# Stories Of Being Screwed Over



## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

What stories do you have of being ripped off or screwed over in your life?
It can be financial or purchasing horror stories or somehow you fell for the Nigeria scam.

My story goes back to boxing day about 15 years ago. I saw a sale at a furniture store that offered no tax and they would build and deliver the couch I wanted. So I bought it and about 2 weeks later I wondered why my couch wasn't ready yet. So I called the store got the run around and told don't worry and so forth. A few days later I called again and the person I talked to was angry and said call back.

A few days later I called back and then finally found out that they had claimed bankruptcy after they have taken my money and everything. Of course the government allows this crap and you are screwed over. 

So now when I buy furniture I usually go for the don't pay now pay six months later crap. This way I get what I paid for and then pay off the bill before the six months. I should also say this money was critical to me at the time so it was a double screw over at the time.


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## sags (May 15, 2010)

There used to be stories on the news about how some gas stations/ repair shops along US 175 were gouging unknowing customers.

The video showed a guy getting gas and going in to use the restroom. While he was gone the gas attendant poured some oil onto the ground under the car. When the customer returned, the attendant said "you got a big problem here". Then the "mechanic" came out and agreed with him. "Gaskets".........yup, definately need new gaskets, they said.

So, the guy panics and has them haul in the car and "fix" the problem. They recommend a diner down the road and the car will be done in a few hours.

He comes back to a big bill............but nothing has been done to the car. They just show him some worn out gaskets.

I sat there and watched this shortly after the exact same scenario happened to me on the way back from Florida.

I was pretty peeved after that.


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## crazyjackcsa (Aug 8, 2010)

I bought a "beater" of a car in November. 15 years old, the body was in great shape, needed some minor work. Put 2000 km on it. Damn thing left me on the side of the road in december, crapped out again in January, and now I'm looking at a grand in repairs, if I do it myself. I don't think the seller knew that the car was going to crap out, but he sure as hell knew it was time to sell it...


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## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

It is funny how people know when it is time to sell their car knowing you will be screwed in a very short time. They can't time the stock market but they sure know when it is time to sell their car. I could never sell someone anything if I know what is wrong with it, I just feel bad and also don't want to have them break down in some horrible place because of me. Yet so many people are dishonest and those same people usually have nothing and are nor doing well which is what they deserve.

Sags thanks for that story I know now to keep an eye on my car anywhere I go. Even here in Canada if I have to use my credit card for gas I will get out of my car and make sure I watch the attendant swipe the card and complete the transaction. You never know if they will double swipe it and send info to someone else.


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

I bought a dining room table and they gave me a 10% discount for cash. When I went to finalize delivery details and pay the balance, they said the owner had refused to honour the discount (it is common practice here to discount for cash). I paid the balance on a Visa Infinity credit card knowing it charges extra to the merchant. I paid the full price because DW wanted it badly, but promised to spread the word about them not honouring their word. And I did.

Since then they have moved out of town to cheaper premises. The sales person called to see if we knew anyone who wanted furniture. We reminded her that we were doing everything in our power to discourage anyone from dealing with them.


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## financialnoob (Feb 26, 2011)

Wow, no Bell or Rogers stories so far.

Or maybe they're too traumatic to think about.


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## Four Pillars (Apr 5, 2009)

crazyjackcsa said:


> I bought a "beater" of a car in November. 15 years old, the body was in great shape, needed some minor work. Put 2000 km on it. Damn thing left me on the side of the road in december, crapped out again in January, and now I'm looking at a grand in repairs, if I do it myself. I don't think the seller knew that the car was going to crap out, but he sure as hell knew it was time to sell it...


Puhlease - a 15-year old beater and you're surprised when it conked out? You didn't get ripped - you took a chance and lost.


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## Toronto.gal (Jan 8, 2010)

dogcom said:


> I should also say this money was critical to me at the time so it was a double screw over at the time.


If it was critical, why did you buy in the first place? 

Many years ago when I moved from a one bedroom apartment, a moving company quoted $60/hr., but when it came time to pay, the bill was twice as much, when I said they made a mistake, they told me it was $60 *per mover!* I had been quoted $60/hr. on the phone and never once did they specify it was a per mover rate & naturally assumed that there would be 2 people [for a 1 bed. apt without much furniture to speak of] as how could 1 person have done the moving, with my help? LOL, but no, I was not laughing then; they obviously should have quoted me $120 if that is what they wanted, but back then, that would have been a ridiculous rate. It taught a very young & inexperienced person that I was back then, to always get quotes & other matters in writing! The move took 6 hours & probably longer than it should have & should have been billed $360, but instead, I ended up paying $720.

As it happens, I had been ill with the flu on moving day and so I paid just to get them out of my place and even though I had been cheated, I would not have bothered going after them legally for such an amount as the aggravation, cost & time it would have taken to go after them, was simply not worth it and such people probably knew it, especially since I had nothing in writing from them. Live & learn, but I believe in the expression 'what comes around, goes around.'

************

I have a friend, who many years ago, gave in to buying some pots & pans for $2K from people that came to her door. Before purchasing, she called me to come over to give her my opinion [we were practically neighbors], but I declined as I was [ironically] busy cooking, however, I strongly told her not to buy, that no way she needed to spend that kind of money on such things, no matter how wonderful those pots may have been & regardless that money was not an issue for her; after all, she was single & did not even cook that much due to her gruelling schedule at the hospital. I had told her if she wanted pots that bad, to buy from the store.

