Archive | June, 2013

Identity Theft Tips – a Few Basic Tips About What to Do

You might not know until months later that you have been the victim of identity theft. Sometimes you find out when a loan application is unexpectedly rejected. Here are a few tips to avoid identity theft:

Place a “security freeze” on your credit history. A security freeze prevents your credit history from being shared with potential creditors. If your credit files are frozen, a thief will probably not be able to get credit in your name. A security freeze generally costs $10 to place, thus $30 to place on all three bureaus.
Do not carry your social security card with you.
Do not attach or write a personal identification number (PIN) or Social Security number on any card you carry with you or anything you are going to throw away, such as an invoice or receipt.
Shred any document that contains your credit card or Social Security number before throwing it away.
If your insurance company or other business uses your social security number as your membership number, consider asking the business to use a different number as your membership/ID number.
Alert your credit card lender if you do not receive your statements. Someone may be stealing your mail.
Do not give personal information or account numbers to anyone until you have confirmed and verified that you truly need to provide this information. Resist giving any of this information over the phone.
Frequently check your credit report to look for warning signs. At annualcreditreport.com , you can obtain one credit report each year for free.
Add passwords to your credit card, bank and home accounts through your financial institution Avoid using easily available information like your mother’s maiden name or your birth date as your password! In addition, don’t use the same password on all of your accounts. Finally, use a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols as permitted by your institution so that your password won’t be easily guessed by hackers who use dictionary-based attacks.
Consider bankruptcy. If your “honest” credit was pretty messed up with unpaid medical bills, foreclosures, high credit balances and notations of “charged off” or “other than paid as agreed”, then consider bankruptcy to wipe out the “honest” credit problems for which you are responsible, and at the same time, wipe out the “phony” credit that the scammer incurred in your name by way of identity theft. It makes no sense to challenge identity theft related negative credit entries if your honestly-and-truly owed credit accounts are delinquent, unpaid and/or showing high balances. Just clean it all out with bankruptcy and then after the bankruptcy place a “security freeze” on your credit reports to prevent the scammer from effectively stealing your identity again.

Be careful out there! You work hard to provide for yourself and for those you love. Some lazy scammer out there wants to take the “easy road” by stealing your hard-won credit and financial identity!

Some comforting news about air travel

Traveling this summer? You may get better medical care than you think on an airplane.

Half of all flights have a doctor sitting somewhere in the airplane, reports Marilynn Marchione of the Associated Press in her article that is sourced from a Thursday, May 29, 2013 New England Journal of Medicine article. More comfortingly, when there is an on-board medical emergency, sick airline passengers almost always survive.

There are about 44,000 medical emergencies out of the 2.75 billion passenger trips per year. Here are some interesting statistics quoted by Ms. Marchione:

The odds of a medical emergency are 1 per 604 flights, or 16 per 1 million passengers.
Planes had to be diverted for emergency help in only 7 percent of cases.
Doctors were on board and volunteered to help in 48 percent of cases; nurses and other health workers were available in another 28 percent. Only one-third of cases had to be handled by flight attendants alone.
Most common problems: Dizziness/passing out 37%, trouble breathing 12%, nausea or vomiting 10%.
About one-fourth of passengers were evaluated at a hospital after landing and 9 percent were admitted, usually with stroke, respiratory, or cardiac symptoms.
Out of nearly 12,000 cases, a defibrillator was applied 137 times, including in 24 cases of cardiac arrest where the heart had stopped. Note: Sometimes defibrillators are used to analyze an irregular heart rhythm to help doctors figure out what to do, not necessarily to deliver a shock, so don’t panic if someone wants to put a defibrillator on you. You might not get the shock!
In one study, only 36 deaths occurred out of 12,000 in-flight medical emergency situations, with only 30 occurring during the flight.
Pregnancy-related problems were generally rare–61 cases, in this study–and two-thirds of them involved women less than 24 weeks along with possible miscarriages. Air travel is considered safe up to the 36th week or the last month of pregnancy.
In one study of 12,000 in-flight medical emergencies, only three cases involved women in labor beyond 24 weeks of pregnancy led to a plane being diverted.

If your summer vacation plans involve air travel this year, then I hope that these statistics bring your a bit more peace of mind.

Do You Know These Eight Used Car Buying Scams?

Spring and summer are top car buying months here in the USA. Buying a car is usually exciting, and it can even be fun!

