Here I go Again!

So, its been a few days, and I have some time to devote to this.

ST #3: This one consists of things I have signed up for that I don't use any longer. Recently, I have divested myself of having to pay for:

• A second Verizon land line, which we originally got for a few reasons. First, when Colleen and I first moved in together, we wanted that separation for business. We also had dial-up service from our ISP. When we bought the house, we still had that dial-up, the second line was dedicated to just that. The problem is we haven't had dial-up for almost 3 years! So I have been paying some undisclosed amount to keep something that doesn't even have a phone jack on it.

• Also through Verizon, I switched to a cheaper "Family Plan" that does not include $30 extra to be able to call Canada and Mexico (?) for less.

• There have been various web sites that I have joined over time that I no longer utilize, which just keep charging a fee that I keep paying without realizing. This brings us to another problem that I have addressed . . .

• Not checking all the charges on my credit cards. Look at them and be absolutely certain that you can account for all of them. I had a charge this month for a site I no longer use. Their 800 number was on the bill, and within half an hour, I had the charges rescinded and the membership canceled. A quick visit to the site confirmed it all.

• New cell phone contracts! Mine was about to run out, and I did some research. The plan I was on (and would have automatically rolled over if I hadn't looked) had fewer minutes for the same cost as a new option. So, for the same money, I have more service and fewer headaches!

WooHoo!

What I am discovering is this:

HAGGLE.

Whether it is with yourself or with a vendor, ask questions and make demands. I have to convince myself that it is okay to try to get a better price on services. But I have, and I do.

I have been getting a HUGE mess out of the backyard. Initially, my plan was to do it myself. After 4 years of not enough getting done, I rented a dumpster from the City of Jersey City. With the help of some guys I met, about 1/3 of the job got done.

I called a company that cleans up messes of most any kind. They have been here on four occasions in the last few weeks. In that time, I have saved almost 15% of the cost, just because I asked if it could be cheaper.

I asked! Nothing more.

Same thing with the Verizon DSL issues I was having. I kept asking to talk to another representative, until the problem was solved. It took over 3 hours on the phone, but it is done. It wasn't my computer. It wasn't my TiVos. It wasn't divine intervention.

It was their modem. Just like I said it was to the first rep in the first 5 minutes of the call.

It is possible to be in charge of your life. Just decide to be, and find a way to make it happen.

Welcome to STOOPID TAX

Welcome, World, To Stoopid Tax!

We will not be having great debates about the (insert your country's tax collector here)'s foibles and shortcomings.

Nor will we discuss sales, income, VAT or an other kind of actual "tax" foisted upon us by the outside world.

NO, Ladies and Gentlemen. This blog will discuss my OWN idiocies that cost me money for no other reason than this . . .


I WAS STOOPID!


Everyone does it. We all have unexpected expenses like these. I am trying to extract them from the root. I am beginning to see a pattern, and it pisses me off. So I am gong to take back the night! Make my bank account safe from myself! I consider this an inadvertent savings plan!

Here are a few commonplace stoopid taxes that occur on a far too regular basis.

ST #1: Parking Tickets. My neighborhood has terrible street parking. Strike that. My neighborhood has ample street parking! But only for 90% of the cars. The rest park in marked and unmarked "No Parking Zones" and take the risk of getting a ticket.

Now, I am fortunate to live in an urban area where there is a fairly regular parking police pass. So we can be fairly sure that we are safe after a certain time at night. Not always, but most of the time.

There is no nearby parking garage, so there is no real option other than the street. A lucky few have driveways. Some have garages with extra spots that they rent out. But by and large, every non-hydrant section of sidewalk has a vehicle next to it.

This Stoopid Tax comes to $42 every time. There is a $2 "convenience fee" to pay online. I say it is only $1.59, since the Postal rates went up. Did I save anything?

ST #2: Late Fees on Credit Cards. This doesn't come up much anymore, but it is common enough in the world to merit this spot. Especially at $20-$35 a pop!

