Current Events in August 2011

For years, Cadillac was the car of choice for those who didn't care what gasoline cost. General Motors (GM) has been trying to erase that image and this week, took another step in that direction with the unveiling of a plug-in electric Cadillac.

The automotive press got its first look at the Cadillac Ciel at Pebble Beach, Calif. The vehicle seats four, has a 3.6-liter V6 engine and a lithium-ion battery. The Ciel is a prototype that will hit the market next year.

GM said it plans to bring out another electric Cadillac in 2013. Development is just underway so details are sketchy, but the car will be called the Cadillac ELR.

The Cadillac ELR will feature an electric propulsion system made up of a T-shaped lithium ion battery, an electric drive unit, and a four-cylinder engine-generator.

It uses electricity as its primary source to drive the car without using gasoline or producing tailpipe emissions, GM said. When the battery’s energy is low, the ELR switches to extended-range mode to enable driving for hundreds of additional miles. 

“The concept generated instant enthusiasm,” said Don Butler, vice president-Cadillac Marketing. “Like other milestone Cadillac models of the past, the ELR will offer something not otherwise present – the combination of electric propulsion with striking design and the fun of luxury coupe driving.”

Cadillac selected the name ELR to indicate the car’s electric propulsion technology, in keeping with the brand’s 3-letter international model naming convention.

GM did not immediately announce price points for the two electric Cadillacs, but it's first electric – the Chevy Volt – debuted with a sticker price in excess of $40,000.

What's wrong with this picture? Oil prices have dropped like a rock in recent weeks amid signs that the global economy is slowing. Gas prices have barely declined.

While it is true there can be a significant lag between the oil futures market and the price of gas at the pump, gasoline prices have, in the past, tended to fall more quickly when it was clear oil prices were headed significantly lower.

The national average price of self-serve regular today is $3.585 a gallon, down just two cents from last week, according to AAA's Fuel Gauge Survey. Today's average price is exactly the same as it was yesterday.

The average price of diesel fuel is $3.888 a gallon, down from $3.912 last Friday.

The stall in retail gas' downward movement coincides with reports this week showing a decline in U.S. gasoline stockpiles, despite little evidence of an increase in demand. An industry report shows refineries are producing a bit less gasoline, with capacity running at about 89 percent.

Two types of oil

The difference in price between oil produced in the U.S. and Brent crude, which comes mostly from the Middle East, might partly explain why gas prices haven't fallen very much. Brent prices have come down some, but not as much as U.S. oil. Many states – especially those on both coasts, tend to get their gasoline from refineries using Brent crude.

That's made for some interesting changes in the rankings of the most and least expensive gasoline. Notably, Connecticut and New York have more expensive gas now than Alaska and California.

The states with the most expensive gasoline today are:

• Hawaii ($4.103)
• Connecticut ($3.936)
• New York ($3.884)
• Alaska ($3.881)
• Washington, DC ($3.837)
• Washington ($3.772)
• Illinois ($3.769)
• Rhode Island ($3.766)
• Oregon ($3.730)
• California ($3.719)
• Montana ($3.715)

The states with the least expensive gasoline today are:

• Arizona ($3.349)
• South Carolina ($3.382)
• Missouri ($3.400)
• Oklahoma ($3.434)
• Tennessee ($3.445)
• Arkansas ($3.451)
• Virginia ($3.462)
• Colorado ($3.463)
• Mississippi ($3.464)
• Louisiana ($3.468)

One of the dangerous things about strokes is they come on suddenly with few symptoms, until the person is actually having the stroke.

High blood pressure is one risk factor, but a new test may provide an early warning of stroke risk and save lives, researchers say.

A new study suggests a simple ultrasound test may help to identify people at high risk of stroke who have a condition called asymptomatic carotid stenosis, a narrowing of the carotid artery found in the neck. People who have this condition display almost no symptoms.

The study is published in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

“There is debate over how to best treat people with asymptomatic carotid stenosis,” said study author Raffi Topakian, MD, of the Academic Teaching Hospital Wagner-Jauregg in Linz, Austria. “A procedure called carotid endarterectomy can reduce the risk of stroke, but there are risks and costs involved with the surgery. Identifying people with asymptomatic carotid stenosis who are at higher risk of stroke would help determine whether carotid endarterectomy is needed.”

The surgery removes the plaque buildup in the carotid artery, which is the main artery from the heart to the brain.

More fat than regular plaque

For the study, 435 people with asymptomatic carotid stenosis were followed for two years. They underwent ultrasound of the carotid artery and of blood vessels in the brain to determine whether two markers for high risk of stroke were present. The markers were signs of blood clots passing into the brain, and a type of carotid plaque called echolucent plaque, which has a higher fat content than other plaque.

Of the participants, 164 people had echolucent plaque, or 38 percent, and 73 people, or 17 percent, had at least one sign of a blood clot. Six percent, or 27 people, had both markers. During the study, 10 people had strokes and 20 people had transient ischemic attacks, or mini-strokes.

Six times the risk

The study found that people with the plaque in their carotid artery were more than six times more likely to have a stroke than those people without the plaque. People who had the plaque and signs of blood clots were more than 10 times more likely to have a stroke than those without both markers. The results remained the same regardless of high blood pressure, diabetes, smoking and vascular disease.

So where does the test come in? Topakian says with more study, researchers should be able to develop a simple and reliable method for predicting future stroke in people with asymptomatic carotid stenosis and help to determine the best way to treat people with the disorder.

