Beware!
Mis-selling and fraud are common... very common indeed.
You — and only you — can protect your money. No one else will do it for you.
To make it easy for you, I am listing below 5 precautions that you must always take, when it comes to investing your money.
a) Don't (blindly) trust anyone
It is a misconception that mis-selling is mainly perpetrated by unscrupulous agents. No. Even the large, reputed and most trusted bankers, insurance companies and mutual funds have been known to mis-sell financial products to their unsuspecting clients, to meet their commission targets. Therefore, first and foremost, don't trust ANYONE...and I mean ANYONE.
b) Don't skip researching before you invest
The only solution to not being sold a dud investment is...research. There is tons and tons of information available on the internet. And the best part, most of it is free. So all you have to do is Google about the product you are being sold. You will get many informed and unbiased opinions. If you don't want to lose money, you have to make some efforts.
c) Don't fall for illusory 'massive' returns
No investment will give you 'extraordinary' returns. So please don't get conned by the oldest trick in the book...Greed. Even if, for a moment, we assume that such a great investment exists, do you think someone will tell you about it? No one is foolish enough to offer you a scheme that gives you 15-20% returns, while he is happy with only 2-3% commission.
d) Don't believe that complex products are good
Complex products have never made money that Simple products can't. Complex products are merely designed to confuse investors. In fact, my personal experience has been that even the sellers themselves don't understand such complex products. Hence, don't feel ashamed if you are unable to make sense of any particular product. Rest assured, you will do yourself a big favour by saying 'no' to it.
e) Don't let anyone else fill up the form on your behalf
Please, please, please fill-up the forms for any investment YOURSELF. Do not leave any part blank. I have seen people merely sign the form and leave it for the agent to fill-in the details. Remember, if you are in a hurry, so are the agents. So, in haste they may fill up wrong information, which will ultimately 'hurt' you. In fact, there have even been many instances of deliberate frauds.
In short, do take 'good' care of your hard-earned money.
You owe it to your family.
Mis-selling and fraud are common... very common indeed.
You — and only you — can protect your money. No one else will do it for you.
To make it easy for you, I am listing below 5 precautions that you must always take, when it comes to investing your money.
a) Don't (blindly) trust anyone
It is a misconception that mis-selling is mainly perpetrated by unscrupulous agents. No. Even the large, reputed and most trusted bankers, insurance companies and mutual funds have been known to mis-sell financial products to their unsuspecting clients, to meet their commission targets. Therefore, first and foremost, don't trust ANYONE...and I mean ANYONE.
b) Don't skip researching before you invest
The only solution to not being sold a dud investment is...research. There is tons and tons of information available on the internet. And the best part, most of it is free. So all you have to do is Google about the product you are being sold. You will get many informed and unbiased opinions. If you don't want to lose money, you have to make some efforts.
c) Don't fall for illusory 'massive' returns
No investment will give you 'extraordinary' returns. So please don't get conned by the oldest trick in the book...Greed. Even if, for a moment, we assume that such a great investment exists, do you think someone will tell you about it? No one is foolish enough to offer you a scheme that gives you 15-20% returns, while he is happy with only 2-3% commission.
d) Don't believe that complex products are good
Complex products have never made money that Simple products can't. Complex products are merely designed to confuse investors. In fact, my personal experience has been that even the sellers themselves don't understand such complex products. Hence, don't feel ashamed if you are unable to make sense of any particular product. Rest assured, you will do yourself a big favour by saying 'no' to it.
e) Don't let anyone else fill up the form on your behalf
Please, please, please fill-up the forms for any investment YOURSELF. Do not leave any part blank. I have seen people merely sign the form and leave it for the agent to fill-in the details. Remember, if you are in a hurry, so are the agents. So, in haste they may fill up wrong information, which will ultimately 'hurt' you. In fact, there have even been many instances of deliberate frauds.
In short, do take 'good' care of your hard-earned money.
You owe it to your family.