Dollars & Sense

A Word to the Road Wise

"There's a sucker born every minute."

This saying, often incorrectly attributed to showman P.T. Barnum  probably summarizes the mindset of the "inventors" of the miracle, fuel-saving products that hit the market when diesel fuel prices peak.

As the prices creep steadily upward, more of these devices are offered to the heavy duty truck owner; products that heat the fuel, products that cool the fuel, magnets or metals that the fuel passes over and even a device that claims to remove hydrogen from water and inject it into the air intake.

Best of all is the magic pill that dissolves in the fuel tank to increase fuel mileage while at the same time reducing emissions.

In a recent issue of Land Line magazine, Technical Editor Paul Abelson tells of a device that he saw demonstrated at the Mid-America Trucking Show a few years back. 

The gadget spliced into the fuel line.  Inside was a triangular-shaped ceramic bar that the presenter claimed had "a proprietary blend of noble metals that conditioned the fuel" before it entered the injectors.
 
Abelson rightly questions the effectiveness of passing fuel over a specially shaped substance containing who knows how much or how little platinum?

Abelson also says that one of the most outlandish claims he's seen was a sticker with a hologram on it.  Placed on the outside of the fuel tank, "the hologram captured the son's energy and changed the molecular structure of the fuel inside."  By the way, he adds,  the product info really said "son's energy."

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to date has tested in the neighborhood of 100 gas-saving devices, the most recent at the request of the Federal Trade Commission, and only six "indicated a very small improvement in fuel economy without an increase in exhaust emissions."

Experts from Popular Mechanics tested seven fuel-saving (gas engines) products for its September 2005 issue and found no significant change in miles-per-gallon ratings. Two actually increased fuel consumption by 20 percent, according to the writer, and a third one melted before the test was completed.

As a spokesperson for the EPA puts it, these devices, "Don't work. If it were that easy, vehicles would be built that way, especially the magnets and other gizmos."

If a product, typically an additive, is said to change the chemical structure of fuel or oil, or if it claims fuel savings of more than five percent, walk the other way.

The scientific, accurate way to evaluate those fuel-saving claims is with the jointly developed SAE/TMC (Society of Automotive Engineers and Technology and Maintenance Council) road fuel economy tests (type II, III, IV).

The Federal Trade Commission also publishes a list of questionable products that can be found at www.ftc.gov.

Other schemes and scams
Sometimes, it might seem as though the professional driver has a target painted on his/her back because of the frequency in which the scam artists seem to focus on members of this profession.

How many times have you been approached at a truck stop or restaurant by men or women with a hard-luck story that concludes with a plea for gas money, food money, milk money for their kids, etc.?

One interesting ruse was employed by scam artists at the Newark exit of the state turnpike who hit upon truckers who seemed unfamiliar with the area.

These rip-off artists identified themselves as “greeters,” claiming they could help truckers through the confusing trucking regulations in New Jersey.  A number of drivers paid a fee of $50 to $100 for which they received a receipt.  They expected to receive a refund when they exited the toll road but guess what!

Credit rehab
If you’ve had credit trouble, you may be tempted when you see an ad that offers to “clean your credit” by legally removing negative information from your credit report.  All for a fee, of course.
 
Sorry, can't be done.  No one has the power to delete true incidents from your record or manipulate your credit history so that your credit score is improved.

And, according to the Better Business Bureau, you don’t need to pay anyone to review your credit history or correct mistakes.

Under the federal Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, you are entitled to a free copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit reporting agencies once a year. The only free site for this service is www.annualcreditreport.com, which explains how to request changes to your record.

A taxing proposition
Have you ever gone shopping for a tax preparer and found one who assures you he can find all kinds of deductions you didn’t know existed?  Or claimed that he can obtain larger refunds than other services?  Or even promised that you don’t have to pay taxes at all?  

Using an unscrupulous tax preparer can land you in jail and, most often, result in very large fines.  If they seem shady, walk away.

The Internet - 419 scams
No article dealing with scams would be complete without at least one computer-based scam and this one rates a top place in the Scammer Hall of Shame.

419 Scams are also known as Advance fee Scams or Advance Fee Fraud. The most popular variant of such scams are the Inheritance Scam and Lottery Scam.

In general, the scammer in a 419 scam makes up a story about a large sum of money that does not exist in reality.

In the case of Inheritance Scam someone rich has died leaving behind a huge sum of money. The scammer will request to transfer the money out of their country with your help, e.g. coming forward to pretend to be the next of kin.

In the process, they will request money from you first to cover some legal fees, bank fees, transfer fees, or whatever they can think of.  This fee is called the "Advance Fee" and hence the scam is known as the Advance Fee Scam. After you have paid the fees, you can forget about seeing that large sum of fake cash.

The scammers will disappear with your money, and may even use your personal information for identity theft. This is commonly known as "Nigerian Advance Fee Fraud (419)".

Places That Can Help
Better Business Bureau (www.bbb.org): Fill out a form, and the bureau will give you a Reliability Report on the company in question.

Federal Trade Commission (www.ftc.gov): Read about FTC actions filed against shady companies.

National Fraud Information Center (www.fraud.org): Obtain information to help you avoid telemarketing and Internet frauds.