The test, he said, should be able to identify a high risk group as well as a low risk group.  

Where there's smoke

Alan, of Anderson, Calif., reports what he thinks is a dangerous problem with his Hampton Bay ceiling fan, which he says he bought several years ago.

“The blades would not balance out, and Thursday, at 1:30 am, my daughters smelled plastic burning, they found the ceiling fan had stopped turning and when they turned on the lights there was smoke coming out above the light kit,” Alan said. “After being woke up I took it apart to find the motor had shorted and a bridge had melted above the light kit. Had this not been caught in time we would have lost our house to a fire.”

It might be worth noting than in late 2009, Hampton Bay recalled 2000 dehumidifiers because of a potential fire hazard. In any event, Alan should also report it to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, just in case there are other incidents reported.

Expensive information

How much would you pay to look up someone's phone number? Some people agree to pay a small fee to online services for this, only to find they have been enrolled in a membership with a larger, recurring charge.

“I paid PeopleFinder.com with a credit card,” Sherri, of Pangburn, Ark., told ConsumerAffairs.com. “It states you pay a one time fee of $4.95 to look up one number and you will receive information, name & address of who owns the phone of the phone number you are looking up. I got charged $4.94 plus $2.99 and NO name or address. When I call PeopleFinder.com they said it was not refundable.”

It's perfectly legal to sell this information but consumers like Sherri should realize there are free services, such as Switchboard.com, out there too.

Too much information

Western Renewal Service sells magazine subscriptions and has drawn a number of complaints from consumers, who say they are being charged for magazines they didn't order.

“The company stated I had either signed up for a 30 month subscription or signed up for that same subscription through a promotion in May 2011,” Chris, of Staten Island, N.Y., told ConsumerAffairs.com. “I had 30 days to cancel the subscription but I learned about this for the first time on August 16th, 2011. The company said there was no way to cancel this service. I either had to pay $69.90 a month for 30 months or agree to $39.90 a month for 30 months. I requested more information on when and where i signed up for this. They stated i had to sign up for the subscription and they would give me the info about "the mainframe company". I was forced against my will to agree in order to find out this information.”

Ouch! Chris made an unforced error when he agreed to the outrageous demand that he “sign up” in exchange for getting the information to which he is entitled. In effect, he agreed to legitimize what was, in all likelihood, an unauthorized charge.

Consumers should remain wary. Other complaints about this company indicate they get the consumer's credit card information through third-party marketing agreements with other companies. Be very careful during online transactions. Don't Accept “free” offers or extra “discounts,” as that could be how you get signed up for a subscription.

A U.S. District Court Judge in Atlanta has certified a class action by AT&T employees, enabling them to participate in class actions seeking some $1 billion in unpaid overtime wages.

The decision by Chief U.S. District Judge Julie E. Carnes applies to the company's so-called "First Levels", who worked for the telecom giant in a 9-state region comprising Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, North Carolina, Alabama, Louisiana, South Carolina and Kentucky.

The Georgia ruling is the third recent favorable class and collective certification decision achieved by Sanford Wittels & Heisler for Level One Managers. It follows two decisions in late 2009 and 2010 that opened the door for class actions against AT&T'sConnecticut subsidiary Southern New England Telephone Company (SNET) and AT&T's California subsidiary, PacBell.

The SNET case is scheduled for trial on October 3 of this year where AT&T's operating company has more than $60 million of exposure in that case alone.

Fair Labor Standards Act

All three suits allege AT&T and its subsidiaries violated the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and state laws by carrying out a companywide policy to wrongfully misclassify thousands of its Level One Managers exempt from overtime wages.

"Judge Carnes' decision gives the green light for aggrieved Level One Managers working for BellSouth to join their colleagues across the country to pursue the compensation they deserve for the all the overtime hours they've been expected to work for free," said Steven L. Wittels, Co-Lead Class Counsel.

AT&T, the eighth largest of the Fortune 500, has revenues of over $100 billion a year and employs 294,600 workers worldwide.

First Level "Managers" are ground troops in the multi-billion dollar operation, who perform primarily clerical duties and relay information between company management and its technicians in the field.

AT&T and its operating subsidiaries require these employees to work upwards of 60 hours a week, but claim that these workers do not deserve overtime pay.

"AT&T consistently violates federal and state laws in compensating its First Levels," said co-Lead Counsel Janette Wipper. "Although their job title includes the term "manager," these individuals manage nothing and have no management responsibilities. The company uses this job title merely as a means to extract from these employees more hours of work, without providing them any additional compensation."

The three class action complaints charge that against AT&T and its subsidiaries fail to pay Level One employees overtime wages for work in excess of 40 hours a week and eight hours a day; fail to provide these workers with mandatory meal periods and rest breaks; and fail to keep accurate records of the hours these employees work. 

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott today charged Petroleum Wholesale, L.P., Sun Development, L.P., and related defendants with unlawfully defrauding their customers by diluting medium and premium grade gasoline with regular unleaded fuel.

Because the premium gasolines sold at 143 of the defendants’ Texas-based locations were improperly diluted, the defendants are charged with falsifying octane levels, defrauding their customers and violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

The state uncovered the defendants’ fuel dilution scheme -– which is known as cross-dumping -– during the course of a prior enforcement action that charged the defendants with calibrating their gasoline pumps to deliver less fuel than was actually disclosed to customers.

