BBB warns of loan scams

NATICK, Mass. – The Better Business Bureau is warning individuals and small business owners to watch out for advance-fee loan scams, which the organization estimates has led to $250,000 in losses nationwide this spring.
BBB said the scams target people in desperate need of a loan by promising money regardless of credit history.
The victims are often told they have been approved for a loan after filling out an application that frequently requires the victim’s bank account and Social Security numbers. Then victims are asked for upfront fees.
The loan money never comes, and sometimes the victims are scammed into making more payments.
“Schemes preying on people looking for loans are not new, and they are flourishing in an economy when so many are struggling to get by,” said Paula Fleming, spokesperson for the Better Business Bureau. “The complaints received by BBB are only the vocal few and we know from experience that many more people across the country are falling for this scam every day – just when they can least afford it.”
BBB said it recently has received complaints about advance-fee loan scammers operating under more than 75 different names, including Capital Alliance Financial Group, Harford Financial Services, Howard and Clark Financial, Lending Hand Financial.
Often, the scam websites will be created and taken down within a couple weeks to be replaced by another operating under a different name and fake business address.