Escrow Payments in Nigeria: How To Be Safe From Online Payment Scam and Fraud

Nigeria as a country has been plagued with various types of fraud and scams for too long.

This has persisted to the extent that is has garnered global reckoning for online scams, a reputation that does not truly represent the hard working and honest Nigerians that constitute majority of the over 180 million inhabitants of the country.

Beyond just “reputation”, online payment scams and fraud has cost Nigeria so much even in ways that are only beginning to be understood.

For example, its young professionals and highly skilled freelancers can hardly find job from developed countries due to the dented image of the country. So it is costing Nigerians jobs and potential earning that run into millions of dollars.

Notable international payment and credit card processing companies, including but not limited to Paypal, have blacklisted Nigeria from the list of countries they offer their services to, thereby causing untold losses to small and medium scale businesses in the country.

To help solve some of these issues, EscrowLock has launched its online escrow service for secure payments in Nigeria. This will help see that online buyers and sellers alike carry out their transactions safely without fear of scammers or fraudsters, thereby boosting ecommerce and economic development in the country.

With this development, buyers no longer have to be scared that they may make payments for goods/services online and end up getting defrauded.

What they have to do is use EscrowLock online escrow platform as a trusted third party through which they can settle with unfamiliar or less trusted sellers.

Instead of taking the heavy risk of making payment to the seller directly, the buyer pays the money into EscrowLock account, where it is safely locked until the seller delivers the goods/services.

Upon receipt of the payment from the buyer, EscrowLock contacts the seller to go ahead in delivering the goods/services in the assurance that the transaction amount is already safely locked with EscrowLock and will be released to the seller if the goods/services reach the buyer in the condition that both parties had agreed.

This payment arrangement is also good for sellers, a lot of whom have also been victims of fake online buyers.

In the words of EscrowLock director for Africa Operations, Calista Boyd, “we are excited to be in Nigeria and we hope that we can kick out online fraud from this country that is so blessed with material and human resources”.

What is Escrow?

Escrow is a word used to describe a middleman service usually used in settling payment between two parties (like a buyer and a seller) in risky or suspicious situations, wherein a trusted third party agency like EscrowLock (escrowlock.com) accepts the payment from one party (the buyer) and releases it to the other party (the seller) when certain conditions have been met.

 

What is Escrow Service

Escrow service is a kind of middleman or third party payment service offered by a trusted agency like EscrowLock in risky or suspicious transactions where there is need for EscrowLock to accept payment from the buyer and only release it to the seller when certain pre-agreed conditions have been met.

 

What is Escrow Payment?

Escrow payment is a form of payment that involves the use of escrow service offered by notable escrow companies like EscrowLock (escrowlock.com).

 

EscrowLock, what is it?

Escrow Payments in Nigeria: How To Be Safe From Online Payment Scam and Fraud

EscrowLock is an independent escrow service agency that acts as the trusted third party or middleman in transactions between two parties (like buyer and seller) wherein there is need for EscrowLock to receive money from one party in the transaction (usually the buyer) and release it to the other party (the seller) when certain conditions have been met (like when seller has successfully delivered goods/services to the buyer).

 

Escrow agreements; what are they?

Escrow agreements are terms the buyer and the seller have to agree on before a transaction is commences and before they even proceed to contract the services of EscrowLock. Some of these terms include but are not limited to:

  • Specifications of the products or services – the size, color of the product etc or in terms of service delivery (like creating website) things like the design, features, etc.
  • Return policy and warranty (if any)
  • Courier services, the transport company to use if they are considering to waybill the product(s).
  • The date or estimated duration that the product is to arrive or the services to be delivered.
  • Tracking systems – to monitor the movement of the product.

 

What Escrow platforms, Escrow Agents, Escrow Service Providers or Escrow Companies are in Nigeria?

EscrowLock.com is the only legitimate escrow service company in Nigeria. EscrowLock works exclusively with leading deposit money banks in Nigeria and is currently the only escrow service provider that is accredited by the International Financial Escrow Services Accreditation Board (IFESAB) – the official global organization that regulates escrow services in low income countries in Africa and the Middle East.

 

How to Use Escrow Service for Secure Payments; How does Escrow Payment Work?

 

Escrow Payments in Nigeria: How To Be Safe From Online Payment Scam and Fraud

 

In general, Escrow payment services follow the pattern below:

 

  • Agreement between two parties (buyer and seller) on the terms of transaction – That’s where escrow agreement comes in. The terms that are specified there, have to be for the benefit of both the buyer and the seller.