According to today’s court documents, staff at the Attorney General’s Office discovered more than 1,000 instances in which the defendants illegally cross-dumped fuel at 143 locations across Texas. A majority of the documented cross-dumping incidents occurred at service stations in and around Harris County.

The cross-dumping incidents cited by the state occurred between 2005 and 2008. As of the filing date of the state’s enforcement action, the defendants have refused to provide the state with documents evidencing their conduct after 2008. 

Sunmart

In addition to operating Sunmart Travel Centers & Convenience Stores, the defendants also operate approximately 80 service stations that are licensed to sell fuel under branding agreements with three major fuel companies.

Because branded stations feature brand-name products with performance-enhancing additives -– such as fuel injection and valve cleaning products -– those gasolines are marketed for their superiority over other fuels.

As a result, when customers pay for a brand-name gasoline but actually receive generic or additive-free gasoline, they are being deceived about the nature of the product they are purchasing.

According to the state’s enforcement action, the defendants not only diluted premium grade gasoline but also sold unbranded fuel at branded stations. Further, the defendants hid this conduct from their branded fuel providers.

Conventional fuel

The Attorney General’s staff also uncovered evidence indicating that the defendants improperly sold conventional fuel in locations that required reformulated fuel.

Reformulated fuel, which includes detergents and oxygen, has a chemical composition that is intended to reduce carbon-monoxide emissions. The federal Clean Air Act requires densely populated areas that exceed certain air quality levels – such as Houston – to sell reformulated fuel.

The state’s enforcement action seeks a temporary and permanent injunction against the defendants as well as civil penalties of up to $20,000 for each violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

Today’s cross-dumping case is the state’s third enforcement action against Petroleum Wholesale. In November 2010, a Harris County jury rendered a verdict of at least $30 million against Petroleum Wholesale, L.P. and PWI GP, LLC for deliberately and illegally calibrating their gasoline pumps to deliver less than a full gallon of fuel.

A Harris County district court is currently reviewing the state’s motion to reinstate the jury verdict in that case. The first enforcement action was resolved in December 2009, when Petroleum Wholesale was ordered to pay $100,000 for failing to properly protect its customers’ personally identifying information – in violation of state identity theft prevention laws.

New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman has secured a $3.5 million settlement with a financing company that will result in hundreds of soldiers being relieved of their financial debt. 

Rome Finance Co., Inc., of California operated as the financing company for SmartBuy, a storefront electronics retailer. Through its Bankruptcy Trustee, Rome Finance has agreed to relieve soldiers of their debt with that company and take the necessary steps to restore the credit history of hundreds of them. 

The Attorney General's office is engaged in ongoing litigation with the main retailer, SmartBuy and a number of its other finance companies.

"This company took advantage of service members using deceptive practices and roping them into high interest contracts and ruining their credit ratings," said Schneiderman. "While fighting overseas, this is the last thing these soldiers needed to be worried about at home."

Last year, the Attorney General's office began investigating a kiosk and small storefront at the Salmon Run Mall, near Fort Drum, when it appeared to be marketing specifically to soldiers.

Sales clerks would aggressively push the sales of electronic equipment such as laptops, gaming systems and flat screen televisions to soldiers.  At the time of the sale, SmartBuy sales representatives would not take cash payments for the merchandise and instead pressured soldiers to enter into payment contracts with hidden fees and exorbitant interest rates.

A larger scheme

The investigation revealed that the SmartBuy's Salmon Run Mall Kiosk was part of a larger scheme to defraud service members by deceptively reselling them computers and electronics at wildly inflated prices, and locking the soldiers into revolving credit agreements with undisclosed fees and very high interest rates--all paid directly from military paychecks to unlicensed lenders. 

SmartBuy purchased merchandise from stores like Sam's Club, Costco, and Walmart. The items were then marked up by 200 to 325 percent, then included an added interest of 10-25 percent. The interest rates averaged out at 244 percent.

The storefront, SmartBuy, abruptly ceased local operations in 2010 upon learning of the Attorney General's demands that it cease its deceptive business practices and  reimburse defrauded soldiers.  The Attorney General's office commenced suit against all involved parties in April 2010. 

Litigation is  currently underway in New York State Supreme Court in Jefferson County against the remaining solvent companies. The five affiliated entities include, Frisco Marketing of N.Y., LLC, doing business as SmartBuy and SmartBuy Computers and Electronics; Integrity Financial of North Carolina, Inc.; Britlee, Inc.; GJS Management, Inc.; and Rome Finance Co. LLC, all owned and/or operated by Fayetteville, N.C.-based John Paul Jordan, Stuart Jordan and Rebecca Wirt, and Concord, California-based William Collins and Ronald Wilson.

According to the terms of the Attorney General's settlement, Rome Finance Co., Inc., the first financing company to settle, will release approximately 995 soldiers who entered into contracts in the state of New York, or who sought protection in New York State.  The value of this first resolution with the bankrupt defendant is $3,530,090.58 of relieved debt, and represents a significant step forward in this litigation. 

