Sometimes investors can't immediately see what they're getting into. Consumer advocates say which points savers should be suspicious of.
- For many savers, security is one of the most important investment criteria.
- But not all offers that promise security are serious, warn consumer advocates.
- There are certain points where savers should become suspicious.
Many savers * in Germany rely on security. No wonder that many (50 percent) leave their money in their current account. This was the result of a report by the German Press Agency (dpa) according to a current representative survey by Kantar on behalf of Postbank. Every third person parks money in their savings account (34 percent), reports dpa. Many would find low interest rates less threatening than possible fluctuations in the price of stocks, so the conclusion.
Nevertheless, dubious sellers manage to sell questionable products again and again, according to the report. Especially in the Corona crisis, which can exacerbate fear and financial worries, key terms such as “security” or “interest” seem to be drawn to many people who fall for such providers.
Investors should pay attention to this - what consumer advocates say
There are many offers that promise top interest rates and security - but in the end savers would get exactly the opposite, the dpa report said. This can be seen, for example, with many offers on the Internet, where sometimes top interest rates and security are promised - in the end, however, savers get exactly the opposite. According to Stiftung Warentest, some offers are risky, others are even fraudulent, in the magazine “Finanztest” (issue 8/2020).
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Warning signs that may indicate traps are, according to the report:
High returns : Again and again, providers would lure with fantastic returns of up to 7.5 percent. Such interest rates are far from the usual market level, according to the report: According to FMH Finanzberatung, the average interest rate for fixed deposits with a term of 12 months is currently 0.18 percent, reports dpa.
Security : What about the promise of security ? Sometimes the term “guarantee” is used, sometimes the term “deposit protection” appears. That may be true in many cases. "The system is often anything but safe," said Annabel Oelmann from the Bremen consumer center as quoted in the report.
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Unclear conditions : Consumers should clarify the crucial questions if anything is unclear : who the contract partner is, how long the contract runs, whether there is a homepage with an imprint. And ask yourself, for example, whether the contract partner's registered office is abroad and how investors get the money invested back, according to the tips. According to the Bafin, it is often difficult to assert claims with foreign contractual partners, according to the dpa report. Once you have transferred money to an account abroad, you can often no longer claim it back later.
Read here: Savers watch out: So many banks no longer pay interest - even negative interest?
Dubious sales ploy: "Investors often don't look for supposedly lucrative financial products themselves, they are offered them over the phone ," reports dpa. "However, such unsolicited calls - also known as cold calls - are prohibited." Anyone who is called can hang up again with a clear conscience. Share recommendations by e-mail are not fundamentally inadmissible, "but at least questionable," the report said.
Time pressure : In addition, consumers should not allow themselves to be put under time pressure - this could also indicate that an offer is not exactly serious. (ahu) * Merkur.de is part of the nationwide Ippen editorial network.
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