 

  • Involving or initiating a third party– Here, either the buyer or the seller contracts EscrowLock. They create an account or a profile on their website (www,escrowlock.com) to initiate the transaction. They submit the escrow agreement to EscrowLock as a criteria to be met before the money will be disbursed. This is done to avoid conflict.

 

  • Making payment to EscrowLock– This is normally done by the buyer into a special account provided to the buyer by EscrowLock. Upon receiving the payment, EscrowLock informs the seller that the payment has been made so that the seller can proceed with shipping the product(s) or offering the service.

 

  • Seller delivers products or services- The seller delivers the product or services within the agreed duration. He takes precautionary measures to ensure that there is a way that the buyer won’t be able to deny receiving the product. Example is by making sure the courier services or transport company includes a system where the recipients of the product will need to sign or even thumbprint etc.

 

  • EscrowLock releases payment to seller– EscrowLock reviews the terms of the transaction in respect to the escrow agreement and if found satisfactory, then releases the deposited payment to the seller.

 

 

Who can use Escrow service for payments in Nigeria?

 

Anyone who is involved in a transaction especially those transactions that are done online or across cities or countries etc. It is suitable for all the parties that are involved in a transaction; be it the buyer, the seller or the broker.

Location: The use of escrow service is independent of location. So, irrespective of whether you are in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kano, Abeokuta, Anambra, Kaduna, Enugu, or Asaba, you can still use escrow payment by visiting EscrlowLock’s online escrow platform.

 

 

Types of transactions that can be settled using Escrow payments

 

Most legal transactions can be settled using escrow payments. Such transactions include the ones that involve the following, among others;

 

Escrow Payment for Physical Goods/Products:

EscrowLock escrow payments can be used to in the purchase of goods and products that are tangible (can be touched) whether offline or online. Such goods can include items in the following categories:

 

  • Escrow Payment for Fashion:

    This include items like clothes (trousers, shirts, shoes, wigs and weavons, human hairs and attachments, wrist watches, jewelry, etc.)

 

  • Escrow Payment for Electronics:

    The payment services offered by escrow platforms and escrow agents can be used to purchase electronic goods like mobile phones, desktop and laptop computers, television, video games, cd/dvd players, sound systems, etc.

 

  • Escrow Payments for Household electrical and kitchen appliances:

    You can use escrow payment to purchase household electrical appliances like fans, electricity generators, solar power systems (involving solar panels, inverters, batteries, pure sine wave and mixed controllers, etc.), cookers and ovens, mixers, blenders, microwaves, etc.

 

  • Escrow Payment for Furniture:

    EscrowLock escrow services can be used in the settlement of payments when buying items like chairs, tables, couches, beds, room dividers, etc.

 

  • Escrow Payment for Automobile:

    This includes cars, bikes, tricycles, bicycles, and other auto-related products including their spare parts.

 

  • Escrow Payment for Digital goods/products:

    EscrowLock escrow services can be used in transactions involving digital goods like software, apps, music and videos, purchase of pass codes and passwords, graphics and pictures, digital artworks, digital books (e-books) and audio books, etc.

 

Escrow Payment for Services:

Escrow payment services offered by escrow companies and escrow service providers like EscrowLock can be used to pay for a variety of services like:

 

  • Escrow Payment for Construction work:

    One of the best ways (if not the best) to safely execute construction project is by the use of escrow payment services. Individuals, government bodies, non-governmental organizations and other corporate entities can use escrow payment in ensuring that a contractor who has been awarded a project finishes up the work based on pre-agreed milestones and on schedule.
    To achieve this, instead of paying the full contract amount to the contractor, the contract fund can be paid to an escrow company like EscrowLock with a mandate that the fund be released to the contractor in batches based on the progress of the work and specific milestones.
    Most individuals who engage in building and other constructions projects, especially those staying abroad, tend to use their family members and friends to execute those project. But, unfortunately, the outcome of such kind of arrangements are usually not so good.

  • Escrow Payment for Personal deals:

    What if someone promises to facilitate or process an admission for you for a fee (or something similar) but you are not sure if this person is true. This is a good case scenario where you can use EscrowLock. You simply draw out the necessary agreement with the person and transfer the requested fee to EscrowLock’s escrow account for onward release to the other party when the deal is safely concluded according to the agreement.
    What if you are going on a bet with a friend? EscrowLock Escrow service can be the middle man to hold the bet money as far as you state your bet agreement which will guide the escrow transaction.

  • Escrow Payment for Digital services:

    This can include services like software, graphic or web design, content writing and other forms of services that are in digital format.

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