Price comparison website Fool.co.uk is encouraging consumers to ask for lower rates of interest charged on credit cards.

According to the site, 75 per cent of consumer debt is interest bearing and that the annual percentage rate (APR) charged by most lenders is over three times higher than the Bank of Englands (BoE) base rate of five per cent.

In response to these figures, David Kuo, is urging credit card holders to confront their providers over the amount of interest they are being charged.

“APRs are not set in stone, and are open to negotiations. Fool.co.uk therefore urges card holders to ask their providers for a reduction in interest rates. Banks may want their cake and eat it, but we deserve a slice too,” he said.

One in three Fool.co.uk visitors believe the central bank should increase the cost of borrowing, research has found.

Recent figures from MoneyExpert.com have revealed that up to 18,000 credit card applications are rejected everyday.