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Good
Tuesday morning...here's your pre-Thanksgiving Day
Dose of Dover!
...and your
regular-scheduled shot of un-common
sense advice, ideas and other observations.
This all comes together as a direct result of your
e-mails, letters and telephone
calls from the radio shows, TV segments and
newspaper column.
Do
me a favor and put me out of a job!!!
Forward
this e-mail to everyone in your Address
Book and others that will benefit from the
information assembled below and on our
award-winning website.
Tuesday,
November 26, 2002:
You
deserve to lose all of your money!!!
[If you don't check the work of your bank
and credit card companies every month!]
Add another
30,000 victims to the identity-theft
list...and maybe Ford didn't have such a
good idea after all. You
mean you didn't hear about it?
Here's
the story...and another reminder...
1.
Bad guys have easier
access to your bank account than ever
before: If
they have an account number and your bank's
routing info, you're
toast.
2.
In most
states, you've got sixty (60) days to catch
bank errors:
You
don't check your statements every month?
You snooze, and you could lose...big time!
3. You've got a
little more slack on credit card statements
or phone bills, but for the most part:
If you wait too long
to correct an error, whether it's a billing,
debiting, unauthorized charge or any other
type of error, you're outta luck,
Einstein.
If you don't protect your backside, don't
expect your bank or creditors to, either.
Speaking
of credit cards...Some of the world's major
credit card players are trying to keep some
of you from spending your dough on porno and
gambling websites: Is
it censorship or another case of lowering
the potential exposure of
"caught-in-the-cookie-jar-by-your-wife
syndrome?" Don't know what that is?
(You
can if you click here!)
Wanna
avoid becoming a victim the next time
you make a charitable donation?
We're getting to a
time of year that always tugs on the
heartstrings...and it also sets us up to
have that kindness slammed back in our
face. Giving the most flexible gift of
all-cold, hard, cash-could actually
backfire if you're not aware of the
Pandora's box of junk mail and other
solicitations you could be setting
yourself up for. It seems that many
charitable donation lists can quickly
turn into a "sucker" list; you
know what a sucker list is, don't
you? Once you buy something from a
telephone solicitor-investment
boiler-rooms are the most notorious
perpetrator in this arena-they'll
sell and re-sell your name and
phone number a zillion times...and
then the nightmare really begins.
Ben's Bottom Line:
1. Should you
avoid donating to charities? NO!
But use your
head...and don't give anyone too much
personal information. Once it's
"out," it's in circulation
and can be sold, traded or bartered forever!
2. Consider
stealth giving.
Unless the
amount of dough you're donating is so
large it'll make a big difference in
your tax liability next April 15th,
donate anonymously. It accomplishes
the goal while keeping your name off
lists.
3. Hell-bent
on getting credit for your donations?
Use a specific
"donation" name and
address...and never give out your
phone number: Use a special and
specific (as well as consistent) name
for these donations, then track how it
re-surfaces in the months and years
ahead. For instance: I'd use a name
like "B.F. Dover III"
[and no, there is no "I" or
"II"!] but I'll use that
specific and special name to not only
flag subsequent use of my name on
future lists, but also to help me sort
out all future charity-oriented
mailings from the rest.
Planning
on flying anywhere in the next few weeks, or
anywhere at anytime in the future? Then
you'd better know the new rules of "the
game": If
you don't, your holiday time/present-laden
trip could not only get off to a rocky
start, but those pictures that you take
could be wiped out by the newest
x-ray/screening equipment now being
installed in the nation's airports.
Read
more and thank me later.
And please remember
one of the rules that hasn't changed:
Don't pack cameras
in checked luggage! You're setting yourself
up for theft. While you're at it,
don't check jewelry, prescription drugs,
credit cards, credit card receipts,
passports or anything else that could
possibly backfire if your suitcase fell into
the hands of the bad guys.
Force the screeners to
hand-check all conventional film cameras, as
well as all film...and do not
let them run these
items through the x-ray/screening equipment.
Another
scammy business based in Southern
California's in deep doo-doo with the
Attorney General's office for hosing
consumers (especially older targets) by
selling fraudulent anti-telemarketer/do not
call list services! You've
gotta read more...and
use this story as a chance to protect those
older friends and relatives who could be future
targets of fraud:
1. Take a few minutes
to talk candidly with senior consumers in
your orbit who will listen to your warnings.
Make sure they
understand the dangers of doing business
with strangers calling on the phone, no
matter how convincing or "nice"
they may sound. Remind them that
"dropping names" of friends or
neighbors is a favorite trick of these low-lifes...and
that they target predictably lonely seniors
because they know they're easy marks.
If
you filed a tax return between 1992 and 1996,
there are 700,000 of you that are eligible to
participate in a class action lawsuit
settlement: What
in the name of H&R Block were you thinking,
anyway? Read
all about it here.
This
is gonna be a reach, I know...but if you
want to make your friends or family
members smarter than they appear
to be [sounds sorta like the disclaimer on
the passenger-side, side-view mirror]:
Then help them help themselves and give
'em the link that keeps on giving for Ben's
free weekly Dose of Dover newsletter.
As usual, the price is right...
Let's
see...you got the presents bought.
Cheapo airfares nailed down. Rental
Car...check. Hotel room? Oops!
Not to worry...there's
no such thing as paying a "rack
rate" or not finding a hotel room or
condo as long as you check in with the
final destination for accommodations:
Hotels.com.
Especially
If you've gotten a new cell phone in the
last couple of years, you'd better make
damned sure you're scrutinizing your bills!
"Re-cycled"
cell phone numbers are haunting new users
with old services from previous number
owners. Don't understand? Read
more and eliminate one more
cellular pothole just waiting to trip you
up...
What
happens if you end up on a bank's checking
account black list?
Aside from making good
on your past mistakes, you need to know how
the game's played and know which banks check
these lists...and more importantly, which
ones don't. Of course I've got more
information waiting for your examination.
[I
covered it on my July 28, 2002 show...so
scroll down, read 'em and don't
weep...]
How
do you find out what's being reported about
you and your driving record to the insurance
companies? Easy...if
you know where to look...
Thinking
about buying a computer this holiday season?
Maybe all you need is an upgrade!
My computer expert Ronnie
Neighbours of Take
It Home Computers tells
me that many systems can benefit from a
simple memory and hard drive upgrade.
Then again, it might be more cost-effective
to simply get a brand-new system. No matter
which way you decide to go, make sure you're
buying from someone that will provide
service after the sale, will ya?
[By
the way: At my insistence,
Ronnie's including a pre-paid subscription
for your first year of anti-virus protection
from Norton with every new system purchased
between now and 01/02/03. Don't thank
me...e-mail
him!
And out-of-state consumers get to save
the sales tax, too!]
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