Read the Fine Print When Selecting a Home Warranty

(Click on the image for Susan Hogan's News4 report)

Home warranties promise to cut down on unexpected costs of home ownership, but several customers reached out to NBC4 Responds with examples of when their warranties didn’t deliver.
Issues range from customer service to problems with numerous unsuccessful repair attempts to not getting any response at all.
Mary Raftery of Stafford, Virginia, said her heat pump broke in November and after a month of going back and forth with her warranty company, Total Protect, she gave up.
“We paid out of pocket and had an entirely new system put in,” she said.
[also read the the D.C. Attorney General's alert on home warranties]

Woman offers thanks for Md. officer who died helping her during a domestic dispute

(Click on the image for Lynh Bui's Washington Post report)

The woman saved by a Prince George’s County police officer who died protecting her from her husband during a domestic dispute sent thanks to the family of the officer through a social media post.
Joanne Tyndell offered her “heart wrenching apologies” to the family of Cpl. Mujahid Ramzziddin for involving the officer in an ultimately fatal encounter Feb. 21.
“I pray for [his] family and thank [him] for saving my life and allowing me to see my children again,” Tyndell wrote.

Rare View of 'Epidemic' as Car Break-Ins Hit Record High of Nearly 30,000 in San Francisco

(Click on the image for the NBC Bay Area Report)

• San Francisco's nearly 30,000 car break-ins last year shattered previous crime records and illustrate an organized and elaborate crime operation that law enforcement calls an "epidemic."
• It happens in seconds. A tap on the glass, a quick grab into the car. In less time than it takes to read these words, valuables vanish from a car: laptops, phones, passports.

Can a nonprofit grocer succeed in a Prince George’s city that Safeway left?

(Click on the image for  Rachel Chason's Washington Post report)

Prince George’s County and the city of Seat Pleasant are using tax incentives and loans to recruit a nonprofit grocer they hope will eliminate a food desert in the small municipality along the D.C. border.
The planned opening of Good Food Markets in Seat Pleasant this fall will serve as a “test case” for how Prince George’s can attract affordable, healthful stores to inside-the-Beltway communities that have seen Safeways and other supermarkets shutter in recent years.
If Good Food, which launched its first and only store three years ago in Northeast Washington, is successful, county officials say they will try to use similar economic incentives to lure other grocers to remaining underserved areas.
“I’m going to be looking for the next opportunity to do this quickly,” said Larry Hentz, a business development specialist with the Prince George’s Economic Development Corp.

An old tax scam — with a troubling new twist

(Click on the image for Michelle Singletary's Washington Post report)

The IRS has issued a warning to taxpayers about a scam in which a fraudulently obtained tax refund is deposited into a victim’s actual bank account. Here’s how it works:

• Cybercriminals steal people’s data from tax professionals, including routing and bank account numbers. The crooks file fraudulent tax returns. Fake refunds are then direct deposited into taxpayers’ real bank accounts.
• In one version of this scam, the criminals then contact victims claiming to be from a debt-collection agency, and they say the refunds were deposited in error. They claim they are now trying to get the refund back for the IRS.

You Can Decide an Election - If You Actually Vote and Vote Intelligently!

The close of voter registration is:

• June 5, 2018, for the Gubernatorial Primary Election. If using Maryland's Online Voter Registration System (OLVR), you have until 9:00pm to submit your application.
• You can register to vote in federal, state, county, and city elections in Maryland; request an absentee ballot; and update your registration if your name has changed or your address has changed. You can also update your registration if you want to change to a new political party.

Primary Election - June 26, 2018, 7 am until 8 pm

• Early Voting for the Primary Election - Thursday, June 14, 2018 through Thursday, June 21, 2018 from 10 am until 8 pm.

'Gutless Coward' Killed Off-Duty Prince George's County Officer Who Tried to Protect Woman

(Click on the image for the News4 report)

An off-duty Prince George's County police officer was killed Wednesday morning after he tried to protect a woman who was threatened in a domestic dispute in Brandywine, Maryland, police say.
The suspect also was killed, sources tell News4.
Cpl. Mujahid Ramzziddin lost his life helping a woman as he was off duty in his own neighborhood, Chief Hank Stawinski said at a news conference.
"Mujahid stood his ground to defend of the life of the individual who had come to him for help," Stawinski said.

Washington Post report is here.

On the PGPD Blog: PGPD Mourns Loss of Veteran Officer Killed While Assisting Neighbor in Domestic Situation

An update from Chief Stawinski is here.

The final call for Prince George’s County Police Corporal Mujahid Ramzziddin, Badge #2770.

Condolence cards to Cpl. Ramzziddin's family can be sent by way of: Office of the Chief of Police, 7600 Barlowe Road, Landover MD 20785.

