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Good Tuesday morning! Here's
your final
Dose of Dover
for 2002...and your only reliable
source for un-common sense
advice,
insights and cover-your-backside strategies
that you won't
be able to find anywhere else
in the new year that lies ahead.
Wanna take your best shot?
Try to put me out of a job!
How?
Forward this e-mail to everyone in your Address Book...with any
luck we'll
make 'em just a little
smarter in 2003...[and maybe free up my weekends while we're at it].
Tuesday, December
31, 2002:
One of your top goals in 2003
should be a no brainer...be prepared!
As in being prepared for anything that could be thrown
at you or your family, with an eye towards minimizing the traumatic,
financial or legal impact life's curveball creates. Let's do three
things-one of which is even free-that
will help you prepare for worst possible case scenarios:
Insurance/Part I:
Call your automobile insurance agent first thing
tomorrow morning and make sure you've got Un-insured and Under-insured motorist
coverage.
These are coverages that protect you in
the event you're in an accident with someone who's either driving without
insurance or has the bare minimum (lowest limits) coverage required by law.
This extra level of coverage is so damned cheap, you're crazy if you don't
protect yourself from the other guy.
Insurance/Part II:
Check the limits on your homeowners (or renters) and
life insurance policies. Have your insurance agent review your policy limits
with you-and explain in terms you can clearly comprehend-where you're
covered and where you're not...and for how much.
I know I know
I know:
Insurance is the only thing we buy, and
hope we'll never have to use it. It's also something you'll
wish you had when the you-know-what (eventually) hits the fan.
Play it safe and invest in preparation and piece (or is it
"peace"?) of mind for a change, alright?
Insurance/Part III:
This one won't cost more than a few
minutes of your time, so no whining and no excuses. Get off
your rear and update the EMERGENCY
CONTACT information
card in your wallet or purse. Oh...you don't have one? You're
a thrill seeker, aren't ya? Do it now! I'm about to give you a
free web-based resource that will create a card that you can
print and fold and tuck away in your wallet in a matter of
minutes. But first, read on...
This card needs to contain
current contact information so in the event a perfect
stranger attempting to assist you in a time of need can deliver
you to familiar (and supportive) hands. You don't need to give
up information like your Social Security Number, but the card
does need to contain Next-of-Kin/Best Friend information for
the top three relatives or friends you want contacted in an
emergency. Include current pager or cell phone numbers,
current home, work and even e-mail addresses.
Be sure to include your
full name, current address and home and work telephone
numbers: If you know your blood type, put this down too,
as well as any allergies or special medical information that
would help an emergency medical technician care for you.
I know I sound like a refugee
from the Boy Scouts...but
you really want to take the time to get this into your purse
or wallet...and hope you'll never need to use it! The link I'm
about to give you to create/print a personal Emergency ID card
isn't perfect, but it's better than nothing-and if you're
reading this now there's a better chance that you'll do
something now than put it off and eventually forget about it
altogether. Here's
the link to create a free, temporary Emergency
ID Card.
It's a little late
in the game, but there's still time to soften the blow and reduce your
2002 IRS tax bill: The first step
for preparing the inevitable annual accounting for our pals at the IRS
is to get out your last year's return. This always seems to be the best
(and quickest) way to get some ideas on what you did-or didn't do-last
year. Now that you've got a starting point, let's try to add on to your
deductions for 2002 while you can:
Make your January house payment
by the end of business today, Tuesday, December 31, 2002:
Your January 2003 mortgage payment actually
reflects interest expense accrued for December 2002; get that check
dated and "in the mail" by this afternoon and pick up this
nice little deduction this tax year.
Want to make your attorney or
accountant happy? If
their fees are business-related, pay their bills in 2002 (or at least
pay down the current balance you owe them) in the remaining days of the
year to add to your growing deduction list. Tack on professional
memberships (I doubt your health or country club memberships qualify,
but you might ask your accountant now, just in case), work-related
magazines and newspaper subscriptions (you'd better believe I write off
my newspaper subscriptions!) and just watch those tax bills shrink.
