Credit card ownership has reached an all time high in the last decade. More people rely on plastic than ever before. Now the credit crunch has swept in it is much more difficult to obtain a credit card, but they still have their uses. Recently we saw a swathe of XL customers loosing hundreds or even thousands of pounds after the collapse of the travel industry giant, yet those customers who bought their ticket using a credit card were re-imbursed in full. Many other purchases are also covered by the insurance that comes as a package with a good credit card. Transaction management companies such as Visa, MasterCard, Delta, Maestro and American Express will continue to prosper from card distributors as long as people take advantage of this. Providing the balance is settled before interest is applied, there has never been a better time to be a credit card customer.