The next morning she had a change of heart & called several times to cancel her order, but they did not return her calls; she then cancelled the cheque & never heard from them again, not even to get their pots back, so they could not have been worth the $2K. 

Some years later when she went to the bank to get a mortgage, she was stunned to get declined [a professional with perfect credit]. You can guess who reported her to the Credit Bureau. 

In the end, she needed to hire a lawyer to get her record cleared & it was not an easy/quick thing to do either. People are nasty and to this day I feel guilty that I had not come over when she called because I certainly would have prevented her from making such a purchase & would have saved her all the embarrassment, money & aggravation she went through. I actually could not believe that an intelligent person could be taken/pressured in such a manner; do people hypnotize their victims or what?  

She still has the pots, but has never used them. I should clarify that she never actually paid the $2K as she cancelled the cheque, however, she paid far more in legal fees.

***********
About buying a 15 year old car, what were you thinking *crazy*?! There is a limit to frugality, lol.


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## PoorPablo83 (Feb 8, 2010)

Funny you bring up the used car stories... 

A good friend of mine had this old Ford Taurus. It was her first car, passed down to her from her older brother, who received it from their parents after years of use, so it had quite a few kilometers on it. She put some money in to fix up a few major issues, and it was pretty road worthy for another year or so. Soon after she sold it for $900, and as she was shaking the guys hand to seal the deal, I guess a radiator hose broke or something because they heard a 'pop' and all of a sudden rad fluid just DUMPED out of the front of the car right in front of them both!! I believe they agreed to split the cost of the repair and it wasn't too big a deal in the end, but picturing that scenario always makes me laugh . I guess if it happened 30 seconds later it could have been a rip off story.

My boss had a bad rip off experience once. Back when he was a young apprenticing carpenter, he built a deck for someone for something like $500 in cash. When it came time to pay, the home owner gave him a tightly wound bundle of $20's, said thanks, and was gone. As my boss got into his truck he took the roll apart and noticed it was only $40 wrapped around a bunch of American $1's. There was nothing he could do seeing as he did the work under the table... lesson learned!

Don't even get me STARTED on Rogers or Bell...


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## SixesAndSevens (Dec 4, 2009)

nice thread and interesting responses.
my story : for me the biggest screw over has been traffic tickets.
in addition to the fine itself, the time wasted dealing with it, and the insurance impact.

there i was driving along just like everybody else, at the same speed as everybody else, not causing danger to anyone, keeping a safe distance, nice weather etc.
and out of the blue the copper pulls behind me and writes me a ticket.

took the thing all the way to trial and during the process unearthed what a scam of gigantic proportions this whole business is.

they are all in league with each other, the cops, the judge, the prosecutor.
it is simply a money making machine for the cities.
keeps bringing in sure shot cash flow day after day every year.

the insurance companies are of course happy....they gleefully jack up your rates.

the provincial and federal govt. is of course happy.....they collect the HST portions and it keeps the cities out of their hair.

overall i would rate this as the biggest scam going on.


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## Toronto.gal (Jan 8, 2010)

SixesAndSevens said:


> there i was driving along just like everybody else, at the same speed as everybody else, not causing danger to anyone, keeping a safe distance, nice weather etc. and out of the blue the copper pulls behind me and writes me a ticket.


LOL at your description, hmmmm, were you speeding or not?!


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

pablo why are the contractors in victoria bc so n.i.c.e.

anywhere else the contractor would have returned at 3 am & ripped out 3/4 of the new deck ...


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## SixesAndSevens (Dec 4, 2009)

Toronto.gal said:


> LOL at your description, hmmmm, were you speeding or not?!


per the posted limit, sure.
but no more and no less than the hundreds of others in front of me and behind me.

have you ever been through this process?

if you have you'll know what i mean when i say this is a well orchestrated and well oiled money making machine for the cities and towns.

for the cops it is like shooting fish in a bowl and actually a bowl only half filled with water.

i never knew all the aspects of this until i got involved myself.

now whenever i see cops pulling over someone i know exactly what will happen in the background for the next several months....for both the cop and the culprit.
cop meets his quota, prosecutor meets his convinction %, driver gets screwed left right and centre.

every day literally thousands and thousands of drivers snared in this trap....

parking tickets are even worse...don't get me started on those.

compared to this, i actually find Bell and Rogers rip offs rather mild.


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## Toronto.gal (Jan 8, 2010)

SixesAndSevens said:


> 1. no more and no less than the hundreds of others in front of me and behind me.
> 
> 2. have you ever been through this process?
> 
> 3. never knew all the aspects of this until i got involved myself.


1. They can only stop one at a time; eventually all those who break the law get caught like a fish!

2. No, I have never gotten a single ticket for anything, except 1 parking ticket, which I intended to challenge, but never received a court date; this was 4 years ago so I doubt I'll ever receive one and by now, I have surely forgotten my defense. I have a very personal reason to never speed [no more than 10k that is]. 

3. Officers have a quota, no doubt about it and no different than in other businesses. Ultimately, it is up to you not to get caught in the 'trap.'


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## PoorPablo83 (Feb 8, 2010)

humble_pie said:


> pablo why are the contractors in victoria bc so n.i.c.e.
> 
> anywhere else the contractor would have returned at 3 am & ripped out 3/4 of the new deck ...


That is pretty much asking for a violent confrontation, not something I would go looking for, rip off or not, especially when you were working under the table to begin with! I believe he harassed the home owner for quite some time over it and was essentially told to get lost and be more careful next time, essentially telling him it was his fault for being gullible. He was 21 or 22 at the time... I don't think I would have taken in much further then that myself at that age.

