A new study finds that cardholders between the ages of 40 and 44are 12% more likely to go seriously delinquent on a credit cardthan a cardholder age 19.

Serious card delinquency is defined as being more than 90 dayslate on a card account payment.

Researchers from the FederalReserve Bank of Richmond and ArizonaState University analyzed data from the New York FederalReserve Bank's Consumer Credit Panel and Equifax to conduct whatthey said is the first serious study of the relationship of age andcard default.

The researchers acknowledged that the data showed younger cardaccount holders had higher rates of 30-60 day delinquency, but that“the magnitude of the differences in minor delinquency across agesis much smaller than those we find for serious delinquency.”

The study also did not attribute the better card behavior amongyounger borrowers to the Credit Card Accountability andResponsibility Act. Researchers deliberately looked at data comingfrom both before and after the Act was implemented to evaluatecardholder behavior.

The CARD Act made opening a credit card account for someoneunder 21 years of age illegal, unless the young adult had acosigning co-applicant or could otherwise prove they had a means ofrepaying debt incurred on the card.

“Using the passage of the Act to identify the selection effectwe find that individuals who would have chosen to enter the creditcard market early in the absence of the Act are less likely toexperience serious delinquency or default than the individuals whoenter the credit card market later,” the researchers wrote.

“Furthermore, these individuals are more likely to be homeownersearly in life. We interpret these results as indicating that someyoung individuals choose to enter the credit card market toestablish a credit record and thus facilitate the transition tohome ownership. Our findings contrast with the view that youngindividuals get credit cards early primarily as a response toaggressive advertising to this demographic group,” the researcherswrote.