The investigation revealed that hundredsof soldiers fell victim to SmartBuy's actions, including:

• A US Army soldier who purchased an HP 6433 laptop in August 2007 - She was told the price would be $3,868.93.  She later found the exact same computer for $1,000.00.  Rome Financing would not allow her to pay off her balance early to avoid paying additional interest.  
• A US Army soldier who purchased a Sony FS520 laptop in May 2005 -His base price was $3,208.93 not including 19.2% interest.  This laptop regularly retails for approximately $1,229.99.  He currently owes over $6,000.00 due to Rome Financing.  In June 2010, he started receiving messages on his MySpace account from a collection agent at Rome Finance.
• A recently enlisted soldier purchased a computer to stay in touch with friends and family back home. He signed a contract to pay $126 a month plus fees. The loan turned out to be $3,446.92, plus additional undisclosed fees. The computer broke after 13 months.  When he complained about the high price and no warranty, he was offered a new laptop but only if he'd sign a waiver promising he would not take legal action. He declined.

Banks, hoping to make up for lost fees from overdrafts and other sources, continue to find new ways to tack on fees. Wells Fargo says it is among the latest banks to charge a monthly fee for debit cards.

The bank said it will test-market a $3 monthly fee for a debit/ATM card beginning October 14. The fee will be applied to customers in several states and could be expanded nationwide later.

The fee will only be applied to consumers who use their debit cards to make purchases but do not make transactions at ATMs. It is those ATM transactions fees that provide banks with a larger source of revenue. The $3 monthly fee is designed, in part, to offset that lost revenue.

Wells Fargo is not the first bank to take this step and likely will not be the last. JPMorgan Chase, for example, has tested a monthly debit card fee in a single market in Wisconsin for most of this year.

Banks say they are reacting to more consumer-friendly regulations, as well as the Federal Reserve's decision to reduce the interchange, or “swipe” fee banks can charge merchants on each transaction.

 During the fierce debate between banks and retailers over the swipe fee, retailers promised that a reduced swipe fee would be passed along to consumers in the form of lower prices, but banks warned that consumers would end up paying the price in other ways. A debit card fee, it appears, is one of those ways.

Wells Fargo will test the new debit card fee in five states – Georgia, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon and Washington. The bank said it will gauge consumer response before deciding whether to take the fee nationwide.

This isn't the first time we're heard from a consumer who believes they were told one thing by a car rental agency, but when they signed an electronic document it turned out they agreed to something else entirely.

"When picking up my rental at Budget I declined any additional options,” Kathy, of Santa Cruz, Calif., told ConsumerAffairs.com. “The agent then had me sign on an electronic monitor. I didn't realize until I was turning in the car that he had marked down that I wanted additional insurance, an additional charge of $127.73.”

On the old paper rental car agreements, there was a place where the customer initialed a box indicating they did not want the insurance. Seems to us that an electronic document should have that too.

Time is money

Donna, of New Kensington, Pa., said she purchased a new Kitchenaid dishwasher from Sears last November and has had multiple problems with it.

“First, the sliding drawer cracked,” Donna said. “ And now the entire control panel is fried. I am so disgusted mainly with this problem and also being that I have to have a repairman come only hours that are very inconvenient.”

It's not a matter of money, Donna says, since the appliance is still under warranty. It's the time she has to take off from work to be on hand when a repairman comes. After paying $700, she said she expected better.

Hang up

Ron, of Raymore, Mo., reports getting automated calls two or three times a month from Credit Card Services.

“I have contacted them requesting I be taken off their call list,” Ron told ConsumerAffairs.com. “No luck. I'm on the no call list.”

There could be a reason Ron is getting these calls. If he has had business contact with Credit Card Services within the last 18 months – including just a request for information – they can market to him under the Do Not Call law. However, if he has had no such contact, he needs to report these Do Not Call violations to Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster, who has aggressively enforced his state's Do Not Call law.

Out of touch

With so much emphasis on wireless communications these days, it's easy to forget millions of people are still dependent on land lines. Vera, of Rockaway Park, N.Y., is one of them. She says she has not had telephone or fax service since last Friday and so far, she says Verizon hasn't responded to her requests for repair service.

“I am a 77 old person who has medical problems and need to have access to a phone in order to request the required services such ambulance and other related services in case of need,” Vera said. “There are services provided to other homes in my neighborhood, and none at my home. I called Verizon numerous times and the only response was a recorded tape announcing that they are not able to provide services due to the strike.”

Strike or no strike, some states have statutory requirements for utilities to restore service within a set time. Vera should contact New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's office to find out what the law says in New York.

AT&T may be its own worst enemy.  

Opponents of the telecom giant's plan to take over T-Mobile are pointing to documents AT&T filed with the Federal Communications Commission last week that cast doubt on AT&T's claim that it can't build out its 4G LTE service nationwide unless it acquires T-Mobile.

Communications Daily, which was first to publish the documents, reports that in the filing, AT&T admitted that expanding its most advanced network to 97 percent of the country would cost only an estimated $3.8 billion. But the filing shows AT&T rejected that option, claiming there wasn’t a “viable business case” to justify the expansion.

Yet the company is willing to spend $39 billion on the T-Mobile takeover — 10 times as much. And the company is committed to paying T-Mobile $6 billion in total compensation if the deal falls through, $2.2 billion more than it would cost to expand its service.

Meanwhile, the consumer group Free Press obtained an AT&T fact sheet being used to lure support for the merger. The fact sheet features the claim that the proposed combination of AT&T and T-Mobile is the "rare case where 1 + 1 = 3."

"Only at AT&T does one plus one equal three. You can call it fuzzy math or you can call it lying, but AT&T's case for this takeover doesn't withstand scrutiny," said Free Press President and CEO Craig Aaron.

"As the real numbers and facts come to the public's attention, support for this merger continues to unravel. The Department of Justice and the FCC have all the evidence they need to block this dangerous deal," Aaron said.

