Abbey has launched a new credit card aimed at helping consumers whose finances are being squeezed by the increasing cost of living and the credit crunch.

This latest card in Abbey's innovative product range offers 3% cashback on supermarket and petrol purchases for the first six months, plus 0% on balance transfers for nine months and 0% on purchases for three months from account opening.

Roger Lovering, managing director of Abbey Credit Cards, said: "The increasing cost of living, combined with the credit crunch, means families need all the help they can get to cover the cost of their weekly shopping essentials - which is why we developed this cashback card. This is the third in the series of innovative credit cards launched by Abbey since we brought our credit card business back in house last year."

Other features of the Abbey 'cashback for essentials' card include:

• 18.9% APR on all balance transfers and purchases (after the respective introductory offer periods)
• 7.9% cent APR on cash advances (calculated from the day of withdrawal)
• Customers with an Abbey Zero card can also apply for this card, but will not be eligible for the 0% balance transfer offer

Michelle Slade of Moneyfacts said: "The rising cost of food and petrol has been hitting customers hard and, unlike some other household expenses, these are not something we can do without. By offering cashback on these essentials, Abbey is refunding part of this increase back to customers, which will make the increased costs easier to bear. By coupling the cashback with 0% deals on balance transfers and purchases, many will find this card really suits their requirements."

Andrew Hagger of Moneynet said: "This is a timely and innovative launch from Abbey. With consumers struggling to make ends meet, and the added expense of Christmas just around the corner, they will welcome this opportunity to earn some cash back without having to change their shopping habits. The fact that you only have to wait a month to receive your cash back reward will undoubtedly prove a popular selling point."

Abbey brought its credit card business back in house last year, and the Abbey 'cashback for essentials' card is its third major innovation since then. The first was the popular 5% supermarket cashback deal which launched in September 2007. The second was the Abbey 'Zero' card, which was the first card to offer no balance transfer fee, no foreign exchange fee and no cash advance fee.

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