Nowadays, acquiring a small business loan in India is no longer a very complex process. But these days both online and offline scams have increased so much that if you aren't vigilant, it won't be hard for scammers to take advantage of you and steal your money. And if you are planning to seek a small scale business loan, and become a victim of financial fraud, it will ruin your whole business.
So in this article, we will cover how you can avoid becoming a victim of business loan scams so that you can become more careful and recognize the warning signs.
There are many lenders out there with attractive schemes and offers, but many of them are probably just scammers. So, before getting into anything, you need to do enough research on their company. But the best thing you can do is go with reputed lenders or companies like Peerless Finance. Your whole loan-taking process will be a lot safer and more seamless.
Scammers know a lot of tricks to scam you. One such trick is pretending to be a known reputed source. They can contact you via email, phone, or SMS using known reputed lenders' names and try to scam you with super attractive offers. And because they are using a reputed name, which you already know, it can be very hard to avoid such types of scams. So don’t just agree to their offer right away. You should always double-check your sources by verifying the sender's email or just calling their customer service and asking about the offer.
If you are going to apply for a loan online, make sure you are doing it from the lender’s official website. There are a lot of fake links on the internet, and some of them could even send you to a page that seems to be the same as the original page, but actually, they are not. That is why you should not open links from sources that you don’t know or trust. And avoid clicking links from unknown emails or SMS with appealing loan schemes to apply for a loan. Just directly type your lender's website address or visit their official website from Google.
You should check the legitimacy of your lender before seeking for a small business loan in India, and that means they should have a physical location or a registered office, right? So visit their office or branch and talk to them. You’ll be able to understand them a lot better. Also, check their ratings and reviews on Google Maps. And If they don’t have a physical address, it is
obviously a red flag.
Every genuine lender will do a credit history check and background check before giving approval for any business loan. If your lender provides speed loan approval without doing this, it can be a red flag most of the time. So try to avoid these kinds of loan schemes.
If the lender asks you to pay some amount upfront before loan approval, run away. This is a big red flag, and not worth the risk even if their offer is lucrative. Because genuine lenders like Peerless Finance never ask for any fees beforehand.
Always read the terms and conditions thoroughly before applying for a small scale business loan. Make sure you understand all the terms. If you do not understand something, contact and ask the lender to explain them to you. Do not sign any agreement before understanding everything.
Do not rush into anything that seems like it is too good to be true when you are planning to apply for a business loan. Greed is a common tactic used by scammers. So if you think something is suspicious, seek advice. Consider getting a loan from a trusted and well-known lender like Peerless Finance; you'll be safe.
Atanu Basak