I DO know of a stone mason who re-pointed someones brick chimney and never got paid. He showed up in the middle of the day with a friend, ladder, and his truck. In no time he had a large chain wrapped around the chimney with the other end attached to the truck in the driveway with his friend behind the wheel, engine on. The mason knocked on the door, and when the homeowner appeared he said you have one minute to get your check book out Or Else!

I'm sure everyone here could post of story of being ripped off by a contractor at some point, I just thought I'd mix it up and show that we too occasionally get the sh*t end of the stick .


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## Addy (Mar 12, 2010)

SixesAndSevens said:


> per the posted limit, sure.
> but no more and no less than the hundreds of others in front of me and behind me...
> 
> cop meets his quota, prosecutor meets his convinction %, driver gets screwed left right


You were speeding, you got caught. There is no issue here other than you breaking the law. I got three speeding tickets while employed in police services, I was speeding, I was the unlucky one in many others speeding, I did not complain, I paid the fine. Just because most others speed does not make it right. Most people need to slow down.

Cops do not have quotas, at least not in Canada. It's simply easy to write many tickets because there are so many idiots on the road speeding and disobeying the law.


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## donald (Apr 18, 2011)

Two mth ago,i got screwed by police tickets,i had to make a phone call and risked it(important business call)and sure enough in the middle of my call i seen the cop in my rear view mirrior and we both looked at each other and sure enough the lights went on,to add injury to this,the cop came back and informed me "i" had another problem,my truck was uninsured(company truck,that the insurance ran out on,and my book keeper missed the payment with
out my knowledge,didnt even know i was uninsured).Cell phone ticket-199.80,driver without vechicle liability insurance-655.65,and tow truck for my vechile,130.00,not to mention a hr wait and the cop being a complete di*k.Guess he was iching that day to be a dick,I know cops get compensated for there tickets guess his boy needed a new bike or something,def caught a cop ticket nazi.I know i broke the law but he threw everything at me that day.


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## the-royal-mail (Dec 11, 2009)

Those who suggest speeders are at fault are missing the point. There are a good deal many roads out there with artificially low speed limits, set that way on purpose so as to maximize ticket revenue. Same thing with the traffic cameras. Why did they shorten the yellow light in camera intersections? Why do they reduce the speed limit to 60 in construction zones on weekends when there is CLEARLY no one around. They slow down the traffic for nothing, then are waiting for you with a radar gun when you are going 80 in a zone clearly safe to do 100-110. I can read from all the media coverage and political response that this is nothing but a tax grab. It has nothing to do with safety. Don't blame the victim.


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

Here's my rip off story:

Being young and naive and from a small town, one of my first times driving through Mtl I got scammed by the classic white van routine. A couple young guys drive up to you in a parking lot and give you some orchestrated story about having to desperately sell something cheap for cash, including a fake magazine and factory sealed merchandise. If it wasn't for the language barrier I might have smelt the scam, but I actually wanted some speakers and was used to trusting people at the time. I didn't really care about the fake props or story, but I thought it was an opportunity and was helping us both and was too naive to even consider they were stolen (it's actually cheap junk, not stolen). Everytime I drive through Mtl now I hope for someone to just try this game again. I would tell them to follow me to the ATM which would actually be the cops or a group of big friends


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## bmckay (Mar 10, 2011)

I was wanting to get from Vinh to Hanoi last summer when I was in Vietnam. We got off the bus in Vinh from Laos and wanted to catch the next available bus to Hanoi. We got off the bus and some guy waved us over. In his broken english he asked us where we were going. We stated we wanted to go to Hanoi. He said he could sell us tickets and the bus leaves in 10 minutes. He sold us the tickets for about 200,000 Dong or about 10 USD. We were tired and just wanted to get up to Hanoi that night so we paid. We got on the bus and all the local Vietnamese started laughing at us as they knew we got scammed on our bus ticket for some reason

Tickets at the ticket booth were 50,000 Dong apparently. 

LOL I know not a big deal but still pretty funny.


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## crazyjackcsa (Aug 8, 2010)

Four Pillars said:


> Puhlease - a 15-year old beater and you're surprised when it conked out? You didn't get ripped - you took a chance and lost.


I supose I look at it a different way, the owner didn't screw me. The car did. I figure he knew something big was going to go sometime soon, but didn't know what or when. That's fine. I'm pretty mechanically inclined, and looked the car as well as I could, but the problem I have I've never had before, and with the particular car I bought, it's a great big expensive fix.


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## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

Toronto.gal I could afford one couch and I desperately needed one but the problem is I didn't really have cash for 2 couches, so I ended up buying a second hand couch.

On the police and speeding I think it is crazy you have to pay so much money for a mild speeding infraction and yet if someone breaks your car window and takes your change they get nothing. You would think they should pay thousands for that infraction but I suppose they have no money so only those who can pay get dinged.


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## the-royal-mail (Dec 11, 2009)

Yes, after 5-7 years the repairs on any car start to get expensive. Pretty much anytime after that you are looking at some repairs or other.


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## financialnoob (Feb 26, 2011)

the-royal-mail said:


> Those who suggest speeders are at fault are missing the point. There are a good deal many roads out there with artificially low speed limits, set that way on purpose so as to maximize ticket revenue. Same thing with the traffic cameras. Why did they shorten the yellow light in camera intersections? Why do they reduce the speed limit to 60 in construction zones on weekends when there is CLEARLY no one around. They slow down the traffic for nothing, then are waiting for you with a radar gun when you are going 80 in a zone clearly safe to do 100-110. I can read from all the media coverage and political response that this is nothing but a tax grab. It has nothing to do with safety. Don't blame the victim.


