The phrase 'Christmas cards' is taking on a new meaning this year, as UK payments association Apacs finds two-thirds of all festive spending is likely to be via plastic.

And with more than a third of this to be funded through credit cards - rather than debit cards - 22 per cent of consumers could be left with interest accruing on their borrowing in the new year.

Debt consolidation loans could be a way for those people to address their financial situation, lowering overall monthly repayments and uniting all forms of borrowing into a single loan.

Sandra Quinn, director of communications at Apacs, notes that debit cards remain a popular means of paying for goods in-store.

"Whether buying the turkey or stocking fillers, we're most likely to be using our debit card to pay for them this Christmas," she explains.

But online, credit cards form the majority of expenditure, "which makes sense because of the extra consumer protection they provide".

Research conducted earlier this year by IFA Promotion found that while 21 per cent of Britons made a new year's resolution to improve their finances, more than a quarter allowed their resolve to slide before the end of January.

Debt consolidation loans could be the ideal way of ensuring this does not happen in 2008 by putting in place a fixed repayment schedule.ADNFCR-1287-ID-18359292-ADNFCR

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