Consumer debt is on the rise as Americans struggle to keep up with loan payments and growing inflation across the U.S. Local news in the state of Washington, King 5, reported this week on the billions of dollars in late fees credit card issuers charged borrowers in 2020 and the burden it’s placed on Americans – especially in the face of inflation rates.

“The rising inflation rate is only part of the current challenge to Americans. According to a report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), credit card issuers charged $12 billion in late fees in 2020.
Credit card late fees and interest add on to consumers’ borrowing debt, but according to Experian - mortgages and auto loans, by far the two largest components of a consumer's budget, experienced the fastest year-over-year growth of any debt category. Experian’s Q3 2021 report revealed Consumer debt balances increased by 5.4% to $15.31 trillion, a $772 billion increase from 2020.”

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