Beware: Top 7 419 Scam Entrepreneurs Should Avoid In Lagos

Lagos is a fertile ground for business but business owners need to be very careful. As all that has been built can be reduced to nothing if a scammer penetrates. A lot of fraudsters in Lagos target businesses in the city either small or large scale. They prey on the weakness of the business owner and when they strike, a once wealthy business person can find himself in a precarious position.

Here are Seven419 scams business owners in Lagos should not fall for.

Credit Alert

It is commonplace for businesses in Lagos to transact without physical cash. This is fast, effective and eliminates the possibility of robbery especially when large sums are involved. Some fraudsters are using this method to defraud business owners. They claim money has been paid into the account and even send a fake text message to make it look like it is a credit alert. They use customized text message service which looks like an original credit alert. It is better to confirm payment independently so as not to fall victim of this kind of scheme.

Collateral

Fraudsters in Lagos usually target small or medium scale business when they want to execute this type of scam. They go to a shop, take all the goods they are interested in and tell the business owner to hold on to collateral while he or she goes with the goods to get money. There is the possibility that the item used as collateral is either stolen or not worth the good and you might not see the customer again.

READ ALSO: Lagos Travel Scam To Be Wary Of

Fake Apartment

Another scam targeted at small and sometimes, medium scale business is the one that involves the fraudster claiming to be staying in a particular apartment. The fraudster takes the goods which he has not paid for but lies that he stays in an apartment and thus he should be allowed to go and get money. As soon as the person goes inside, he either goes to hide in a room or worse, go to the backyard of the apartment and find a way to the next street and disappears into thin air.

Joint Business

The survival of a business is keyed into its growth and Lagosians are very aware of this. Business owners need to be wary of offers to merge business with someone else. While this might help to make the business grow well, landing in the wrong hands can cripple the business. Business owners must be able to tell an honest joint venture of safely ignore any offer that does not look true or too good to be true.

Late Delivery

Late delivery is another tactic used by fraudsters in Lagos. They receive money from business owners with the excuse to deliver the goods late. The lateness either provides ample time to run away or an avenue to doctor the goods. It is important that business owners monitor deliveries so as not to be caught in a web fraud.

Returned Goods

One method used by scammers in Lagos to dupe business owners is by returning good under the preteens that it was not what they originally wanted or are not buying anymore. There is the possibility that the items returned are not the same as the ones purchased which will be a great loss to the business owner.

READ ALSO: Why There Is Always Traffic In Lagos

Fake Cheque

This form of fraud is usually targeted at large scale business. Scammers have perfected the art of producing fake cheques which takes a trained eye to recognise as fake Business owners need to be very careful when accepting cheques especially from people they have rarely transact business with. The danger of receiving a fake cheque is that one can lose a very large amount of money at once.

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