No-one likes losing money. The good news is, you don't have to lock your money away to protect it.
Understand some common risks, take a few precautions and know what to do if things go wrong.
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The bottom line
- Be prepared. You’ll find it easier to protect yourself when things go wrong if you make a plan, do a budget and get the savings habit.
- Do your homework and shop around before investing your money. Say no to scams – and report them when you find them, to protect other people.
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Have enough insurance
Insurance can cover you, your family and the things you own if something goes wrong.
It pays to shop around. Compare premiums, excesses and details of exactly what is covered in the policy and what you have to do to make a claim.
Be careful not to take shortcuts when you get insurance. Read everything you can about your policies before you sign the contracts. It’s as important to make sure you have enough cover as it is to get a good price. You can lose a lot of money if you find your insurance doesn’t cover what you thought it did. See Insurance.
Make a will
It’s a good idea to think about what you want to happen to your money after you die. The time you take now to sort out your plans and make a will could really help the people you love after you’ve gone.
A will is a legal document that sets out your wishes for how your money and assets are to be divided up after your death. It can also cover other matters such as who should take care of your children.
If you die without a will, your assets will be distributed by the public trustee in your state or territory. There are strict rules about how this is done. It is not a good idea to assume that the law will distribute your assets the way you would want. In some circumstances, sorting out your estate could be difficult and expensive for your beneficiaries.
The best way to avoid this kind of trouble is to make a will. Do-it-yourself will kits can be bought at most newsagents or post offices or on the internet. Be careful to follow the instructions that come with the kit. A badly written will may cause more problems for your beneficiaries than no will at all.
You can also ask a solicitor to prepare your will. This may be worth considering if you want to be sure that it suits your individual circumstances and clearly expresses your wishes. You will pay a fee that will depend on how complex your circumstances are. See More information.
Choose the right investments
An investment may be perfectly legal and above board but you may still lose money if you buy something that does not suit your needs.
For example, you might be tempted to buy some shares in a company that is doing well but if your goal is to save for a holiday next year, a high interest savings account might be a better choice. If the shares fall in price before you need to sell them to fund your holiday, you could lose money. Investing in shares can give good returns over the long-term but can risk losing money in the short-term.
Do your homework, have a plan and shop around when choosing investments. See Investing.
Watch out for scams
Some so-called investment opportunities are nothing of the sort. They are scams, confidence tricks designed to cheat you out of your money.
Scammers have fooled people into parting with a lot of money over the years. Even people who thought they knew a lot about money and business have been tricked.
New versions of old scams pop up all the time. Extravagant promises can be mixed with high-pressure selling techniques and sophisticated looking brochures or internet sites.
Scammers try all sorts of ways to get your attention. You might get a glossy leaflet in your letter box, you might get an email, you might even get a phone call at home. A salesperson might knock on your door, you might see an intriguing advertisement in the paper or you might get a tip from a friend.
Typical claims include:
- “Congratulations! You have won first prize in our lottery. Send us the $50 processing fee as fast as you can so we can send you your reward.”
- “You’re going to make 10% a month with this investment! We’ve had a great response and there aren’t many shares left. Call this number today. You’ll kick yourself if you miss out!”
- “Owing to a computer error, we need to reconfirm customer information. Click here to visit our website and update your account details.”
- “This seminar is reserved exclusively for top drawer investors like you. For only $5,000 you will learn in just one weekend the investment secrets the finance experts try to keep to themselves.”
The best way to protect your money is to stop and think. Resist the pressure to sign up quickly. Throw the leaflet in the bin, hang up on the call, turn the salesperson away from your door. Don’t respond to suspect emails and never click on the links they may contain.
Sorting scams from real investments
You can save yourself a lot of trouble by taking the time to check out the scammer’s claims. There are three clues that can warn you that the offer you’re looking at could be a scam:
- It may promise much larger returns than other investments.
- It may suggest that you can avoid tax or hide money from the authorities.
- It may promise secret, insider knowledge of the market that can only be shared with special people – like you!
If it looks too good to be true, it probably is!
Companies or individuals that deal in or give advice about financial investments and services are strictly regulated in Australia to protect you from conmen and scams. It doesn’t matter how persuasive the salesperson is or how glossy the brochure you get, you are taking big risks with your money if you deal with companies or individuals that don’t comply with the regulations.
The law requires every business that offers investments or gives investment advice to have an Australian financial services license issued by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). Any reputable investment company will give you details of their licence and often include it in information about their products. Look for licence details in brochures and leaflets and ask cold-callers and sales people to tell you whether their company is licensed.
You can find out whether a company has a financial services licence from the ASIC. ASIC also maintains a list of known unlicensed overseas cold callers who have contacted
Australians and offered to sell them dodgy shares and investments. ASIC also has information about home-grown illegal investments, including a list of recent examples. See More information.
A licensed investment adviser must give you a financial services guide that tells you what advisory services are offered and what commissions and fees you will have to pay. It must also include details of the advising business, such as who owns it, and tell you about commissions and benefits your adviser may get for recommending particular products.
Companies have to issue product disclosure statements for their financial products (not including shares). The purpose of the products disclosure statement is to tell you everything you need to know about the product to make an informed decision. It must:
- give details of the company providing the product
- explain the features of the product
- describe the benefits and risks of the product
- set out how much you will pay
- give you information about complaints handling and the cooling-off period.
The law requires a cooling-off period for many types of financial product. This means that if you change your mind about investing in a managed fund, for example, you will get your money back if you contact the provider within the required time.
Some scammers try to tempt you into buying shares or other financial products. Anyone advising about or selling shares to the public must work for a business that holds an Australian financial services licence. Every company that offers shares to the public must be a registered public company with Ltd after its name (not Pty Ltd). It must also issue a prospectus for investors which must be lodged with ASIC.
Report and complain
If you hear of something you think is a scam, report it. If you think you’ve been ripped off, complain.
The sooner you act, the more chance there is that the scammers will be caught.
You can contact the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, the government department that looks after consumer affairs in your state or territory, or the police.
See More information.
Unfortunately, there is no guarantee that the authorities will be able to get your money back if you have been a victim. The best protection is to say no and not get sucked in by the scammers.
More information
There's a lot more that you can find out about protecting your money. See More information.