The shortening of yellow lights is a threat to driver safety and any city officials involved with making that decision should be prosecuted.

Having said that much, I have read several cases of this in the US, but not one in Canada. I've looked a bit but couldn't find any Canadian city guilty of this.


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## Plugging Along (Jan 3, 2011)

dogcom said:


> It is funny how people know when it is time to sell their car knowing you will be screwed in a very short time. They can't time the stock market but they sure know when it is time to sell their car. I could never sell someone anything if I know what is wrong with it, I just feel bad and also don't want to have them break down in some horrible place because of me. Yet so many people are dishonest and those same people usually have nothing and are nor doing well which is what they deserve.


I don't know if people are knowingly selling their vehicles thinking something will go wrong. Usually, a car has a certain amount of life you're comfortable with, and then it's time for it to go, hence why it's cheaper in price. It could also be that the person has already spent so much in the vehicle, and has had enough. I think unless the person is purposely lying about something or deceiving the buyer on the vehicle, I wouldn't consider it a scam. Buyer aware. Honestly, I don't know that much about cars, but mine is well maintained by our mechanic (family member), and if our 12 year car had issues after we sold the car, then it wouldn't be because it was intentional. 



SixesAndSevens said:


> per the posted limit, sure.
> but no more and no less than the hundreds of others in front of me and behind me.
> 
> have you ever been through this process?
> ...


It's not a scam, you know when you speed you could get caught. You know that there is a fine and penality (in AB we can even look up the fines for different offenses), it even lists your demerits ahead time. No one is forcing anyone to speed or break the law. It doesn't matter if others do it too. If others our rioting, stealing, shopping lifting, beating some one up, etc and you join in, it's still against the law. 

Don't get me wrong, I unfortunately, used to speed (and still do occasionally) all the time. I didn't like it when I got caught, and did go through the process to fight it or get a reduction, not because I felt I was right, but because I could. I still take responsibility for my actions.

If you speed, and get caught, then you should take responsibility for it. You don't have to like it, but don't call it scam. 



donald said:


> Two mth ago,i got screwed by police tickets,i had to make a phone call and risked it(important business call)and sure enough in the middle of my call i seen the cop in my rear view mirrior and we both looked at each other and sure enough the lights went on,to add injury to this,the cop came back and informed me "i" had another problem,my truck was uninsured(company truck,that the insurance ran out on,and my book keeper missed the payment with
> out my knowledge,didnt even know i was uninsured).Cell phone ticket-199.80,driver without vechicle liability insurance-655.65,and tow truck for my vechile,130.00,not to mention a hr wait and the cop being a complete di*k.Guess he was iching that day to be a dick,I know cops get compensated for there tickets guess his boy needed a new bike or something,def caught a cop ticket nazi.I know i broke the law but he threw everything at me that day.


Could you have not pulled over for the phone call? If your business is that important, then could have used a speaker phone or bluetooth? 

If it's a company vehicle, and the companies fault, then could you not get reimbursed for that? 

Sounds like the cop was throwing everything at you. I've been stopped often, and I have been taken easy on, and did get the book thrown at me. It sucks, but I can't blame anyone else for my driving except me. I did use the kid card as my newborn was screaming and was really tired, so they took pity me. If they didn't, it's within their rights, and I need to suck it up. Don't get me wrong, when I do get tickets I still go to the court house and make a plea, especially if there are demerits involved. I don't blame anyone, and own it, but still hope for some mercy. One of the prosecutors told me because I was responsible with my actions, that's why they reduced my demerits and fee so much. He was tired of hearing how unfair it was. 



the-royal-mail said:


> Those who suggest speeders are at fault are missing the point. There are a good deal many roads out there with artificially low speed limits, set that way on purpose so as to maximize ticket revenue. Same thing with the traffic cameras. Why did they shorten the yellow light in camera intersections? Why do they reduce the speed limit to 60 in construction zones on weekends when there is CLEARLY no one around. They slow down the traffic for nothing, then are waiting for you with a radar gun when you are going 80 in a zone clearly safe to do 100-110. I can read from all the media coverage and political response that this is nothing but a tax grab. It has nothing to do with safety. Don't blame the victim.


I agree with you that these construction zones shouldn't be up when no ones there (I have been living in a major construction zone for the last 6 years). However, it's posted, and the speeder is not a victim, they just got caught.


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## Plugging Along (Jan 3, 2011)

I don't think I've been scammed very often, as I'm pretty careful with what I buy. I have been made many bad purchases, and fallen to some sob stories.

The worst I think I got in with was Quickstar (Amway). It didn't seem like a bad business model (I'm not against multi level marketing). This was when they were first going on-line and launching the e-commerce portion of Amway. Both my partner and I were high tech, and saw a lot of potential in terms of being able to market on line. We asked the questions, got the right answers, and paid the $150 fee.