Competition killer

"We now know the truth: AT&T is willing to pay a $39 billion premium for one reason and one reason only — to kill off the competition," he said. "It would cost AT&T one-tenth of the merger’s cost to expand its network than to buy up T-Mobile. Yet AT&T is willing to pay a 900-percent markup to take out a lower-priced competitor and make sure it can lock in and gouge consumers in the future."

The only thing stopping AT&T from expanding its network is greed, Aaron said.

"AT&T has already told Wall Street it plans to cut investment by $10 billion if the deal goes through. And there has never been a merger that didn't lead to job cuts—or synergies, as AT&T calls them," he added. "At a moment when Washington claims to be all about job creation, policymakers are staring at a deal that will likely push another 20,000 workers into the unemployment line."

The growing anti-AT&T blowback may be having an effect. A Stifel Nicolaus poll of telecom analysts released late last week gave the deal only a 49.5 percent chance of being approved.

Amazon.com today announced that Amazon Publishing's first major acquisition by its New York imprint is the next book in Timothy Ferriss' No. 1 New York Times best-selling "4-hour" series, "The 4-Hour Chef."

Amazon has been publishing books for several years and has allowed authors to self-publish Kindle ebooks but its new New York imprint is an effort to raise its profile by going after major authors likely to produce best-selling titles.  

A class-action antitrust suit last week accused five major publishers of colluding with Apple to raise the price of ebooks, a conspiracy that suit says worked so well that ebooks now cost as much or more than paperbacks.

When it introduced the Kindle ebook reader, Amazon was selling books for $9.99, far below the retail price.  When publishers reached their agreement to sell ebooks through Apple, they were able to force Amazon to raise its prices or lose its resale rights, the suit argues.

By publishing its own titles, Amazon regains the ability to charge whatever it wants.

The question, of course, is whether bookstores and other ebook sellers will carry Amazon's titles.  The New York Times today reports that some independent bookstores have said they do not intend to carry any books from the retailer, not wanting to give a dollar to a company they feel is putting them out of business.

But Larry Kirshbaum, who heads Amazon's new imprint, says no one in the book world should be worried about Amazon.

“Our success will only help the rest of publishing,” he told The New York Times.

Ferriss is author of the best sellers "The 4-Hour Body" and "The 4-Hour Workweek," the latter of which has been sold into 35 languages and has been on the New York Times best seller list for more than four years.

"The 4-Hour Chef," which is expected to be released in April 2012, will be published in print, enhanced digital and audio formats by the New York-based imprint of Amazon Publishing headed by Larry Kirshbaum. 

While a lot of groups, pro and con, have opinions about the proposed acquisition of T-Mobile by AT&T, Jack, a businessman from Miami, Fla., has added another issue to the debate. On his return from China, Jack said he became involved in a billing dispute with T-Mobile over roaming charges on his Blackberry.

“To leave T-Mobile and go to another company, unfortunately there is no alternative for the Blackberry emails oversea, except for AT&T,” Jack told ConsumerAffairs.com. “But T-Mobile is going to merge with AT&T soon, it will create a cartel on the Blackberry emails overseas. I hope very much as a citizen of the USA that FCC will not approve the merger between T-Mobile and AT&T.”

Jack should direct his concerns to the Federal Communications Commission and Department of Justice, which will have the final say about the proposed merger.

Seller beware

Millions of people use e-commerce sites like eBay and Amazon.com and rarely stop to think about the nature of some of these transactions – strangers dealing with strangers. All in all, it probably works remarkably well, but Dhana, of Pomona, Calif., has had a bad experience that gives him pause.

“I sold my text book through Amazon.com, Dhana said. “Amazon sent me an e-mail, telling me that buyer claimed he/she did not receive the product after a month and demanded a refund. The package was properly packed, sealed with the address printed from Amazon. How could this happen?”

Dhana said he lost both his book and his money, and has this advice.

“Sellers, beware, you have no idea what type of people you are selling your products to,” he said.

Another set of eyes and ears always helps

Deborah, of Shrewsbury, Mass., has a complaint about Miracle Ear. Besides dissatisfaction with the product, Deborah thinks the company took advantage of her 83-year-old mother.

“She signed for a sear credit card under the impression she was signing a form which stated she had a hearing examination,” Deborah told ConsumerAffairs.com. “This signature was 'requested' when her son-in-law left the room as he thought the appointment was over.”

Deborah's complaint is a reminder that it is always a good idea to have family members in a supportive role to witness business transactions involving elderly relatives, to help answer any questions.

Loopholes

Carlo, of Lake View Terrace, Calif., said he purchased a home warranty from American Home Shield three years ago but never used it until last month, when the toilets in his home backed up. According to his policy, he says, plumbing problems are covered.

“I contacted them, and they arranged to send somebody to look at the toilets,” Carlo said. “One toilet was not fixed and still backs up, and when I called them back to report the problem, they told me that my contract did not covered water sediments. I paid out pocket $60.00 deductible for them to show up and the report that the technician wrote does not mention any water sediment findings.”

Carlo thinks AHS made this up to avoid paying to fix the problem, but regardless, its an example of how these service contracts often leave consumers disappointed. The consumer thinks plumbing problems are covered, but they aren't, if they happen to be caused by sediments.

Two guilty pleas were entered in a New York courtroom today in connection with a fundraising scheme that concocted a bogus charity, raised and then stole more than $500,000 of donations intended to fight breast cancer, New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced.

