If You Are Already 'trapped' In An Illegal Loan, OJK Suggests Doing These 5 Things

Illustration. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - Head of the Financial Services Authority (OJK) of Central Sulawesi Province, Gamal Abdul Kahar stated that if people are already entangled in fintech lending or illegal online loans (pinjol), then do five things so they don't get entangled again.

"First, pay off immediately. Because if you don't borrow illegally, you terrorize borrowers, such as calling with harsh words to calling people on the borrower's cell phone contact to tell the borrower to pay off his debt, which results in the borrower being humiliated," he said in Palu City, quoted from Antara, Thursday July 22.

Second, he continued, report to the Investment Alert Task Force (Satgas) and the police so that the illegal loans are dealt with as soon as possible so as not to take more lives.

Third, if you are unable to pay, apply for relief such as reduced interest, extension of time and others that can make it easier for the borrower to pay off his debt.

"Fourth, don't look for new loans to pay off old debts, because that won't solve the problem and instead add new problems that can make it harder for the borrower to pay off his debt," he said.

Fifth, said Gamal, if you receive unethical billing such as terror, intimidation, harassment and slander, immediately block all contact numbers that send terror.

"Then the news of people who have contacts on the borrower's cellphone if they get a message from an illegal loan to be ignored," he said.

Next, report it to the police and attach the police report to the collection contact that still appears.

Gamal also asked the public if they had paid off their debts with illegal loans so that they would not return to borrowing, especially since illegal loans often gave interest on loans that were above the loan value, which would only strangle the borrower.