August 26
Yesterday morning, I received a call. The number was not in my contact. I picked up the call. The woman on the other line introduced herself and mentioned a company name. A lending company. She asked me if I know a certain person. A red alert started flashing in my head.
I asked her again about her company. She replied accordingly and then asked me again if I know the person she mentioned. I reluctantly said yes. Then she asked me if I could tell the person concerned that she is one day overdue for the monthly payment of her loan!
"EXCUSE ME?!!!!"
Greetings once again my dear readers and friends! Have you ever used at least one of these mobile loan apps?
Screenshot of Mobile Loan Apps in Google
If you did, how was your experience with it? Would you like to share it in the comment below? (Without naming the company please).
Anyway, I got irritated when the call center agent asked me to relay a message to their client on their behalf. I asked why (while trying to be polite as possible).
She reasoned I was listed as a reference person by their client. That's when I lost my cool.
Created Using PixelLab
Looking Back.
*It's not the first time that my name and number were given as a "reference person" by someone I know to a financing/lending company. The first time was about 5 years ago.
My name and the number was given by a person whom I have not spoken to for years. The caller said that I was listed as the reference person of their client whom they can not contact. The caller asked me if I could relay a message to that person. I said I will try but I said I have no contact with that person anymore.
The next day, I received another call from a different number. The caller asked the same thing, so I explained again that I no longer have contact with that person.
But in the succeeding days, they kept calling me that I already memorized their script. There was a time when I interrupted the caller and gave my reply to her unasked questions. However, they kept calling me for weeks. Sometimes they would call just after dawn or sometimes during dinner time.
I threatened the succeeding callers that I will file harassment charges against their company. I would tell them that I am recording their calls as evidence of their harassment. After a while, they finally stopped calling.
Reference Person
I think these financing and online lending companies don't know or simply abuse the definition of "reference person".
I told the caller earlier that the "reference person" should be used or contacted only to verify the credibility of their client before they approve the loan. They should NOT use the "reference person" as their collector or messenger!
I think she was still about to continue with her script when I hang up the phone.
A short while after the call, I saw the person concerned. I told her about her "one day" overdue. She was puzzled like she did not know why I was contacted. She thought maybe the app got it from her contact list.
I have heard of this sneaky way of accessing the contacts in their client's phones. To use their app, and thus avail of their financing services, the users must allow the app to have access to the contacts of their phones.
If you receive promotional text messages offering you "quick and easy loans". most probably they got your number from someone who has your number.
Unauthorized/ Unethical Use of Contacts
The client told me that, although she did authorize the app to have access to her contacts, she did know they will start calling those people and tell them about her loan.
I told her that I have heard such cases in the news before.
Checking The Reviews.
I went to Google Playstore and checked the ratings and reviews. The app concerned got an average 4.4/5 rating. However, the comments told me more than the above-average ratings.
At least one comment mentioned the company called her contacts without authorization.
0utrageous Charges
The most common complaint though is the outrageous charges by the company. The initial loan is PHP 2,000. But the client will only receive PHP 1,300 and have to pay PHP 2,010 in 7-14 days. I think they are making it appear that the interest is only 0.5%. However, the other charge (probably the service charge) is PHP 700.
I think the government bodies like the SEC, BSP and other departments concerned should take a look at this ridiculous malpractice or abusive practice of online lending companies.
In Closing.
I will make this short. As much as possible, stay away from these online lending and financing companies who promise "low interest".
Thanks For Reading.
This article was first published in Read.Cash