David Winston pleaded guilty to two felony charges related to the operation of the phony charity, Coalition for Breast Cancer Cures, Inc, and a for-profit fundraising arm, The Resource Center, which funneled donations to pay for extravagant travel, shopping and other personal living expenses.

His wife, Mindy Winston, pleaded guilty to one felony charge related to falsifying business records, specifically, a bank account for the sham charity.

Lavish lifestyle

“The Winstons supported a lavish lifestyle by using the hard-earned money donors gave to fight breast cancer,” Schneiderman said. “My office has no tolerance for this kind of exploitation, and we will hold accountable anyone who takes advantage of New Yorkers’ generosity and sympathies.”

David and Mindy Winston surrendered and appeared before the Acting County Court Judge for Nassau County, the Honorable Francis Ricigliano. David Winston pleaded guilty to one count of grand larceny, a Class D felony, and one count of scheme to defraud, a Class E felony, under a plea agreement. He will be sentenced at a later date to a term between 2 and 6 years. Mindy Winston pleaded guilty to one count of falsifying business record, a Class E felony, under a plea agreement. She will receive probation.

The Attorney General’s Office first filed a civil lawsuit against the Long Island-based fake charity in April 2010. The lawsuit alleged that the Winstons diverted more than $500,000 donated to fight breast cancer to pay for extravagant travel, shopping, and other personal living expenses. Some of the unlawful expenditures the Attorney General’s Office uncovered include:

• Over $3,700 in personal hotel and airfare expenses;
• Over $5,000 at restaurants including Peter Luger Steakhouse, Caesars Palace Mesa Grill, and Gotham Bar and Grill;
• Over $7,700 in retail purchases at stores such as Louis Vuitton, Victoria’s Secret, Home Depot, Best Buy, Costco, CVS, Loehmann’s, and Target;
• Over $8,000 for their daughter’s sorority dues and other university expenses and fees;
• Over $1,300 for a spring break travel package;
• Thousands of dollars on groceries, Netflix, and cable television.

The civil lawsuit, which is still pending, also alleged that the Winstons falsely claimed that the Coalition for Breast Cancer Cures was a registered nonprofit, mailed phony invoices to dupe donors, and repeatedly charged donors’ credit cards without authorization.

The Coalition for Breast Cancer Cures did not register with the Attorney General as a charitable organization and the Resource Center did not register with the Attorney General as a professional fundraiser, as required by law.

No one likes to think about getting old, although most agree it beats the alternative. But though they don't like to think about it, Americans are, it appears, worrying about the cost of aging.

A new poll from the SCAN Foundation and the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research shows Californians, regardless of political party or income level, were worried about the costs of growing older. Two-thirds of respondents said that they are apprehensive about being able to afford long-term care. Sixty-three percent worry as much about paying for long-term care as they do about paying for their future health care.

The poll, in its second year, tries to get a handle on health and long-term care issues facing middle-aged voters, given the state's current economic crisis and the rising number of Californians older than 60, a figure that is projected to nearly double to 12 million people in the next 25 years.

Hard to save

The poll found that consumers' ability to save for long-term care expenses is hampered by California's weak economy. Nearly half of respondents 40 and older said their household income has declined in the past 12 months, and 50 percent said they had to take money out of savings to meet their expenses.

Four in ten have had to cut down on the amount they spend on food in the past year.

"Californians need affordable options to age with dignity and independence so that they can live how they want in the place they call home," said Dr. Bruce Chernof, president and CEO of The SCAN Foundation. "With so many Californians struggling financially today, it is hard for them to think about the future, yet planning for future needs is an essential component of growing older and necessary for one's personal health, as well as the state's fiscal health, especially given the high cost of long-term care."

Fear of dependence

The poll found that the age-related issues causing respondents the most concern were loss of independence, losing memory or other mental abilities and an overall decline in health.

The costs associated with living with these potentially debilitating health conditions are high, yet Californians underestimate their potential need for support and services.

Sixty-three percent predicted they would need help, but according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 70 percent of Americans over the age of 65 will need long-term care services at some point in their lives, and more than 40 percent will receive care in a nursing home for even a short period of time.

Among other findings, 66 percent of respondents could not afford more than three months of nursing home care at an average cost of $6,000 per month in California. About four in ten could not afford a single month of care.

What's new is sometimes old. Remember back in the day, when MTV was a video jukebox, playing lip-synched music videos 24/7?

That might sound pretty ancient to today's YouTube-surfing video crowd, but guess what – more than 40% of YouTube's audience watched music videos in July, according to audience measurement company comScore, which starts publishing data on YouTube channel usage tomorrow.

ComScore found that Vevo accounted for 38% of YouTube's monthly viewers, making easily the most-watched channel. Warner Music was second with 20%.

“Consumers clearly view video as one of the most accessible, interesting and entertaining sources of content on the Web,” said Jack Flanagan, executive vice president of comScore Media Metrix. “The trends we’re witnessing indicate that online video is emerging from its infancy and entering the mainstream. Many publishers and advertisers are responding to this trend, which means advertising dollars will continue to migrate online where consumers can be targeted with efficiency.”

Youtube.com broke into the comScore Media Metrix Top 50 for the first time in July, debuting at number 40 with 16 million visitors, a 20-percent increase versus June.

Video mania also drove a two-fold increase in traffic to MySpace Videos, which had 20 million visitors, trailing only Yahoo! Video with 21.1 million visitors (up 28-percent from June).

