Avoiding fake offers
How to avoid fake offers.
How to avoid fake offers.
Cold-calling telemarketers, salespeople at the door ... how do you know if the deals they're offering are genuine?
We regularly publish stories about people who are taken in by a plausible or high-pressured sales pitch. Put on the spot over the phone or at the front door, it's only later they find out they've been taken for a ride. Learn the right questions to ask with our handy checklist, and protect yourself from fraudsters.
Ask unsolicited callers where they got your contact details from and why they think you want what they're offering. Note down their answers.
Ask for everything in writing, including details of the product or service offered and full contact details of the person and business you are dealing with.
Look at the details you have been given and answer the following questions for yourself:
Is the person or organisation legitimate?
Is the company legitimate?
Is the charity legitimate?
Is the publication legitimate?
Is the individual legitimate?
If you were able to quickly and easily find the answers to the background check questions and received prompt, clear and consistent information, then you have gone a long way towards protecting yourself from fraudsters.
However, you may not have been able to get the answers you were looking for, or they may seem inconsistent or unbelievable. Trust your instincts. If you're not satisfied then don't do business with them. It's up to the other party to prove that they're legitimate. It's not up to you to prove they're not.
If your suspicions are raised, consider discussing your concerns with the Police, the Commerce Commission or the relevant industry body.
If you are dealing with a company and are suspicious of their credibility, remember you don't have to pay anything just because they say they have a contract. Get advice from a lawyer, Community Law Centre, Citizens Advice Bureau or other authority first.
Remember: if it seems too good to be true — it probably is.
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