Precious metals are treasures for those who have them. It hasn’t been the same in recent times. Precious metals have always been a luxury to the wealthy and precious were also used in the barter system, while in recent times, the value of precious metals has gone too high and far from the common man’s reach.
There are only limited options like Gold and silver for a middle-class person to buy in bulk for investment purposes. The value of such precious metals appreciates if compared to the legal tender of a country. While the main problem with this is how to buy genuine precious metals without being scammed. Money is dearer to everyone, scammers try to scam in the best way possible but there are some ways to avoid this. Let us break this into parts on how to buy precious metals and not get scammed.
Ways to buy precious metals without being Scammed:
The article will mainly focus on the physical assets than on digital assets, as, only limited options are available digitally, the first and foremost rule of investment is to always have background checks before buying.
- Neglect buying from a salesperson if they are way too pushy: Avoid buying your precious metals from a pushy salesperson even if it is your relative, while buying and investing in such precious metals you should physically investigate with the experts to verify its authenticity.
Such a salesperson plays a FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) game with you to sell fake metals at a high cost, which stands no value in the market. Countering this FOMO game is the first and foremost option to be out from being getting scammed.
- Background checks: Always check the background of the person whom you are trusting, if possible, try to get reviews from the customers who have bought products or verified the precious metals from the person. To locate the person’s customer ask him regarding his sales and always be sure to check any FIR related to him, people who scam are flagged online on various websites.
If someone had registered any complaint regarding the person, it will be available to you and if the person has everything cleared then the last check will be checking the person’s organization if everything goes well then you can trust.
- Low Risk: The term low risk is the one you should be aware of, low risk sounds like an attractive thing but it’s the opposite of what you think. Those who claim low-risk opportunity investment and purchase, totally spit lie on your face. To avoid such lies always evaluate the market cost and the discounted cost of the item you are going to purchase and try to match the discount rates prevalent in the markets. Precious metals are 95 Percent times fake or say they are illegally imported if bought heavy penalties and even imprisonment can happen.
- Find recommended dealers: Always find dealers, purchase of precious metals online is very risky and the chances of scams increase straight by 50 percent. The websites claiming guaranteed checks are not trustworthy because the precious metals come from the seller not from the warehouses so there is a chance of getting fake precious metal. Go to authorize stores or locate a nearby dealer from whom people have bought precious metals, irrespective of the cost the genuineness of the precious metals appreciate by a huge margin, always try to be on the safe side.
- Avoid social media sponsored ads: Nowadays machine learning has evolved so much that the AI starts targeting ads relating to your recent searches. Such ads which offer low-cost precious metals are almost fake because when you click their website they steal your personal information filled up by you. In major fake websites, it is used as a tool to extract data and sell it to the other companies and by this they earn profit. Moreover, it is also advisable to neglect such websites which offer unbelievably high discounts and offers.
So, now what to do?
As mentioned earlier, check for authorised dealers to buy precious metals online. Check for marks and authorised seals in the metals that provide the authenticity of the precious metals. Moreover, don’t go with the crowd and seriously avoid online and doorstep salespeople, a maximum of them are a scam and only a few are genuine. If you follow all the steps then it will help you to be on the safer side.