ComScore's measurement is expected to help YouTube attract serious advertising dollars so it can compete more vigorously with network and cable broadcasters.

Some of the other top channels on YouTube include:

• Demand Media, which publishes how-to information, 15.2 million viewers in July;

• Associated Press, news and sports, 6.6 million;

• Hearst Television, local TV news, 3.1 million; and

• BBC Worldwide, TV news, 2 million.

Political matters

Meanwhile, back at the staid old Wide World Web in July, comScore Media Metrix noted a marked increase in traffic to political Web sites ahead of primary season, as well as the effectiveness of summer sweepstakes from McDonalds, Pepsi, Oprah and Publishers Clearing House that drove online traffic.

The25-percent increase in traffic to political Web sites, the largest-gaining category in July, was particularly noteworthy given the recent major upsets in political primaries in Connecticut, Georgia and Michigan.

CapitolAdvantage.com, a site dedicated to connecting organizations to national and state elected officials, rated among the top sites in the category with 927,000 visitors, a 4-percent increase from June. Political news sites also drove category increases, including independent news site Worldnetdaily.com, which increased 22 percent to 500,000 visitors; Voice of America News (voanews.com), which jumped 50 percent to 368,000 visitors; and NationalReview.com, which rose 11 percent to 350,000 visitors.

“The Internet is becoming an important political forum in this country, especially as video and blogging become more prevalent,” said Flanagan. “Politicians recognize the inherent ability of the Internet to connect people and ideas, and it will be interesting to observe activity at political sites as the November elections approach.”

Despite some sell-offs during the recent market turmoil, the price of gold continues to climb. But investors contemplating jumping on the bandwagon at these levels are hearing some cautionary advice from economists.

But wait a minute. Didn't we hear that same advice when gold pushed beyond $1,200 an ounce? Why should investors heed it now, when gold is approaching $1,800?

Some economists agree that gold has been a safe move for people who invested just a few short months ago.

"People believe that gold is a hedge against uncertain times," said Lloyd Thomas, an economics professor at Kansas State University. "In the long run, gold prices have kept pace with inflation. People are flocking to it."

With gains come risks

Thomas said the price might continue to creep higher as economic concern grows, but even so, maintains that the higher gold goes, the riskier it becomes.

From 1960 to the present, Thomas said, gold has gone up an average of 8 percent a year, while inflation rose at less than 4 percent a year. In the last 10 years, gold has gone up 17 percent a year.

"In the long run, gold has gone up," Thomas said. "But in 2000 the price of gold was $300 an ounce. It has gone up six-fold since then, and it might go up higher than what it is right now. It's gone up too fast -- it's a bubble."

Ann Coulson, an instructor for Kansas State University's personal financial planning program, said there are many ways individuals may choose to invest in gold, including jewelry, coins, bullion or gold bars, exchange traded funds, gold mining stocks, gold mutual funds and gold futures and options.

Best ways to buy gold

Jewelry and coins are typically not good choices, she said, and gold bars raise many storage and cost issues. Exchange traded funds give the investor the opportunity to own gold without an actual delivery, and gold mining stocks' value is only partially dependent on the value of gold. Diversified investment -- like gold mutual funds -- often offer the most protection, Coulson said.

Thomas compared his gold predictions to the housing market. People were lulled into thinking housing prices could never fall, but they fell more than 30 percent in most American cities.

"The same thing could happen to gold; it's not risk-free," he said. "In the last 10 years it's gone up 17 percent a year, but the price of things we purchase has only gone up three percent a year. That's unsustainable. It's my own opinion that gold prices will collapse -- I just don't know when."

Although the price of gold is high, it may be a good investment as the price continues to climb -- for now. Unlike investing in stocks or bonds, Coulson said, there is no income associated with gold. Money is made from buying low and selling high. She agreed that the price is destined to fall at some point.

Diversify

"Gold as a piece of a diversified portfolio might make sense, but if an investor invests solely in gold, that is a great risk," she said. "It is not a safe investment unless you are buying gold bars and burying them in your backyard, and even that is not safe because the price is dictated by what buyers are willing to pay for gold."

Since gold only makes money for an investor if they buy low and sell high, it makes sense to no gold's price history, and have an idea where it's going. Since there are no profits or earnings to consider, an investor can only try to guess how much more uncertainty and turmoil – the main driver for gold prices – lie ahead.

Below are the average price of gold, per ounce, over the last 40 years, according to the World Gold Council:

• 1971 – 40.62
• 1976 – 124.74
• 1981 – 480
• 1986 – 368
• 1991 – 362.11
• 1996 – 387.81
• 2001 – 271.04
• 2006 – 603.48
• 2010 – 1224.53

How high will go gold in the future? No one can say for sure. Some analysts point out that the price of gold hit a record $850 an ounce in 1980. Adjusted for inflation, that price in 2011 dollars would be $2,500. But investors betting on hitting that price could simply be rolling the dice.

"When investors become more confident in the economy, gold will be less valuable as an investment," Coulson said. "I agree with Warren Buffett: gold has no utility, so as a long-term investment it's not a good choice."

Crude oil prices have plunged around 15 percent in the last couple of weeks but gasoline prices have not. Is there a reason for that?

Actually, there is. The biggest disconnect is the fact that we are talking about two very different markets.

When we read that crude oil prices have plunged from around $100 a barrel to around $85, this price action is taking place on a futures market. It is the price of crude oil, to be delivered to the buyer next month.

