NICB Warns of Widespread Craigslist Auto Sales Scam

2010 Corvette owned by Mike and Christy Childers
Courtesy of the NICB

Here's a little something I thought people would find of interest about scammers buying autos on Craigslist. The story is courtesy of the National Insurance Crime Bureau. Don't forget to check-out the video along with the great looking Corvette:

The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) issued a warning on May 8 to the public about an organized scam involving sales of vehicles through the popular online market place, Craigslist.

Working with law enforcement agencies in the Chicago area and across the Midwest, NICB has identified nearly 100 instances of sales of vehicles that went sour when phony bank checks were used to pay for the vehicle.

"These scams are well organized and have all the appearances of being legitimate," said NICB President and CEO Joe Wehrle. "But in the end, the criminal gets the car and the sellers or their financial institutions are left on the hook for thousands of dollars still owed on the car."

Such was the case with Mike and Christy Childers of Elizabethtown, Ky., who sold their 2010 Corvette on Craigslist, only to learn that the check that their bank initially said was valid, was actually bogus. Fortunately, quick action by law enforcement agencies in Kentucky and Illinois, with assistance from NICB, led to the recovery of the Corvette after it had been picked up, driven to Chicago, and listed for sale again on Craigslist.

Unfortunately, some online car sales lead to much more serious results, as witnessed by the alleged murder of a Missouri man this week as he met a buyer that had seen his car for sale on Craigslist.

NICB advises anyone trying to sell or buy a vehicle on Craigslist to follow their very specific guidelines which can be found here: https://www.craigslist.org/about/scams.

Any face to face meetings should take place at a location that is highly public, preferably at a police station.

Scammers are particularly active in states where the vehicle owner retains the title even though there is an outstanding lien. They will pressure sellers to sign over the title and give them what appears to be a valid bank or cashier's check to pay for the vehicle. Never sign over a title until you have the money in hand. Avoid accepting any kind of check, but if you do, take the time to make sure any alleged bank or cashier's check has actually cleared and you have the cash. It may take a week to 10 days for a check to clear. If it's bogus, you could be left responsible for paying off the loan even though the car is long gone.

Please view the full video story of the Childers here.

Anyone with information concerning insurance fraud or vehicle theft can report it anonymously by calling toll-free 800-TEL-NICB (800-835-6422), texting keyword "fraud" to TIP411 (847411) or submitting a form on our website. Or, download the NICB Fraud Tips app on your iPhone or Android device.

About the National Insurance Crime Bureau: headquartered in Des Plaines, Ill., the NICB is the nation's leading not-for-profit organization exclusively dedicated to preventing, detecting and defeating insurance fraud and vehicle theft through data analytics, investigations, training, legislative advocacy and public awareness. The NICB is supported by more than 1,100 property and casualty insurance companies and self-insured organizations. NICB member companies wrote $371 billion in insurance premiums in 2013, or more than 78 percent of the nation's property/casualty insurance. That includes more than 93 percent ($168 billion) of the nation's personal auto insurance. To learn more visit www.nicb.org.

Another Step Closer

Staten Island Community Board District 2
District Profile

By Mark E. Ruquet

A temporary change in New York City's Zoning Ordinance should help those of us caught up in the bureaucratic quagmire that is preventing Build it Back from completing the remediation of 1,000 homes on Staten Island.

Community Board 2 voted to support the Superstorm Sandy Recovery amendment that would allow work to go ahead with necessary construction and dispense with proving that the structure existed in its current state prior to 1961.

Here is the Staten Island Advance's coverage of Tuesday night's meeting (Click here) - with a quote from your's truely. I am so pleased to have been there to help out and take us all a step closer to putting this disaster behind us.

Follow The Rules and Pay 300% Above Average for Flood Insurance

FEMA says the average annual flood
premium is less than $1,000

By Mark E. Ruquet

You would think that when you do everything asked of you by authorities you would be rewarded. For one Midland Beach resident rebuilding her home devastated by Superstorm Sandy, following the rules has led to a flood insurance charge of more than 300 percent above the average.

First, let’s review what the Federal Emergency Management Agency promotes as how inexperience flood insurance can be. On FEMA's website (click here) under FloodSmart.gov, the agency says some homeowners may qualify for a low-risk policy for as little as $129 premium for home and contents. That provides $20,000 building coverage and $8,000 content. On that same page FEMA says the average flood insurance policy costs $650 a year. That sort of underscores what some residents in Midland Beach, Staten Island, N.Y., are finding when they get their flood insurance bill: the rhetoric does not meet reality.

Case in point: a neighbor who lost her home to Superstorm Sandy. Gerri had to tear down the house and rebuild from scratch, a two-family home that she said is being built back better than what she had. That includes eight blow-out screens for the flood exposed level and the upper floor that exceeds FEMA's requirement of three feet above flood stage for the lowest rate.