Did you lose your job in 2002?
Don't forget potential job-hunting expense deductions: Stuff like
resume preparation and travel costs may be deductible, depending on
whether you itemize or not. (And no, I don't think that "trip to
the Caymans" in search of a job will pass the smell test if you
ever get audited.)
Charity never sleeps:
Are we worn out with the holiday giving theme,
yet? Plenty of charities are open today to accept your
donations...especially area shelters that can benefit from all of the
clothes you need to clean out of your drawers and closets to make room
for your newest acquisitions. All of that "junk" in your
garage or storage unit can be turned into gold, in the form of
charitable donation receipts over the next few days, too.
How did you do in the stock
market over the last couple of years? Sorry
to bring up a sore subject, but CPA and investments advisor Gerald
"Kep" Kepner of www.bizcoach.com
says maybe it's time to donate some of those "dog
investments": "Charitable contributions are made at
"Fair Market Value," (or FMV) so the FMV of the donation can
be deducted as a charitable deduction, and the taxpayer will have a
capital loss between what they paid (for the dogs) and what they were
worth when donated. For many investors, it's better to either sell or
donate what's left of their "great investments" and stop
worrying about their performance. They don't realize that when an
investment loses 75% of its value, it's going to take a 400% increase to
get back to even!"
Renting a
tuxedo for New Year's Eve? Do you think you may move to a
new house or apartment in 2003? Is there a chance you'll be
turning in a leased car sometime next year? Believe
it or not, a common thread runs through all of
these seemingly simple transactions. Join with me in
resolving to make your life easier this coming year by
making sure you always paper your trail. ALWAYS be
sure to get a receipt and get yourself off the hook from any
potential liability when returning rented/leased items of
value.
-
Dressing up for New Year's Eve
can mean lost cummerbunds, cuff links or other accessories.
-
Moving to a new residence means moving
out of your old/current one; the potential of losing your
security deposit for disputed things like dirty kitchens and
bathrooms, damage to carpets, walls that need repainting or
having your pets being accused of excessive wear and tear is
very real.
-
Turning
in your old leased vehicle opens the door for a financial
hammering for such things as "excess/over miles"
on your current set of wheels. Resolve to take your time and
paper your trail in 2003! Don't agree to anything that's not
correct (or in your best interest) and make sure you get a
signed receipt when returning anything of value.
Should you spill
your guts and fill out those "warranty cards" enclosed
with the assembly instructions of gifts you just received?
In just about every case, these supposed
"warranty cards" are nothing more than what's known as a
"bounce-back" marketing tool for the manufacturers or
retailers. The invasive amount of data they're requesting is
silly, from name and address, phone numbers and e-mail addresses
to household income. This information is none
of their business, and not
needed to protect your warranty. Always remember: Whatever
information you give them has the potential to be sold and re-sold
dozens of times. Skip
'em.
Do
you have Caller ID? Do everyone a favor for 2003, pick up your phone
and press *87: Unbeknownst to
most consumers, when you signed-up for Caller ID, your pals at the
local phone company "helped" by automatically activating ACR
(Anonymous Call Rejection) on your phone line. ACR rejects any
incoming phone calls from anonymous callers. The phone company
does this because they don't want everyone blocking their identity
when calling, potentially rendering Caller ID useless. Because I
believe you're smart enough to decide which calls to take (and which
calls to ignore), I'm empowering you with the technical knowledge
necessary to neutralize the phone company. (Want to permanently block
your identity from showing up on all outgoing phone calls you
initiate?
The
scoop's right here on the website.....
Wake up,
Einstein:
They're called Handicap PARKING permits...not Handicap
DRIVING
permits!!! (Know anyone that uses one?)
If so, you can help eliminate one of my biggest
pet peeves in 2003 by spreading the word, far and wide: Handicap parking
placards are not supposed to hang from the rear view mirror while the
car's in motion. (It even says so right on the placard itself.) The last
thing any driver-especially handicap parking permit-toting drivers need
is something (else) swinging back and forth, blocking their vision and
creating a hazardous distraction while they drive. Wake up and put 'em
away!!!
