Overlimit? Dude, that’s so over. At least, that’s what the latest data from the FICO® Benchmark Reporting Service suggests.
According to our latest report, the percentage of standard credit cards with overlimit balances has fallen from 2.6 percent in March 2012 to 1.9 percent in March 2014. The percentage of cards with overlimit balances also dropped for student, premium and Irish cards, with student cards falling the furthest, from 5.3 percent in March 2012 to just 2.4 percent in 2014, a 55 percent drop.
Average credit lines are going up, which could account for some of this trend. But in fact, overlimit accounts are falling faster than credit lines are rising. Chalk this one up to good lessons on credit management learned during the UK’s difficult recession. Will those trends last as the economy continues to expand?
