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Most second cards are free, but Lloyds charges its Access cardholders pounds 6 for a second card.So much for the costs. If you are not a borrower, or only very occasionally take extended credits, the perks count more General Motors has proved consumers like incentives. Having launched in the UK in January last year, the GM Card now has more than 500,000 holders. Every pounds 20 charged to the card earns pounds l off a new Vauxhall up to pounds 500 a year. So far, more than 10,000 cars have been bought using credit card redemptions.The Leeds Visa card has made it into the Guinness Book of Records twice for its charitable money raising efforts. By March this year, it had donated pounds 6.lm to three charities – the British Heart Foundation, Mencap and Imperial Cancer Research Some 20p is donated for every pounds 100 spend on the card. In addition, those spending more than pounds l,500 a year on their card have their pounds 12 annual fee refunded or pounds 7 refunded and pounds 5 given to charity.Barclaycard this year added Barclays Assist to its range of perks.

It provides legal, roadside and domestic assistance, down to finding a number for a local plumber if the cardholder’s pipes burst. Barclaycard believes such free extras appeal strongly to consumers.Usability is the final vital ingredient of any credit card. Visa claims 12 million retail outlets take its card in more than 200 countries. MasterCard boasts 12.3 million and Amex comes in at 3.9 million. A spokeswoman for Amex said problems with retailers shunning the Amex charge card because of the high cut it exacted were in the past. Amex has reduced the amount it takes from retailers.Availability of holes in the wall is not an issue in the UK as few people use credit cards for withdrawing cash.

Interest rates charged on cash withdrawals are usually higher than on purchases and cash handling charges of 1.5 per cent are standard. Amex’s annual interest rate on cash is highest at 26 per cent. RBS MasterCard charges the least at 14.5 per cent.Charging procedures also vary. Barclaycard and NatWest both give a 56 day interest-free period on cash withdrawals, but if the bill is not cleared, Barclaycard charges interest from statement date and NatWest charges from date of cash withdrawal.Despite cost, credit cards can be useful for obtaining cash abroad. Visa has 160,000 cash dispensers world-wide, MasterCard 128,000 and Amex 90,000.Credit cards have very different costs and benefits depending on use Chronic borrowers should aim for the lowest interest rate.