Then we found out that we couldn't just market on line, but rather had to target people to come to our site with logins, rather than directing traffic. Strike 1. We went to host our first session, and when our sponsor arrive he told us to unplug al the phones so people couldn't cancel, and would be forced to come. (Strike 2) Then he said the session would take an 1 hour (it took 2.5 the first time we met him, but he told us that was not normal, so I should have taken this as a strike 1, but gave him the benefit of doubt). Our guests had to leave after 2 hours, because they had to pay for parking and their babysitter (Strike 3). Then we were told that if wanted to really do well, that we should buy all these 'optional' items dvds, cds, tickets to seminars, demo packages, etc (the min kit was another $750). We were ready to give him the boot, but thought we would try it out. Then the final straw was when I had my friends over to plan my friends wedding shower, and he showed up to talk to my spouse (then fiance), and tried to sell to my friends. I informed him that this was not an option, and to leave us to our planning. He then over heard us say that our shower date was the same date as the workshop/seminar. He tried to take over our shower planning, ask the ladies to change the date, or perhaps have the shower at the seminar (he would give us a group rate on tickets), and how it would be better financially to do this to set our selves up.

My husband informed him they better leave the apartment immediately. We asked for our money back the next day, as he got hostile and told me how he was going to be a millionaire, and that we would regret it. 

The sad thing was, the products were good, and if it wasn't for his underhandiness, I think we could have made it work.


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## donald (Apr 18, 2011)

Hey plugging along,i could'nt pull over because i was in the middle of the phone call,like i said in my post when i answered the call i knew i was taking a risk.I agree with you and have purchased a bluetooth since than,and yes my business is important to me,i was to cheap to purchase one and have learned my lesson on a side note i think speaker phones are terrible for business calls!for so many reasons.
As for being the companies fault,it was'nt,it was me the drivers fault,im looking into the matter but i do not believe income tax would consider it a company expense?do any accountants out there know if that would be a write off?im self employed so i view it a loss either way.Thanks for engaging me,im still new here so its nice to cyber meet you plugging along.


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## marina628 (Dec 14, 2010)

This happened to my friend's Niece Jane just 2 weeks ago.She has started her own cake business and trying to get her name out there.Jane hooked up with another lady who does catering .Well Jane lady made and donated over $2000 worth of products to a big gala via the catering lady with understanding Jane will get credit and display her business cards.Catering company screwed her by displaying their cards with Jane's stuff.If that is not being screwed not sure what is !


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## Plugging Along (Jan 3, 2011)

donald said:


> Hey plugging along,i could'nt pull over because i was in the middle of the phone call,like i said in my post when i answered the call i knew i was taking a risk.I agree with you and have purchased a bluetooth since than,and yes my business is important to me,i was to cheap to purchase one and have learned my lesson on a side note i think speaker phones are terrible for business calls!for so many reasons.
> As for being the companies fault,it was'nt,it was me the drivers fault,im looking into the matter but i do not believe income tax would consider it a company expense?do any accountants out there know if that would be a write off?im self employed so i view it a loss either way.Thanks for engaging me,im still new here so its nice to cyber meet you plugging along.


I wasn't trying to come down on you, but I've always been a if you break the rules and get caught, then own up. I break the rules all the time, don't like to get caught, but will own up when I do 

If you are self employeed, and there fore the company, then yeah, it is your fault too on the insurance. I do not believe it is a deductive company expense. I've tried to get my accountant to write mine off, and she tells me no, and then she tells me to stop speeding. 

Welcome to the forum!


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## the-royal-mail (Dec 11, 2009)

PA, I don't think anyone here is suggesting we shouldn't own up to our mistakes. Did you read my earlier post? You did respond, so I guess you did. The point I'm trying to make is that the speed limit being posted is not the issue. The issue is the limits in many cases are BOGUS and represent a scam in and of themselves. The construction zone is one example and there are other examples (think nice wide, straight, open, multi-lane one way streets rated at 50 where it's clearly safe to do 80). It is a well documented fact that the gov't is using sin taxes as a form of revenue. This in and of itself is a tax increase. Humans will speed, humans will make mistake and will do some things wrong. A lot of people, myself included DO own up to it when we do something wrong and are caught. However, the speeding issue is one where the biggest scam is the gov't treating tickets as a source of revenue rather than a deterrent. That's their point, not safety.


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## MoneyGal (Apr 24, 2009)

You can't deduct speeding tickets (or any other fines incurred in the course of doing business) and it all has to do with someone gaming the egg quota system.


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## Ihatetaxes (May 5, 2010)

20 years ago I got suckered into buying speakers out of the back of a van. Pulled into a parking lot somewhere and as I was walking to the store a guy pulls up in a cargo van. "Hey buddy, my boss loaded too many sets of speakers into my van today by accident and I have one pair I will sell you for cash." I think he told me they were worth $1000 but I could have them for like $400. They were big and nice looking but sounded like garbage.

About 2 years ago I got suckered again. This time it was a sharply dressed Italian guy driving a rental car who came up to me outside a Shoppers Drug Mart just as I got out of my car. Pulls out a map and asks me how to get back to the highway to get to Toronto. Barely spoke English, good looking guy in a very nice suit. After I gave him directions he says thanks and then "You are a big guy, what size suit do you wear, a 46?" "Yes I say, good guess". He says he is actually a Sales Rep here from Italy selling for a major clothing manufacturer in Italy. Opens the back of the SUV and there are like 8 suits in suit bags, 6 "leather" jackets, 4 "suede" jackets, 20 dress shirts, ties, belts, etc. He says he is finishing up a week of calling on clothing retailers around the GTA taking orders for his company and is flying back to Italy the next day. Tells me he really doesn't want to carry back all these clothes with him to Italy. Tells me these suits sell for $1500 each and the jackets are like $1200. Amazingly all this stuff is my size other than the dress shirts which are small (and all still in original packaging). He says I will sell you all this stuff for $2000 cash. I calculate in my head this stuff is over $10,000 retail how can I lose but I am still a little wary (not wary enough). I tell him I only have a couple hundred and the bank machine limit is $500 and its after 5:00 so the bank is closed. He says no problem give me $700 cash and then lets go to the Rogers store and buy him a couple of cell phones (unlocked) for him to take home as presents for his son and daughter.

