Anyone planning to borrow money this Christmas should shop around for the best deals and “really, really avoid illegal money lenders”.

New research from the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) has found that one in three people will put themselves in debt to cover Christmas this year.

The study find that people plan to spend average of €1,000 this Christmas – with people aged 35 to 54 planning to spend the most.

People with children expect to spend nearly €1,400 – almost 80% more than those without, who plan on spending around €790.

On Breakfast Briefing this morning, CCPC Director of Communications Grainne Griffin said anyone planning to borrow should shop around for the best loans of offer.

“You need to find out what is the cheapest and most affordable form of credit for you,” she said.

“Very top of the list in terms of what consumers are planning to use is the credit card. While that is absolutely fine if you are paying off your bill in full every month, otherwise credit cards are among the most expensive forms of credit out there.

“So it is really worth your while looking for an alternative – maybe a personal loan from your credit union or something like that.”

Ms Griffin said people need to ask themselves whether paying off the credit card bill within a month is realistic.

“If you are shopping in November, the credit card bill is going to come in around Christmas,” she said. “Potentially the week before Christmas

“So, we would have concerns for a lot of people that it is not realistic they are going to pay it off in full and then you are straight into the realm of really, really high interest rates.

“It is one of the most expensive options out there so we would say really avoid at all costs if you can.”

She said ‘Buy Now Pay Later’ options have never been more widely available.

“Often, if you are shopping online now, you will just be offered buy now pay later at the checkout stage and it can seem very easy and appealing,” she said. “Spread your costs over a few months and it might make it a bit more manageable.

“What we are a saying to people is, if you are not already planning on using buy now pay later, really don’t be drawn in at the checkout.

“If you miss those payments or if you are late with payments, that can have really serious consequences.

“You can have penalty charges build up and also there is the potential of damaging your actual credit record which can be very serious later in life if you are looking for other loans like a mortgage.”

She said the most important thing to remember is to “really, really avoid illegal money lending”.

“There are formal money lenders out there,” she said. “You can go to our website and do a comparison of what is available in terms of the rates on personal loans, on credit cards and other forms of credit.

“So just consider those before you go to a money lender this Christmas.”

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