That'll do nicely to the tune of ?12bn

Credit and debit card spending rose to record levels in March. The total reached £12.6bn compared with £10.2bn in the same month last year, according to new figures from the Credit Card Research Group.

Spending on credit cards rose 23.2% to £6.5bn from £5.3bn, while expenditure using debit cards increased even more rapidly to £6.1bn from £4.9bn, a gain of 25.7%.

Separate figures from the British Bankers' Association reveal that the total debt outstanding on credit cards jumped to £29bn in March from £24.5bn a year ago, equal to around £675 per card.

"This does suggest some overheating in the economy," warned CCRG researcher Amy Brown. Some of the increase in volumes comes from the greater use of cards at smaller businesses, but even in mature markets such as high street shops and petrol stations, spending "on plastic" is rising rapidly.

"Considering clothing is a mature market for cards, with most shops already accepting plastic, a gain of 25% is surprising," said Ms Brown.

The March spending figures are the highest on record apart from the £14.5bn last December - Christmas is traditionally the biggest spending month of the year.

A spokesman for Barclaycard said: "What you are seeing is a surge in the number of people transferring their spending patterns away from cash and cheques and onto plastic."

The figures will add to fears about growing indebtedness among UK consumers. The Financial Services Authority chairman, Howard Davies, recently called on mortgage providers to restrain lending, partly because the burden of credit cards and personal loans is expanding so rapidly.

The number of cards in consumers' wallets and purses has also continued to surge, with the total reaching nearly 90m cards. This is the equivalent of almost two cards for every man, woman and child in the UK. The figure compares with 82m a year ago.

Spending on services showed the greatest gain dur ing March, rising 74% to £1.7bn from £976m. The CCRG says the leap is largely the result of small businesses such as plumbers and dry cleaners using swipe machines for the first time.

Food and drink showed the smallest gain, up 6% to £2.6bn. Clothing, household and motoring spending rose between 20-30%.

Monthly card spending figures are notoriously erratic, but the six-month moving averages reveal a marked upswing.

In early 1999 spending growth on credit cards was running at an average of 12-13% compared to 18% over the past six months, while debit card growth has increased to 25% from 15%.