South Africans facing debt challenges are being cautioned about scammers impersonating legitimate debt counsellors.
The National Credit Regulator (NCR) says more than half of the country’s 27 million credit active consumers have impaired credit records, making them vulnerable to fraud.
CEO of DebtBusters Benay Sager says consumers should be cautious of unsolicited callers claiming to represent the NCR.
Sager has urged people to report incidents to their bank and the NCR.
“If they are suggesting that they are calling you from the National Credit Regulator or they’re calling you with the mandate of the National Credit Regulator, it’s usually false or fake information. The National Credit Regulator is unlikely to call any consumer directly unless you have a specific question that you relate to them. And they will definitely knock you out any consumer’s details to any entity. And I think what these entities sometimes do is they will package something that says you are being overcharged in terms of your interest rates, or you’re being illegally charged or be calling you from the NCR. If you hear those kinds of phrases, I would immediately stop and finish the conversation. I would not take it any further. So, I think those are some of the ways for our listeners to spot if there could be a potential scam,” says Sager.
