A FEW hours in Southampton’s city centre revealed how eager banks and shops are to lure consumers and even a third-year student like myself into obtaining credit.

In the space of a couple of hours I was able to get my hands on £7,000 of easy credit, simply by visiting four banks and seven shops.

My first stop was Barclays who I already have an account with. They were keen to offer a student card at 14.9 per cent APR with a credit limit of £600.

A credit check and application can be completed in five minutes and the card in my hand within five days.

Second on my list of banks was Natwest, who, upon my enquiry about the credit card took me into a sales room and shut the door.

Again, the application could be completed in minutes and the card issued within a few working days giving access to a £500 limit, a rate of 18.9 per cent with 56 days interest-free credit if the balance of my bill was paid in full and on time.

At HSBC I was offered a student credit card at 18.9 per cent and a limit of £500 with a similar 56-day interest free period.

The last bank I visited was Halifax who were eager for me not only to accept their 17.9 per cent student credit card but also to move my account to them with the promise of receiving the card the same day and a credit limit of £500.

All of this credit could be obtained within a week. So in the space of an hour I had the potential to have more than £2,000 at my fingertips.

Store cards are an even better way of plunging you further into debt.

The initial thrill of money off, no interest to pay, vouchers on your birthday and the ability to use the card without physically having it is then overshadowed by the huge amount of interest applied to further purchases.

The widest reaching store card is that of the Seven Network which covers BHS, Dorothy Perkins, Burton, Evans, Miss Selfridge, Outfit, Topman, Topshop and Wallis.

Signing up in any one of these stores will give you use of the card in all of them.

The majority of these shops have interest set at 29.9 per cent but Topman and Topshop start at 19.9 per cent variable.

When I enquired about the Topman account card I was briskly taken to the counter where I was bombarded with information about how I could spend on the card today if all was well with my credit check.

I entered River Island and was told that their “competitive”

19.9 per cent account card offered the all-too-familiar 56-day interest-free period with a £300-£500 limit based upon a credit check but also the promise of vouchers on my birthday to spend in store.

The Monsoon and Accessorize account card, an employee told me has the “best APR on the high street” starting at 17.5 per cent with a credit limit of up to £350. You get a £5 voucher for signing up and subsequent vouchers on your birthday.

Obtaining credit was incredibly easy despite my student status. In two hours I could have had well over £7,000 worth of credit to add on top of my student loan.