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I understand and I do not doubt that those people exist. However, they don't make up all credit card holders. There are still people who use a credit card rarely or only for emergencies.

Further, pointing out the distinction between these two groups does not strongly debunk the data. That's nit-picking, at best. This should still be concerning, even if it's improved over the past few years.

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However, the survey did distinguish between those who were paying off at the end of the month and those who weren't. A credit card balance that's paid off at the end of the month is effectively using cash.

Of course, whether cash or put on a credit card to be paid off at month's end, that doesn't really say anything about how painful that unexpected expense is. One can cover an expense and realize they're not going to be able to take a vacation this year. There's a continuum between "I can't pay this" and "Whatever."

But it's hard for me to see cash vs. checking account vs. credit card that will be paid off in a few weeks as materially different.

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