Prince George’s County Memorial Library Celebrates Black History Month

(Click on the image to see what our library has to offer)

MD 210 Work Zone Citations Average 2100/Month

That's $252,640 in citations.

Revenue from the fines is used to cover the costs incurred by the Maryland State Police and State Highway Administration in implementing and administering the automated speed enforcement program. For the first three (3) years of the program, the balance of any excess revenues is distributed to the State Police to fund roadside enforcement activities. After three years, the balance of excess revenues will be distributed to the Transportation Trust Fund.

Don't Let This Happen to You!

"A criminal broke the window of this car to steal a cell phone and purse. Please remember to remove valuables from your vehicle or at least lock them in a trunk. There were 11 theft from autos reported on Wednesday [Feb 14] in the county."
Not a happy Valentine's Day for this owner.

How Much Do Speeding Tickets Affect Your Insurance Rates?

(Click on the image for the full report, requires email address)

• From the zebra "The State of Auto Insurance 2018". "Analysis comprises annual auto insurance premium data across all United States zip codes for a base driver profile and includes top national insurance companies."
• Premium increases are on top of the fine itself. For example, the fine for 21 MPH over the speed limit is $160 plus 2 points.
• Speed camera citations ($40 fine) do not affect insurance rates since no points are assessed.

W-2 Email Scam

(Click on the image for Horace Holmes 7 On Your Side report)

A $3 Billion Dollar a year SCAM.

Montgomery County Speed Camera Operation

(Click on the image for the video)

Samsung and Roku Smart TVs Vulnerable to Hacking, Consumer Reports Finds

(Click on the image for the Consumer Reports article)

• Consumer Reports has found that millions of smart TVs can be controlled by hackers exploiting easy-to-find security flaws. 
• The problems affect Samsung televisions, along with models made by TCL and other brands that use the Roku TV smart-TV platform, as well as streaming devices such as the Roku Ultra.
• We found that a relatively unsophisticated hacker could change channels, play offensive content, or crank up the volume, which might be deeply unsettling to someone who didn’t understand what was happening. This could be done over the web, from thousands of miles away. (These vulnerabilities would not allow a hacker to spy on the user or steal information.)
• The testing also found that all these TVs raised privacy concerns by collecting very detailed information on their users.

Motor Vehicle Crashes Are the Second Leading Cause of Unintentional Death in the United States

(Click on the image for the National Safety Council's "The State of Safety")

• After dropping steadily for decades, we are in the midst  of the deadliest spike in roadway fatalities in 50 years. 
• An estimated 40,200 people died on our nation’s roads in 2016, making motor vehicle crashes the second leading cause of unintentional death in the United States. 
• These deaths are primarily driven by distraction, speed and alcohol, and are entirely preventable.  
• Making the nation’s roadways safer calls for a variety of approaches that recognize how the vehicle, the driver, passengers and the roadway itself all play a role in safety.
• Traffic laws, when visibly enforced, are very effective at promoting safe practices, even though driver behaviors overall are difficult to change.
• A comprehensive road safety approach that integrates laws, enforcement and driver education can shift culture over time so safety becomes  the norm, and safe behaviors become customary. 

Maryland Is 3rd Worst State to Drive In (says WalletHub)

Maryland's low ranking is 'driven' by traffic and infrastructure.

Source: WalletHub

Something to Consider

(Click on the image for the report)

The U.S. retirement system is supported by three main pillars: Social Security, employer-sponsored pension or retirement savings plans, and individual savings. Currently, each of these pillars faces challenges.

• First, Social Security is projected to be unable to pay full retirement benefits beginning in 2035, which could require future benefits to be reduced or delayed.
• Second, fewer employers offer DB [Defined Benefit] pension plans, and the insurer of most of these plans, the PBGC, faced an accumulated deficit of more than $79 billion at the end of fiscal year 2016. Workers who participate in DC [Defined Contribution] plans must often navigate complex financial decisions to plan for and manage their accounts, and many may be at risk of outliving their savings.
• Third, millions of workers do not have access to either a DB or a DC employer-sponsored plan, and their personal savings may not be enough to last through retirement. The personal saving rate in the United States, while improved since 2005, has not returned to its pre-1975 level.

Should Social Security benefits and other income sources prove inadequate, federal safety net programs, such as those providing nutrition and housing assistance, may face additional budgetary pressure from retirees. Unless action is taken to address all these challenges, many older Americans could lack the means to have a secure and dignified retirement in the future.

47 Thefts from Auto in 2 Hours

(Click on the image for Shomari Stone's News4 report)

Most often stolen: loose change!
Cars continue to be left unlocked or with valuable items visible inside inviting Theft from Auto. Don't do it!