over 2bn to be spent todayLast minute Christmas shoppers will spend more than £2 billion today (Christmas Eve), according to Sainsbury's Bank.

The lender has estimated that £2.14 billion will be spent as shoppers look for presents, with some £380.9 million of this being spent on credit cards.

This of course could lead to a rise in the number of Britons with a bad credit score, as many will inevitably overstretch themselves in an attempt to provide for loved ones.

"It looks like the shops are going to be busy on Christmas Eve as a lot of people intend to do a significant part of their shopping then," said Donald MacLeod, head of cards at Sainsbury's.

"Our research would indicate that the overall spend in the Christmas Eve rush is going to be considerably up on last year’s," Mr Macleod added.

The British Retail Consortium has predicted that Christmas sales will be up this year as the result of a ten-day rush in the run-up to the big day itself.

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