Fool that I am I go for it. I think my total including the phones was around $1500. I get home and was so proud of this deal I am bragging to my wife and loading all this stuff onto our dinning room table. I start taking a really good look at the leather jackets and think "This leather feels a little funny". I started to get buyers remorse and get on my laptop and google "Italian selling clothes out of a rental car" and immediately realize I had been taken by a very good scam artist. Italian yes, rental car yes, but the clothes were definitely not made in Italy (despite tags on everything saying they were).

Anyways I sucked it up and didn't tell too many people I had been had. Donated all the jackets to a charity, put all the shirts in a clothing donation box and still have about 8 suits hanging in the basement. If you wear a 46 and want some suits I have a great deal for you!

I swear I won't get suckered again (well at least for a few years)!!


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## Addy (Mar 12, 2010)

donald said:


> I know cops get compensated for there tickets guess his boy needed a new bike or something,def caught a cop ticket nazi.I know i broke the law but he threw everything at me that day.


Canadian cops do not get compensated for writing tickets. When I was young and naive I also believed this, but now I am older and somewhat wiser I know this is simply not true.


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## SixesAndSevens (Dec 4, 2009)

Toronto.gal said:


> I have a very personal reason to never speed [no more than 10k that is].


i see...so now there are degrees of breaking the law, is it?
you are fine because you break the law only a little bit while i broke it slightly more 

a few weeks ago i went back to the "crime site" to collect evidence, pictures etc.
anyhow i was there in the median for a good 20 mins taking pictures.
during this time i observed well over 500 cars drive by.
each and every one of them, without question, was well over the posted 100 limit.
some were comfortably cruising at over 130 kph.
the ones on the right most lanes were probably 115...120.

so ya'll are telling me that we have literally hundreds of thousands of criminals driving around our streets, breaking the law every second of the day?
after all the hwy traffic act section 128 (speeding) is indeed the law isn't it 

having gone through this process for the first time i now believe that a law that makes 99% people as criminals, instead of the ordinary God-fearing citizens that they are, is the problem, not the people.
the law needs to change, not the people.

others above spoke of artificially low speed limits set up as traps, artificially low orange light durations, red light cameras...there are all symptoms where the law has become a money making machine for the various level of govtt.

during my research i came across the national motorist association of north america and i was surprised to find many of the same issues raised and highlighted by them.
there are literally hundreds of thousands of people all across the USA and Canada that are fed up with this money gouging system.
they are not criminals just ordinary people.

anyway i don't usually rant. my only point in posting this experience is that when it comes to rip offs, gouging, and screw overs these artificial laws enacted by our friendly governments rank #1 in my book, above all the Bell and Rogers customer service, used car salesmen, amway MLM schemes and artificial jewelery by mail.


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

Ihatetaxes said:


> 20 years ago I got suckered into buying speakers out of the back of a van. Pulled into a parking lot somewhere and as I was walking to the store a guy pulls up in a cargo van. "Hey buddy, my boss loaded too many sets of speakers into my van today by accident and I have one pair I will sell you for cash." I think he told me they were worth $1000 but I could have them for like $400. They were big and nice looking but sounded like garbage.


Hah I see the same outfit got you too



Addy said:


> Canadian cops do not get compensated for writing tickets. When I was young and naive I also believed this, but now I am older and somewhat wiser I know this is simply not true.


But the internetz said so! 



SixesAndSevens said:


> each and every one of them, without question, was well over the posted 100 limit.
> some were comfortably cruising at over 130 kph.
> the ones on the right most lanes were probably 115...120.
> 
> ...


There's a youtube video where 4 people line up on the highway and drive the speed limit. It causes a major traffic jam and people smash off their mirrors in rage to get around. Some day I want to do this across Canada to raise awareness or something

I've argued this on a few forums and seems all the mothers and do gooders scream that speed kills, while I bet they speed themselves. We need reasonable speed limits so that people aren't half asleep texting while driving.

Saying the lights are purposely set to catch people and that cops are out to get you is just tin hat theories though. Yellow lights are set by traffic engineers and detailed simulations and cops are just doing their jobs.

There's some kind of internet movement in the GTA now where everyone pleads non guilty on their speeding tickets. The court system is so full that they don't get to court for years, where they claim section 11b and it gets thrown out

I still like clogging the highway at 110 kmh though


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## Karen (Jul 24, 2010)

About 15 years ago, I was over on Vancouver Island, rushing to try to catch the last ferry home to the mainland. I was definitely speeding and was stopped by a police officer. I admitted my guilt and asked him to hurry and write my ticket so I still might make the ferry. It was a pleasant enough conversation on both sides, but before I left I asked him why he had stopped me instead of the several cars that had passed me, going even faster. I laughed out loud at his answer; he said, "Because they they were going too fast - I couldn't catch them."


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## Toronto.gal (Jan 8, 2010)

SixesAndSevens said:


> 1. so now there are degrees of breaking the law, is it?
> you are fine because you break the law only a little bit while i broke it slightly more
> 
> 2. i observed well over 500 cars drive by. each and every one of them, without question, was well over the posted 100 limit.


1. No, that is not the point I was trying to make at all, rather, that we *ALL* break driving rules from time to time; it just so happens that I don't do it very often, hence the reason I have not been caught, but I'm sure I'll have my turn. Bottom line is that if you break the law and get caught, you must accept the consequences, that is how the system works.