Most of the time, all ends well, and both the seller and buyer are happy with the transaction. However, in 19 years of practicing law, I have heard quite a few very sad used car stories. Spending your family’s precious financial resources on a vehicle with mechanical or legal problems can be as financially devastating as an illness or job loss.

Car for Sale Sign on Winshield Under Wipers

As a prospective car buyer, you can protect your financial future and your family’s safety with these tips to help you become a better prepared used car buyer. Learn the facts and avoid falling for these eight top used car buying scams.

1) Odometer Fraud

Rolling back the odometer is becoming more difficult as more recent models use a digital display, but even computers are not infallible. The best way to tell if an odometer has been tampered with is to obtain a vehicle history report from a service like CARFAX®. CARFAX may list a few events in the history of the car indexed to the mileage at the date of the event.

Odometer fraud example: If a CARFAX report for a vehicle indicates that a fender bender event occurred in January 2012 when the vehicle had 61,000 miles, then the seller will have a difficult time explaining why the used car’s odometer indicates that the car had only travelled 40,000 miles as of June 2013.

2) VIN Cloning From Similar Make and Model Cars

Stolen vehicles are sometimes sold with vehicle identification numbers (VIN numbers) that have been swiped from similar legally registered cars. One possible way to avoid this scam is to verify that all of the VIN numbers on the vehicle match, including those on the dashboard, the driver’s side door sticker, the car’s frame and the paperwork for the title. If the numbers don’t all match then don’t just walk away, run away!

3) “Title Washing” Salvaged Vehicles

Cars deemed salvage drop dramatically in value. A salvage title is usually issued on a damaged vehicle when the cost of repair exceeds 75% of its pre-damage value, but this exact number can vary state to state. Scammers “wash” the title of a car by altering the title documents and/or moving the car to different states to get a clean title. Check for working that indicates a salvage title, such as “totaled”, “reconditioned”, “salvaged”, “junked”, rebuilt” or “warranty returned.” Also examine the title document to see if it has been physically altered. A CARFAX vehicle history report could also be useful. If a car was originally sold or titled in some other state, it might pay dividends to investigate the history of the title in that state to see if it was “salvaged” vehicle in that state or had any significant damage out of state, but then the car was subsequently moved to the current state with the issuance of a clean non-salvage title.

4) “Curbstoning” Problem Vehicles

The laws of most states don’t allow private citizens to sell multiple vehicles, other than those titled to them. Frequently, troubled vehicles are farmed out to private individuals by unscrupulous vehicles dealers for sale because the dealer does not want to have a further tarnished reputation when the troubled vehicle is brought back by a dissatisfied customer. Beware of anybody who is trying to sell multiple vehicles or perhaps someone who seems to get by “buying and selling cars” for a living instead of working a regular job.

5) Dangerous Airbag Fraud

A deployed airbag can be difficult and costly to replace. Airbag covers can be replaced on the dashboard so that, from inside the vehicle, there is no indication that the airbag compartment is empty. A CARFAX Vehicle History Report may tell you if the car has been in an accident. If there is an accident history, it may be wise to verify that the airbag system is in good working order.

6) Too Much Sales Pressure

Yes, I know it is beautiful and you want or need it, but resist the temptation to move too quickly. A $100 investment for check over by a mechanic you trust together with an inexpensive CARFAX report might save you thousands of dollars down the road. A high-pressure seller is suspicious. The seller may be trying to move things along fast in order to hide something.

7) Who has the Title?

This is a big deal. You want to see the title before buying the car.

If buying from a private party and there is money owed on the car, you want to go with the seller to the bank and pay the car off directly and have the bank release the title to you on the spot. Don’t just hand over a large sum of money to the seller and trust that all will be fine. And for me, this same rule applies even when doing business with a dealership or used car lot, as I explain below.
If buying a used car from a vehicle dealer, you still want to see the title before you hand over the money. This is because a cash-strapped dealer could be “floating” the car on the lot by accepting the vehicle as a trade in without paying off the underlying obligation that the previous owner owed to the bank, hoping that a buyer will come along before the next payment comes due and is reported to the prior owner as late and unpaid. If you pay the dealer directly but then the dealer goes out of business or for some reason can’t or won’t pay your purchase money over to the prior owner’s bank then you could end up getting nothing for something. The prior owner’s bank can come repossess the car for non-payment because they have a superior lien or security interest in the vehicle, and you may be out your money and your car.