The gasoline prices we all pay are in a retail market. Gasoline is a product that was made from raw materials purchased a few weeks ago, refined and delivered to gas stations across the country. The retail price, in large part, reflects the costs that prevailed in the market before today.

Competition

Because gasoline is sold to consumers in a competitive environment, some retailers will shave their profit margins a bit to sell fuel for slightly less than the gas station down the street. When their costs fall, they try to recoup some of that profit by increasing their margins.

In addition, there now exist two different prices of crude oil. WTI, produced mostly in the U.S. southwest, is significantly cheaper than Brent crude, which comes mostly from the Middle East. The loss of Libyan output has made Brent 15 to 20 percent more expensive than WTI.

In the U.S., some states get gasoline refined from Brent rather than WTI. These states tend to be in the northeast, which makes gasoline there cost more. If Brent crude falls more slowly than WTI, this can affect the price of Brent-refined gasoline. While there is plenty of WTI available, supply bottlenecks prevent it from being easily and efficiently transported to some of these states now dependent on Brent.

But at least prices are falling

The good news for consumers is that gasoline prices, while slow to fall, will likely keep falling as these new, lower prices work their way into the system. Many oil industry analysts have long believed that crude oil prices have been artificially high in recent months because of the belief that the world economy is recovering and would soon need more oil than is currently available. Events of recent weeks have changed that thinking.

Now, the prevailing view is that the economy is actually slowing and could possibly dip once again into a recession.

It may also be no coincidence that oil prices began to escalate a year ago after the Federal Reserve announced “Quantitative Easing II (QEII), its policy of trying to stimulate growth by increasing the money supply. Oil traders viewed the policy as devaluing the dollar, which is the currency used to price oil. Therefore, they concluded, it would take more dollars to purchase the same barrel of oil. QEII ended in June and the Fed has not announced a QEIII.

Meanwhile, gasoline prices are slowly headed lower. The national average price of self-serve regular today is $3.587 a gallon, according to AAA. That's down about 12 cents a gallon in the last 11 days, with the outlook for a continued steady decline as the summer driving season comes to a close.

Janet, of Charlotte, N.C., says she shares the complaints offered by many others about the Maytag Bravos washer, which she purchased in October 2009. She offers a virtual laundry list of things she doesn't like about it.

“Besides being overpriced, it's a washer that doesn't soak clothes, it develops a bad odor, it has silly things like unnecessary lights and music, you can't add an item once the wash cycle has begun without the cycle starting over from the beginning, it leaves washed items in twisted wads, the lid locks so you can't see what's going on inside,” Janet told ConsumerAffairs.com.” In addition, it damages items. I'll have to replace a full-sized blanket that it recently destroyed and now I can't trust that it'll wash things safely, which is a problem.”

Janet said she called the company's customer service department and was told she should have used the bulky item option instead of the regular cycle. But she said he had tried that before and had the same result. The machine isn't broken, Janet insists, it's just poorly designed.

Security questions you might not be able to answer

Companies are increasing their online security practices, which is a good thing. But sometimes the security is so good that even the consumer can't get through it. Travis, a Key Bank customers from Anchorage, Alaska, said he was trying to access his account and was given a series of security questions to answer.

However, these were not questions he had selected but questions the bank's security department set up by compiling public records.

“Customer support told me the issue was that they had implemented new security measures for customer safety,” Travis said. “I am naive, but I feel like if anyone is accessing my account without my permission that is a major security breach, no mater who it is that is doing the accessing. If this is being perpetrated by credit rating agencies, I am uncomfortable with that. I am only interested in doing business with my bank.”

Travis need not be concerned. No one but him can access his bank account information. The security measures are simply being toughened to prevent hackers from accessing his account, which is the real concern.

Check's not in the mail

We've heard of services like telephone and electricity being turned off for non-payment, but never have seen that as a feature of the service. But Andrew, of Naples, Fla., said when he signed up with Dish Network at a vacation home, he understood that the service would be turned off when he wasn't there for an extended time.

“The person at Dish that set this up said when you don't need one month just don't pay that month,” Andrew told ConsumerAffairs.com. “When you need it started just call and pay that month. First time I wanted the service stopped I didn't pay that month. Even without payment they left it on for two more months and wanted full payment to reconnect.”

It sounds like Andrew got some wrong information. When you don't pay a bill, a business doesn't know whether you just forgot, can't pay it, of want them to turn off the service for a month. That's why you always need to see a company's policy in writing and not depend on what a customer service rep tells you.

Colorado Attorney General John Suthers has obtained a $590,000 judgment against Orlando, Fla.-based Enhanced Servicing Solutions. Suthers said the company engaged in unregistered debt management services for Colorado consumers.

The judgment, amounting to $500,000 in fines and $90,000 in consumer restitution, follows a complaint against the company and its president, Thomas Roland. The judgment does not resolve the allegations against Roland.

According to the complaint, Enhanced Servicing Solutions provided “back end” debt management services for the Johnson Law Group, another Orlando, Fla.-based company facing a lawsuit filed by Suthers' office.

 Enhanced Servicing Solutions failed to register with the state of Colorado to comply with the Colorado Debt Management Services Act.

According to the complaint, filed in Denver District Court, Enhanced Servicing Solutions ignored not only a December 17, 2010 letter from the state notifying it of Colorado’s registration requirements, but also did not respond to a January 25, 2011 subpoena.

Debt management companies are required by law to register with the state.