Watch out for fraudsters in Switzerland!

Gaurav's classmate was forced to vacate his lodgings due to a scam. Keystone

Gaurav did not think that students could be scammed in Switzerland. A few incidents involving acquaintances have made him wary.

It is hard to imagine that you can run into fraudsters in Switzerland. But scammers can be found anywhere and most of the time they are people you trust. This is what happened to some of my acquaintances.

A classmate of mine was looking for a place to live. In Switzerland, most rental agencies are not keen on offering apartments to non-European students. Hence, many resort to subletting. This is legal as long as the person who is subletting the apartment informs the real estate agency of this arrangement. My classmate sublet a studio from an Italian man who told him that the letting agency was aware of the agreement between them. As per the agreement, my classmate was supposed to pay rent to the man and he would pay the agency. However, after few months of living in the apartment, my classmate found out that the agency was not receiving the rent. He was asked to vacate the apartment.

Another terrible experience happened to someone who lives in the same student accommodation as I do. As the fraudster shares the same family name as mine (he is from Nepal), I was approached by this person who was hoping I could help him somehow. 

You should be aware that such scams could happen to you in Switzerland.  Try to not cheat or scam anybody because you represent your country, culture and people. One bad experience is often enough for people to assume a negative attitude towards an entire community.   

For more blog posts and information on studying in Switzerland visit our dedicated page Education Swiss Made.