If you find a dealership or car lot that is “floating” the car, then beware and consider walking away. If you still want to do business with that dealer, I suggest that you take your money to the prior owner’s bank and pay that bank directly to release the title to you.

8) Consigned Vehicles on Car Lots

Beware. Some dealerships that won’t “float” the title as explained in #7 above will take a vehicle on consignment. Consignment isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but pay attention to #7 above when paying over money for the car. If there is no money owed on the vehicle to a bank, consider having the consignor come to the car lot with the title and sign it over to you on the spot when the consignor is paid. If there is money owing on the car on the lot, then I recommend that you require that the dealer and the consignor all meet together at the bank where the money is owed and do a three-way transaction where you cash out the bank and the title is signed and delivered to you on the spot. If one of the parties won’t cooperate, strongly consider walking away.

CARFAX does have its Critics

A clean CARFAX vehicle history report is not a guarantee that the car has no prior accidents or problems, but it may be the best assurance that you can get! You’re better off coming prepared with something from a reputable company like CARFAX than with nothing.

It can be exciting to replace your car, but don’t let your enthusiasm overwhelm your judgment! If after reading about all of the dangers and pitfalls that can befall used car shoppers you are still determined to proceed, then go forth with your eyes open, a trusted mechanic at the ready, and don’t forget your CARFAX report. You are now better prepared to enter the wild world of the used car market.

This article and I owe a sincere thank you for the great tips and advice that can be found in the March 21, 2013 post at blog.allstate.com along with content on the CARFAX site for tips #1-6!

What you don’t know about “Charge off Dates” can hurt you

You may be able to remove some negative items off of your credit report by disputing old debts that are no longer due, and watch your credit score rise as a result!

Reporting invalid “out of statute” debt as currently collectible obligations is an old bill collector’s scam. If you fall into this trap, you could be tricked into paying money you don’t owe.

Did you know that consumer debt that has been in default for more than six years is not collectible using any sort of lawsuit or legal process, and therefore should not be reported on your credit report? However, there is an important exception to that rule in the case where debt is owed as a result of a lawsuit judgment that was issued at some time within that six-year period. I’ll explain how this exception applies later in this article.

Many Americans have several “out of statute” debts –debts that should not be listed as currently due on their Experian, Transunion or Equifax credit report. These debts are too old to be carried on the credit report. In these cases, you should write to the collection bureau that lists the debt and dispute the entry so that the debt no longer appears on your credit report from that credit reporting bureau.

Q: How do bill collectors get away with this?

A: Once a debt has been in default (unpaid) for six years, the statute of limitations to collect the debt has expired. The creditor cannot file a suit to collect the debt once the debt is too old, as having been in default for six years. However, to trick you into thinking that the creditor has additional time to collect upon the debt, the creditor will (out of thin air) make up a phony date called the “charged off date”, and put that phony “charged off date” on your credit report as the date of default.

Q: Why is my credit score important?

A: The benefits of improving your credit score are undeniable; improved employment prospects, cheaper car insurance, and low-interest rates for future car loans and mortgages are among the perks of a better credit score. A FICO credit score of 700 or higher is ideal for the best of benefits –850 is considered “perfect” credit.

Q: My credit is pretty rocky. Will disputing “out of statute” debts really help?

A: If your credit is already really troubled with many enforceable unpaid debts, then disputing a few here and there might not be that helpful–a bankruptcy filing might be the right call. We can help you determine your best course of action, contact us at www.washingtonbankruptcy.com. But if your credit is reasonably clean, you should make a habit of securing your free credit report each year, and checking it for errors. Even after a bankruptcy filing, you should get in the habit of making an annual review of your credit report. You can obtain your free credit report atwww.annualcreditreport.com.

Q: Why do creditors report “charge off dates” as occurring months or years after the date you defaulted on the debt?

A: It is a trick to fool you into believing that an aged and invalid debt is still valid and collectible. Actually, “Charge off date” is a term of no legal significance. So definitely make a written dispute of all credit report debts that have been unpaid and in default for six years or more, regardless of the “charge off date” reported in your credit report.

Please read the rest of this article on my website. My website also contains many more useful tools and voluminous information on bankruptcy and financial planning that I invite you to browse and learn from at no cost or obligation.