.com
0208 977 9132

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