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Dubai/Fujairah/Abu Dhabi: Your flexible friend or your worst enemy? Credit cards have become the easy way of paying without having to carry cash, but when the bills come it's not all song and dance. Credit card debt is emerging as the next big problem for many.
A recent Gulf News poll showed that 42 per cent of respondents do not have a credit card, while those who did own a credit card said they used it mostly on daily and monthly purchases.
The main purchases were groceries, said 36 per cent of the respondents, and 15 per cent said they used the credit cards to pay utility bills. The remaining six per cent used it to pay school fees, rent, and car insurance.
City Talk took to the streets to find out if residents have credit cards, can they live without them, and if they were ever trapped by mounting debts.
Nahida Hannak, 35, an Indian travel agent, said: "I try my best to control [spending on credit cards] but it is mostly used for buying things on the internet or for big purchases. Credit cards are also good for emergencies, especially when you [cross] your ATM limit."
Zeeshan Ali, 25, a mortgage salesman from Pakistan, said: "I rarely use a credit card. I prefer to pay for things with cash. The only time I use a credit card is when I need to draw cash directly.
"I have never been in debt and do not wish to be in future."
Badaruddin M.C., 27, a sales executive from India, said: "I used to have a credit card but I cancelled it two months ago to escape potential debts and hidden charges. I was very careful not to get into debt and only had the card for emergency cases, but eventually I got tired of all the small hidden charges I was paying which I used to find only when I got my statements."
Fayez Mohammad Al Khouja, 44, a Jordanian marine inspector, said: "When I first came to the UAE, banks offered me cards but I have resisted and managed to get on without them. I like to only spend what I have and I don't want to get used to credit cards because everything then looks so tempting and you start buying things you don't really need."
Shams Saeed, 32, a teacher from India, said: "I can't live without it because I use it all the time and don't carry much cash with me. It's tortuous now that petrol stations have stopped accepting credit cards, and I have to run to the ATM machines. I monitor my bills and pay my expenses on time, so I've never faced a problem of running into large debts."
American sales representative Norman Hamden, said: "It's the American way to be in debt. I still owe the money for my house in America, so I am still in debt. I always pay my monthly bill on time and would rather charge everything on my credit card because I get Air Miles in return and can get to fly for free."
Amjad Sabri, 40, a marine engineer surveyor from Egypt, said: "I have two credit cards and my wife has one, and we deal with the cards in a cautious manner. We don't overspend and make sure we clear our debts within time.
"We prefer to use the credit cards so we don't have to carry cash and we use them for everything from our shopping to booking hotel rooms.
"There are certain services which will be hard to access without them, such as in the travel and tourism sector."
Mary Joy Delrosario, 30, a Filipina optometrist, said: "I think it's good to have a credit card if you only plan to use it for emergencies. But I have had a bad experience few years back after I applied for a card with my friends. I ended up spending every time I saw a 'sale' sign and bought things I never needed."
Nasr Mohammad, 39, a Palestinian engineer, said: "I have never had a credit card but I think it would be nice to have one so I am planning to apply for one. It gives a person some flexibility to their budget."
Richard Miller, 42, from the United States who works as a manager in a company, said: "I own credit cards but don't use them. It's very unwise to spend [through] credit cards without any checks.
"But it is a good option for emergencies. When I spend in an emergency situation I make it a point that I settle the bill in one go before it accumulates. Many years ago, I had a rough time with my credit card and ever since I am much more careful."
Josephine Fernandez, 42, a teacher from India, said: "Sometime back, we applied for a credit card and before we even used it, service charges were deducted from our account. So we requested to cancel the card immediately.
"Though it is often seen as a financial back-up, once you have a credit card it is very easy to trip into a fin-ancial trap. If a person gets trapped in one of these traps, it's never easy to get out."
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