British consumers borrowed a record amount in February in what some economists said was a sign the cost of living crisis was hitting their wallets, even before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine pushed up energy prices.

Individuals borrowed a net £1.5bn via credit cards in February, the highest monthly amount since records began in 1993, according to figures released by the Bank of England on Tuesday.

The figure was more than triple the average borrowing of £400m in the first six months and pushed total consumer credit, including personal loans and car dealer financing, to £1.9bn, the highest level in five years.

Consumer borrowing is often seen as a measure of spending growth, but with inflation at its highest in 30 years and consumer confidence falling, some economists warn it is increasingly a sign that consumers are struggling to maintain their living standards. Indebted.

“Weak sentiment also suggests that the sharp rise in consumer borrowing in February may reflect households trying to keep spending amid a sharp drop in real disposable income, rather than their spending spree,” UK chief economist Samuel Samuel said. Samuel Tombs said. Macroeconomics at consulting firm Pantheon.

The data “suggests that the economic recovery is about to downshift,” he added.

The latest money and credit data “suggests that consumers are increasingly borrowing to protect their lifestyles from soaring inflation”, agrees Thomas Pugh, UK economist at RSM UK, a UK-based accounting firm.

However, Paul Dales, chief UK economist at consultancy Capital Economics, said the increase was more likely a reflection of households’ “confidence in borrowing and spending more”. As a result, he predicts that “the economy may have a little more near-term momentum than we think”.

A biweekly survey by the Office for National Statistics last week found 12% of respondents used their credit cards more than usual to cope with price increases in the first half of March. That rises to 18 per cent among 30 to 49-year-olds and 21 per cent among renters. Another 1 in 10 said they had also borrowed more money from family and friends.

Debt charity StepChange reported on Tuesday a rise in the proportion of people seeking advice who said cost of living pressures were a reason for their debt in February.

Peter Tutton, head of policy, research and public affairs at StepChange, said: “We are increasingly seeing people with problem debt not only unable to meet their credit repayments, but also unable to meet their priority bill.”

He called on Chancellor Rishi Sunak to “find a way to provide more and more targeted support to those who simply cannot fit the cost of living increase into their household budgets”.

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said on Monday that Britain faced a “historic” hit to real incomes this year as soaring energy costs following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine reduced household spending power.

Data from the Bank of England showed that consumers are also saving less in bank accounts than before the pandemic. Household deposits in banks and building societies stood at £4bn, below the £6.3bn average for the previous six months and below the monthly average of £4.6bn in 2019.