In the current economic climate, with increased costs of living, rising interest rates, and stricter loan approval criteria, fraudulent lenders have come out in full force. We have heard of many Canadian lenders being impersonated, and unfortunately LoanConnect has fallen victim to this as well.
It is not always easy to identify a real loan offer from a fake one, except when it comes to LoanConnect. Your first clue is this – LoanConnect IS NOT A LENDER! We help customers find the best loan rates & terms through Canadian lending partners, but LoanConnect itself will NEVER offer you direct funding.
These fraudulent offers are usually too good to be true, and are often described as “government guaranteed”. In some cases they are asking for gift cards or deposits for loan insurance. In other situations, they make it appear that they have placed a large amount of money in your bank account and then ask you to return it to them, and in return they will then release the full amount of the “guaranteed” funds.
None of these practices are those of a legitimate lender. To learn more about what warning signs to watch for, you can read more at our blog, here.
If you receive a communication from LoanConnect please ensure the following are true:
- The email address is from extension @loanconnect.ca
- The company name is all one word “LoanConnect”
- There is no direct offer of funding
- The only phone number used is 1-855-936-5626 and our only office is located in London, Ontario.
The Following are NOT Associated with LoanConnect
The fraudulent lenders impersonating LoanConnect are smart, and consistently change their names & contact information. This makes it much more difficult to trace them and try to shut them down. At the moment we are aware of the following names being used who are in NO WAY ASSOCIATED with LoanConnect:
- Daniel Martin
- Florence Lee
- Bella Moore
- Richard Jones
- Alisha Lee
- Lisa Freeman
- James Olsen
- Berri Barrington
- Adam Straight
- Paul Winfred
- Mark Robinson
- Alvin Paul
- Adam Street
- Marcus (unknown last name)
- Kimberly Rogers
- James John Anderson
- Harvey Merchant
- Mike Davis
- Crystal Scott
- Kevin Green
They had been previously listed at an address in Ottawa, but that is constantly shifting as well. If there is any address other than 379 Dundas Street, Unit 217 in London, Ontario, that is NOT LoanConnect. If you are contacted by any number that is not 1-855-936-5626, that is NOT LoanConnect.
LoanConnect is NOT a Lender
It is important to understand that LoanConnect is NOT a lender. We will never be the organization to offer you funding. Our role is connecting customers to the best lenders across Canada. We will never ask you to pay any fees, including “loan insurance”, or ask for any of your banking information. Our services are completely free to connect you with the appropriate, vetted lenders. Asking for fees to secure a loan is an illegal practice. If you are ever asked to provide a loan company with money to guarantee your loan, or as any type of deposit, do not give them a dime. You can learn more about the warning signs of fraudulent lenders in our blog post, here.
If you fear you have been involved in a fraudulent loan experience and have provided any banking information, we recommend you get in touch with your bank immediately to stop any future withdrawals. And then report your experience to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
Red Flags of Fraudulent Lenders
Unfortunately, there are so many scams out there it can be hard to set the real lenders apart from the frauds. You can read more about detecting lending scams in our blogs article:
As a high level summary, always be cautious about lenders asking for or offering the following:
- Guaranteed loan approval
- Government guaranteed loans
- Loan insurance or loan deposits
- 0% interest rates
- Gift cards to secure your loan
- Bitcoin
We can’t stop all scammers from operating, but we can do our best to stay vigilant and report them to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. If you are contacted by someone whose name is not in our list above, please contact us at team@loanconnect.ca and we can confirm for you if they are a real employee. If they are not, we can further expand our list to help protect others.
And always remember, LoanConnect is NOT a lender, but our application process is safe & secure and will connect you with legitimate Canadian lenders who are vetted and uphold the highest standards of lending.
