Online daters at risk of losing money

People looking for love online may be risking not only their hearts but their money as well.

People looking for love online may be risking not only their hearts but their money as well.

New Zealand's Banking Ombudsman is warning Kiwis they could be vulnerable to fraud and theft if they meet the wrong person online after a jump in complaints.

Ombudsman Nicola Sladden said its recently released annual report revealed 66 customers had contacted it in the year to June 30 concerned about scams by third parties.

"Every year we receive complaints from bank customers duped into transferring money - usually online - to people they don't know, and we're unable to help them because their bank hasn't done anything wrong as they themselves authorised the payments," Sladden said.

One example was a recent complainant who met the love of his life who said she lived in Malaysia.

"She asked for his help by depositing a cheque for GBS30,000 into his New Zealand bank account. She told him her bank wouldn't accept the cheque as she had no permanent address.

"Because he had to wait three weeks for it to clear, and she said she needed the money sooner, he took out a $10,000 personal loan and sent it to her via Western Union."

Sladden said the foreign cheque then bounced and he complained to the ombudsman service that his bank hadn't made it clear that could happen and that it shouldn't have approved the loan.

"We couldn't uphold either complaint because firstly, the bank had told him verbally it would hold the cheque proceeds until it could confirm its legitimacy, and secondly, the bank's loan application assessment was satisfactory.

"The complainant learned the hard way that love online doesn't always pay."

Sladden said people dealing with love and money online should take precautions including making sure they knew who they were dealing with online, never giving out passwords, being wary if someone asks for money, never accepting money into your account for a subsequent transfer and pausing to check the details with somebody you trust.

"Contact your bank immediately if you think you may have been scammed. It may be able to reverse charges, but probably won't be able to if you authorised the payment yourself."

The service has released a quick guide to help people protect themselves against scams.