2. 100% right, it happens all the time, even in the city where 50K/60K is posted, it seems everyone always passes me, which means most are speeding.

About fines, I'm not familiar with them and don't know what is considered reasonable, but when a friend got a ticket, I believe over $100, for making an illegal right turn on a street with restricted hours during rush hour only, I was surprised at the fine and thought it to be a bit high for such an infraction, which makes me wonder what the fine is for driving through a stop sign.


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## financialnoob (Feb 26, 2011)

mode3sour: You're right about needing reasonable speed limits. It's about moderation and awareness. Slow driving can be just as dangerous. And drivers who just go the speed limit, or slightly above, and hit cruise control are also very dangerous. There's a reason cars can go faster than the speed limit. Sometimes it is necessary to avoid dangerous situations.

But the yellow light time changes isn't a tin hat thing. It's been done in at least 6 US cities:

6 Cities That Were Caught Shortening Yellow Light Times For Profit


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## SixesAndSevens (Dec 4, 2009)

Toronto.gal said:


> 2. 100% right, it happens all the time, even in the city where 50K/60K is posted, it seems everyone always passes me, which means most are speeding.


ok, thanks, for appreciating my position and not making me feel like a freak of nature, an abhor of society, a criminal amidst law-abiding citizens.
any law that makes brands 99% of the people as criminals is wrong and its only purpose of existence is for the benefit of the few that profit directly from it.

above someone commented that cops in Canada do not have ticket quotas and i want to say that they do.
there was a ctv report on it recently.

i'm sure they do not personally get a kick back or commission from the face value of the ticket (although i wouldn't be surprised if there were some obscure bonus metric tied to it).
but when the city or town meets its revenue targets all of them benefit.



> About fines, I'm not familiar with them and don't know what is considered reasonable, but when a friend got a ticket, I believe over $100, for making an illegal right turn on a street with restricted hours during rush hour only, I was surprised at the fine and thought it to be a bit high for such an infraction, which makes me wonder what the fine is for driving through a stop sign.


most fines for non criminal violataions are capped at $500 i believe.

my speeding fine was $265 including court costs, victim surcharges and a host of other crap fees.

and people complain about Bell and Rogers charges & fees!

note that the insurance implications are much deeper, much more hurtful and much long lasting.
don't even ask me about them.
my insurance company raised the rates just for that 1 ticket to an extent that i had to dump them after 8 years of loyalty and switch.
i'm still paying high insurance rates.

i haven't run any numbers of course but I'd speculate even a small municipality 1/100th the size of Toronto would still rake in several millions a year just on tickets and fines.

if even half of those cops that waste several hours a day pointing their speed guns on highways, were instead commissioned to prevent crime and catch real criminals maybe we would have less murders, rapes, break ins and other real crime.


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## donald (Apr 18, 2011)

Thank-you money gal,i did not think i could,interesting article,i wonder if a fed-ex or dhl driver is responsible be interesting how those corporations handle that or what there policy is,maybe law enforcement as a rule grants them "more breathing room" for infractions,or maybe the cra in some spinoff obsecre way.

I was told police officers get paid a salary,and on top of that overtime,from my understanding,tickets and everything that goes with them create paper work for the officer,also heard a officer benefits two folds if a ticket he writes gets challanged,because it yet again creates work.Point being,if a officer wants to "create work for himself"he wants to write up alot of tickets,and lastly i think i heard a officer gets a certian amt for any trip to a law court building weather he is in the building for 10 min or 1 hr,ever been to the law courts?do you notice how many police officers are coming two and fro?ducking into the back behind the glass wall.Officers do have there ways and inside rules,thats the biggest "boy club of them all".I do not have anything against the police force thou,as a rule of thumb i respect them.


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## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

I would like to take another spin on Ihatetaxes unfortunate story.

Would anyone on this forum buy goods you think are probably stolen from the back of a truck or car and get a very good deal. I know everyone on this forum is all about saving money and so on but I would never do this even if it would really help me out.

I feel you can also extend this out to business. I am sure you can make some good money cheating in business and lying to people but not doing it in a stupid obvious way like the story kcowan told. There is a lot of money on the table to be made by looking the other way and buying stolen goods or cheating in business.

It is a tough choice for people to make to stay true and do the right thing. I have probably left a lot of money on the table over the years by being honest and doing the right thing and maybe some here will think that is stupid because of all that money that could have been saved and grown over the years. I just wonder how many here would take the dishonest route knowing they wouldn't be caught and put some serious extra money in their pockets.


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## petea4 (Dec 24, 2010)

Ihatetaxes said:


> 20 years ago I got suckered into buying speakers out of the back of a van. Pulled into a parking lot somewhere and as I was walking to the store a guy pulls up in a cargo van. "Hey buddy, my boss loaded too many sets of speakers into my van today by accident and I have one pair I will sell you for cash." I think he told me they were worth $1000 but I could have them for like $400. They were big and nice looking but sounded like garbage


I bought those same speakers for $200 in the early 90's. Still have them hooked up in the garage. Those guys in the van showed me an invoice that they were worth $1200. They were looking to unload a pair for a quick buck because they had to many loaded up from the warehouse. 

They still work. 

I'm looking at them now: 
Brand: Klarity
A couple 2" tweeters, a 4" midrange, and a 12" sub in the enclosure. 

Funny stuff.