To her surprise, when she received her flood insurance quote, the price she thought she would pay — a reasonable $660 a year — instead came in at an astonishing $3,000. Flabbergasted and angry, she sought an explanation. The Write Your Own carrier servicing the policy told her that the home was not built high enough — which she said her engineer disputes.

The home, which has cost substantially more than the Small Business Administration lent her, and required additional mortgaging from a bank, is nearing the end of construction. But before the contractors can finish she needs to pay them and that requires one last installment from the bank. Her dilemma is the bank will not release the funds until she has the flood insurance certificate. And she cannot get the certificate today until she pays the unreasonable rate FEMA is charging. Until this situation is resolved she is stuck.

Gerri said she has gone to a new agent who is working to get her the rate she said she should pay. However, she is encountering another hold-up. FEMA is scheduled to release new guidelines for the insurance program. Until those guidelines are released sometime in April no agents want to obtain a quote.

"We followed everything by the book," she said. "It's all nonsense."

Have a similar story? Contact me at enquiz2001@gmail.com.

    

New York One of the Worst Places to Retire

Bankrate.com rates best and worst states for retirement. New York
did not fare well. Photo from Bankrate.com

I heard this on the news tonight and knew I had to get this out there for all of you -- especially those of us considering retirement at some point in our lives.


Bankrate.com released its ranking of the best and worst states in the country to retire. The ranking is based on several criteria that Bankrate says "combines a variety of statistics important to those who want to relocate to retirement."



The list includes:

• Cost of living
• Crime Rate
• Health care quality
• Weather
• Well-being

So according to Bankrate.com guess where New York ended up -- 49th. Our neighbor New Jersey fared only a little better coming in at 45. And if you were thinking of moving down South avoid Arkansas. It came in at number 50.

Thinking about Connecticut or Pennsylvania? Connecticut came in at 39 and Pennsylvania number 21.

Number one on the list? Wyoming.                                  

Check out the entire list and rankings at Bankrate.com by clicking here.

Insurers May Ground Harrison Ford

From the entertainment front. If you thought you had insurance issues read this about Harrison Ford getting grounded.

You can read the story here.

Two Days Left To Comment -- Put Your Two Cents In

Councilman Steve Matteo swears in Midland Beach Civic Association board.
 Build it Back Executive Amy Peterson spoke, giving an update
on the state of the program. 

By Mark E. Ruquet

This Sunday appears to be a good day for sitting at home, maybe taking in a football game with the miserable weather outside. We should not waste the day indoors. If you are one of the thousands of New Yorkers still recovering from Superstorm Sandy, you might be interested in Proposed Action Plan Amendment 8.

The amendment fully funds Build it Back with the entire $4.21 billion grant from Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The funding covers residential housing, business and coastal resiliency, and infrastructure and other city services.

For those of us still waiting for help, the allocation would provide funds to all applicants in the program “regardless of priority levels;” fund assistance to “all eligible homeowners who must vacate their homes for at least 30 days during construction,” and support the hiring of professionals to expand design and construction capacity, according to NYC recovery Website, .

At this month’s meeting of the Midland Beach Civic Association, Build it Back Director Amy Peterson said the funding means the program will now help everyone who needs help. With the added money, Peterson said the push would now be to get more projects on the drawing board, move forward with expanding repair and construction projects and reach out to individuals who have dropped out of the program to understand why and reengage them in remediation projects.

“We want to get in and get this work done,” she said.

While residents work through the red tape, Peterson informed attendees that anyone in the program who needs help with heat or hot water should visit their local Build it Back center for assistance.

The additional grant money is subject to a public comment period that ends January 19, 2015 at 11:59 p.m. Interested residents can go online and review a summary of the proposals. There is an online form – which can be filled-out in English, Spanish, Chinese or Russian. If you prefer, you can mail in your comments to the address on the site or just call 311.

While I’m not suggesting this would or could happen, I do not think anyone wants to see any allocation changes made because some government official gets it in their head that there is a lack of interest. It seems that they are most impressed and attentive when a proposal receives numerous comments. Just to play it safe, it would be advantageous to all those affected by Sandy to make themselves heard – even if it is to say they support the plan. Numbers and words always catch official’s attention. I’m putting my two cents in. There are two days left – and you really weren’t planning to do anything Sunday, were you?  

To review the proposal, and how to submit a comment, please click here.

Happy New Year, let’s hope. 

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays! My Christmas Video

Like many, I use this space to put my two-cents in about events happening around me. Usually, it is something critical, but Dec. 25 is a day where we try to put all our angst aside and focus on fun, merriment and joy. So in keeping with - or trying to keep with - the tradition of the day here is my little Christmas gift to those of you who have taken the time to read my rants.

Merry Christmas and I hope you enjoy this video. Please click here to view.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0C4f7XpyX4&feature=youtube_gdata


Mark Ruquet