Is it illegal for gift
certificates to have expiration dates on them? I've got good
news, and I've got bad news: According
to California State Civil Code (section 1749.5 if you're keeping
score at home), as of January 1, 1997 it became "...unlawful
for any person or entity to sell a gift certificate to a
purchaser containing an expiration date. Any gift certificate
sold after that date shall be redeemable in cash for its cash
value, or subject to replacement with a new gift certificate at
no cost to the purchaser or holder."
Businesses love to sell
gift certificates for several reasons:
-
It gives them a chance to create a
new customer who may not have ever used their goods or services
if not for the gift certificate.
-
It also gives them instant cash for
a service or product to be sold sometime in the future; for now
it's all income with little (or no) immediate, offsetting
expense.
- But
the real reason they love selling gift certificates?
A surprisingly large percentage of them are never redeemed!
They're either lost or "discovered" after the
expiration date, netting pure profit for the business. That's
why lawmakers in California outlawed gift certificate expiration
dates, and why consumers everywhere need to be sure
they understand the rules of the gift certificate game
before they buy.
ALWAYS
read the fine print on any
"pre-paid" type of purchase. Dover's
Rule? No expiration dates
are acceptable; certificates must be good until they're redeemed
or replaced-NO
EXCEPTION! Always
make sure you understand the fine print; if you need a
magnifying glass to read the "Rules & Conditions"
you can almost always bet that they're stacking the deck against
you. Especially when it comes to those prepaid/long distance
calling cards. Companies love selling them because they're
incredibly profitable due to "spoilage:" Most calling
cards will expire before the value is used up, meaning pure
profit for the companies selling them. Most calling cards are
valid for a finite period of time; "the clock" starts
running at the card's first use...so beware!
Watch out for other hidden charges, such as "per
call/origination fees" that eat up the card's face value
even faster. Read
more about the strings attached to those prepaid calling card!
With the
emotions of the holiday season almost behind you, those credit
card bills are gonna start showing up in your mailbox:
Get ready
for the reality of your own personal financial condition to
become even more clear (and more depressing) than ever before.
Maybe your #1 New Year's resolutions should be to bite the
bullet and pull the ripcord?
Bankruptcy
is one alternative that the credit counseling services hope
you won't consider: If you don't
seek their advice and assistance, they won't have a chance to
collect any "voluntary" commissions on the monies
they collect in their "non-profit" role of debt
repayment assistance counselors. The latest insights and
developments concerning proposed (and inevitable in 2003)
bankruptcy laws changes are available
right here on the website.
Now's
a good time to tie-up those loose ends with your friends at
the IRS: They're
not going away anytime soon...and with the tough economy,
there's more pressure on them than ever before to collect more
taxes. Want more information on how to start the process on
your terms? Here
you go...
I love
success stories! Read this e-mail from a Dover Disciple
and see how she slashed some major $$$ off her insurance bill:
"Dear Ben: I've been following your advice about becoming
a more aggressive and empowered consumer and decided that I've
been paying too much for car insurance. I've been paying the
same amount for almost two years...and I know the value of my
car has had to have gone down during this period. So I called
my insurance company's "Customer Care" line and
(following your advice) clearly stated my case. Their
representative said she'd see what she could do and within
minutes immediately slashed almost $200 off my policy on the
spot! Furthermore, if I could come up with proof that
I'd completed a defensive driving course within the last three
years, I could save another $120! She apologized about the
fact that I my rates hadn't gone down; I've been a loyal
customer for eight years and my policy should've been
automatically reviewed and the lower rate passed along. You've
said it before but it's worth repeating again: It pays to
specifically ask for what you want! - Linda in
Dallas"
Hey
Linda! Thanks
for the success story. I predict there's going to be a flood
of phone calls over the next few days to insurance companies
from consumers requesting immediate premium reviews. As in
life, always remember the worst thing that can happen:
Nothing. You've got everything to gain, so call them and take
a shot!
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