For me, this one is kinda like comedy. Its all about timing. I had a bad habit of getting my bills and putting them aside until close to the due date. Usually because of a lack of funds. But it became the SOP, and bit me in the wallet too often.

Now I take the bills and put them with my check book. (Yes, I still write checks. Sue me.) I open them and write the latest date I am comfortable mailing them on the OUTSIDE of the envelope, along with the amount due. They go in chronological order in the pile, so i can keep track.

Now for my NEWEST feature

HVAC

HVAC, because you get Heated about an issue, you Vent, then like AC, you cool down!

I'd like to vent now for a minute about what amounts to stoopid taxes, but can be fought because some Stoopid conglomerate put roadblocks up that we have to navigate.


Today's Stoopid Conglomerate Issue is my new car insurance company, Allstate. To begin, I'd like to point out that I have had nothing but good relations with most everyone I have spoken to. It is what happens after that I such a pain in the ass.

My policy was about to expire in March. The 19th, it turns out. That is important, apparently. I was not happy with the *New Improved* quote I got to renew, so I tried to visit the Gecko and his online friends on the 8th. I figured doing the research early so i had no gap in coverage was a good idea.

Nobody wanted to play! At least not for a better price. So I called Allstate (Yes, on the telephone. Sue me.) and got a very helpful agent who spoke American English. We talked and discussed options and so on. Ultimately I got a quote for almost $500 less than the old policy!

WooHoo!

He explained that the actual policy may be for a slightly different amount, once it got to the Great Policy Pow-Wow People. I gave him a payment on my debit card, and awaited the "Envelope of Many Requests" in the mail.

I sent it all back, and waited.

I called again about 2 weeks later. Apparently the policy had been written for almost 3X my quote. "Mr. West. You didn't send in a crucial piece of information that we didn't ask you for."

"Not your fault," the agent told me cheerily.

No shit, Sherlock!

Just send us the paperwork proving your past insurance existed, and the GPP-WP will get right on it. It will take about a week. I had heard that before.

I called again about a week later, after I got a bill for the wrong amount. What is going on?

"Oh, you didn't send the right info, so it got re-written again."

What was wrong with the info I sent, you might ask, and I did.

"There is no date stating how long you were with the old policy writer, so they need a different page . . .

Hold on a second. do you have the page there?

Yes. At the top it has the policy number and some other info, but no start date.

Look above that. At the very top. Where it says "Insured since 03/04." Do you see that?

Ummmmm, yes, I do. It also says Renewal Effective 03/19/06. (That might become important . . .) I'll get this to GPP-WP and that will take about a week.

So, I get an automated call saying that I have to pay my premium. Now, not for nothing, when I got the *wrong bill*, I paid an amount higher than the original policy's premium would have been. I didn't want to have not paid after everything got straightened out.

I call them back, and the policy is at a new and improved RE-re-written amount. For less than before, but still more than 2X the original quote. WHAAAAA?

After almost an hour, and several "may I speak with a supervisor" moments, I got to Yvette. Helpful person who was actually authorized to look at REAL INFORMATION.

Her explanation goes something like this . . .

Since the old policy was for less than 3 years, it is considered (in NJ) that you had NO prior insurance.

Mind you, the 3 year mark was 11 days away when I switched over. 11 DAYS!

But that shouldn't more than double my policy, right?

Wrong.

All the issues stem from my not "having" insurance before this Allstate policy.

Now, it turns out that when I spoke to the first broker, he wrote down 3 years 11 months instead of 2 years 11 months with the other provider. Therefore, he never told me about the HUGE savings if I waited 11 days.

Therefore, Yvette was taking frantic notes once I mentioned bait-and-switch and fraudulent feelings running through my bloodstream. She is taking my case to someone else who sounded like a President at one point.

That will take about a week.


Do you have a Stoopid Tax you'd like to share? Please tell us (me)!