Friend asking to borrow few k for her friend?!!!

[JenniferAnistonnumber1fan]

get a call from a friend who is 70. (who btw I’m not close friends with me, we talk on phone every few months or meet up for coffee a few times a year, she’s more my mums friend) asking if she can borrow a few thousand for her “good” friends?

says they are in a very bad financial situation and she really wants to help them? She gave them her money but just needs a few more thousand.

kind of shocked, i tell her I can’t. I mean…I don’t know these people?

she goes well I do! They are my GOOD FRIENDS, They are such nice people you have to help them!!! You trust me don’t you?

she then says you still have that inheritance don’t you?? Your sister in law said you haven’t spent it yet.

I reply…yes but thats locked away in high interest savings accounts for years…( shocked she knows about inheritance)!

she does like a sad face then says oh right I forgot! My Lithuanian pension is supposed to be coming in a few weeks, I’ll use that! Phew. Problem solved!!! Ok never mind.

but after she hasn’t talked to me in a while.

am I right to find this very all very bizarre?

1. this friend brags how great her pension is, how well off she is, how she financially supports all her family, her grand sons ex/baby mama, paying for her beauty treatments, days out and holidays and grandkids and that she has 30k in savings from house sale
2. We are not close friends
3. she brags that she has soooo many friends and how popular she is. She has friends much closer than me. She has relatives. Why not ask them??
4. I don’t even know these people

she knew about the inheritance, (got 25k)

because my sister blabbed to her I got inheritance years ago. She also recently asked “so has she spent all of it”? To which she replied no

This sounds odd and like someone is badgering her for money.

I mean obviously you tell her they could be as close friends to her as they like but they're complete strangers to you.

And you would never want to damage the friendship if these supposed close friends were unable to pay.

And it's immaterial as you don't have that kind of money knocking about.

I'd be concerned it could be someone with an addiction of some description who could be pressing her. Or she herself is having these issues and is using the alleged friends as a smokescreen?

she then says you still have that inheritance don’t you?? Your sister in law said you haven’t spent it yet.
I reply…yes but thats locked away in high interest savings accounts for years

The correct answer here was, 'How dare you ask me about my personal finances. They're none of your business.' And end the call.

It is possible she tried to 'borrow' from you because you arent close. When the money doesnt get repaid her close friends/family dont know anything about it. Granny Glad Hand hasnt lost face.

Possibly it is a scam, possibly she has burnt through a lot of money and has made promises which she wants to keep. Again not wanting to lose face. You are distant enough to not be a problem.

What she claims and what is reality can be very very different.

That was my first thought. Maybe she has already given away her own money.

I can't believe you wouldn't just say "I'm sorry, what?? You can't be serious and I'm shocked you'd even ask me." And hang up.

2nd thread today I think. Anyway, it's simple. NO is the answer unless you can afford to give/lose the money. No need to explain why. On

Say you're going on a 2 week cruise around the Bahamas. It's an American cruise company and you need the money for tips.

People lie and exaggerate their wealth. She sounds like she had been doing so to you.

Sounds to me like she's the scammer.

She's bloody rude even to ask.

I've only once been asked for a loan of more than a tenner - a few years ago my sister asked to 'borrow' 70k to buy out her exDH. She lives on benefits so there was no way this would have ever been repaid. My instant response i
was "we don't have that kind of money to lend'. Which was true. I have that much money and more but it's not for lending. It's for our DC and DGC and for our own old age.

Unlike your very CF acquaintance, DS took it well and no more was said.

Yes. Just tell her f*uck off

You should warn your mother.

How old is your mother, could she be vulnerable to exploitation?

Exactly what I thought.

No. You are not some sort of social security office. The friend of your mums friends problems are not your concern.

I think you dh is right. My dsis is similar pretends to be well off flashes the cash to impress people she should be comfortable she earns well and has no dc but she’s broke. She also comes up with ridiculous excuses and lies to get people to lend her money

we are nc now after she started helping herself to elderly dm money and took out an equity release mortgage on dm house

I wouldn't lend money to a friend,let a friend of friend of a friend.

She's rinsed everyone and now it's your turn.

Braggy generous people like that get taken advantage of and end up skint.

are you a bank? cos i could do with a couple thousand too.... lol... seriously NO. With loads of red flags flying you can't possibly think this is legit

Lots of similar threads recently...

Perhaps, she has already borrowed from her family and friends. These scammers are leeches, they continue until there's not a penny left. Don't be writing a scam off.

She seems to fund a lot for the grandson's ex, isn't that odd?

The woman needs help. It sounds like she's being taken for a ride.