As we leave behind the years of cheap and obtainable debt that we experienced during the economic growth period of the last few years, millions of people are waking up to the fact that their credit card borrowings are too high to be maintained for long. Even if your fiscal position hasn't been affected by the credit crunch, many credit card companies have been increasing their interest charges in defiance of the near-zero base rates determined by the central banks. The upshot is that servicing the monthly repayments is getting more and more challenging.

And of course, many credit card holders have seen their incomes dropping during the credit crunch, and so millions of us now face the dilemna of being unable to make our credit card repayments and getting into arrears. What is the effect of this?

The first thing to do is to keep your head. Although a serious matter, credit card debts are unsecured and so your creditors can't force you to sell your home to clear the balance, nor can they have it seized from you.

Likewise, you can't be arrested or put in prison for failing to keep up with your commitments. You can of course be sued, but this willl be a civil matter rather than a criminal one.'

Actually, most banks would prefer not to take legal action as it is costly, not particularly good at recovering the debt, and poor publicity. Because of this, card sompanies are usually ready to negotiate a reduced monthly payment that you will be able to handle more easily. You may also ask for interest charges to be frozen so that you can get back in control of your debts, but this is less likely to succeed.

The idea of calling up your creditors and asking for help can be intimidating, but there is plenty of help available from debt charities who can advise you on the best course of action, and may even take your case on and talk terms on your behalf.

So, if you find yourself unable to pay your credit card arrears, don't hope things will take care of themselves: take some pre-emptive action and take advantage of the help that's available.

Article provided by Debt Nation, where you can read more information about handling credit card arrears along with other articles on money problems.