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## OptsyEagle (Nov 29, 2009)

I heard of a scam with Kijiji. Someone posts a great deal on a car. Let's say, $5,000 for a car that is clearly worth $8,000 to $10,000. You are in the market for a car. You call and obviously ask question wondering what the catch is. The guy offers to drive by with the car for a test drive. You test it out, like the car, love the price and want to buy it.

Of course you cannot just give $5,000 and buy a car in this country. Usually you give a deposit, get the name and plates changed legally and a while later you get the car. So in the case I remember the buyer gives the seller a $500 deposit and you guessed it ... never sees the guy again. All the previous contacts are useless. 

In this case the scammer was in Quebec (Hull) and the buyer was in Ontario (Ottawa) and since he couldn't even get agreement on where this crime took place, he couldn't even register a complaint (I am sure he could if he wanted to make it a life goal).

Anyway, keep on the look out.


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## OptsyEagle (Nov 29, 2009)

Another one I heard of (just putting them out there). Have you ever wondered how those Nigerians who send you an email that they want to transfer $200,000 through your bank account and leave you $100,000 of it, are going to steel your money. I always did, since the alert must be up for everyone who might respond (although it is hard for me to put my mind into the place of someone that stupid).

Anyway, I heard of a case of a guy that was just looking for work in the sales industry. He got a call from a company looking for someone in Canada to buy goods from China and send them to Britain. They said if they bought them directly they would need to pay a high duty so they decided to buy them from Canada and needed a buyer.

The first deal went like this. They sent him a cheque for $175,000 and told him that once the cheque clears his bank account, he needs to place an order for $150,000 of goods and send the money via Western Union to an account in China. He cashes the cheque, waits about a weeks, gets the Royal Bank to confirm that the cheque cleared properly and cannot believe his luck and places the order. Obviously the $25,000 extra was his fee.

About 3 weeks later, the cheque bounces and he owes the Royal Bank $150,000. When he calls to complain, he is informed that although the company that owned the account of the cheque had the $175,000 (hence the clearing) the cheque was a forgery that was automatically identified about 3 weeks later.

I believe the Nigerian scam would work the same way. Anyway, be careful of cleared cheques.


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## the-royal-mail (Dec 11, 2009)

Off topic for a moment if I may...

Eagle, why can't you buy a car with $5000? I did exactly that a few years ago, paid with a personal cheque in person and drove the car away. It was a private sale. Of course, I had done all the due diligence beforehand. I paid the tax when I went to register the car.


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

the-royal-mail said:


> Eagle, why can't you buy a car with $5000? I did exactly that a few years ago, paid with a personal cheque in person and drove the car away. It was a private sale. Of course, I had done all the due diligence beforehand. I paid the tax when I went to register the car.


Another case. Craigslist ads for cars at half price. When I contacted the sellers, one claimed to have moved to NWT, the other to the UK. They said the cars were in a warehouse with eBay Motors, and, upon receipt of full payment, they would ship the car to me on approval, with a moneyback guarantee. Needless to say, I took a pass.

And I bought one locally and privately. We met outside the licencing place and had the paperwork and plates all done in 15 minutes.


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## OptsyEagle (Nov 29, 2009)

the-royal-mail said:


> Off topic for a moment if I may...
> 
> Eagle, why can't you buy a car with $5000? I did exactly that a few years ago, paid with a personal cheque in person and drove the car away. It was a private sale. Of course, I had done all the due diligence beforehand. I paid the tax when I went to register the car.


You wouldn't have done it with me. If the seller is willing to sign over the car and trust that you will get the ownership legally changed, then you can. With me, I would do the deal, accept the deposit, change the ownership personally and only then, would I give you the car.

Until the ownership is changed, I am still liable. So this delay is quite normal. Unfortuneately it opens one up for this kind of scam.


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## OptsyEagle (Nov 29, 2009)

kcowan said:


> And I bought one locally and privately. We met outside the licencing place and had the paperwork and plates all done in 15 minutes.


That's what we need here. Not just the problems ... the solutions.

That's using the old knoggen, kcowan. That would have sent this guy a runnin, I am sure.


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## the-royal-mail (Dec 11, 2009)

To clarify, the car was bought locally and we went in together to change the ownership, swap the plates etc.


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## crazyjackcsa (Aug 8, 2010)

It really is easy enough. Sign over the ownership, let the buyer go handle the paperwork. Come back and pick up the car and accept payment.

Done.


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## hboy43 (May 10, 2009)

Toronto.gal said:


> 1. No, that is not the point I was trying to make at all, rather, that we *ALL* break driving rules from time to time; it just so happens that I don't do it very often, hence the reason I have not been caught, but I'm sure I'll have my turn. Bottom line is that if you break the law and get caught, you must accept the consequences, that is how the system works.
> 
> 2. 100% right, it happens all the time, even in the city where 50K/60K is posted, it seems everyone always passes me, which means most are speeding.
> 
> About fines, I'm not familiar with them and don't know what is considered reasonable, but when a friend got a ticket, I believe over $100, for making an illegal right turn on a street with restricted hours during rush hour only, I was surprised at the fine and thought it to be a bit high for such an infraction, which makes me wonder what the fine is for driving through a stop sign.


I have a theory of law. There is real law, and there is pretend law. Most law is pretend law. 

Speed limits are a prime example of pretend law. Point out a motorist to me, and I can say with > 99% certainty that the person breaks the law by speeding. Most of these people go about their business of breaking the law with few real consequences. No body is much interested in obeying this law, nor is any body much interested in enforcing it. The penalty is entirely nominal.

In a similar vein, a well known hi tech mogul in Ottawa 25 or so years ago would regularly park his car anywhere he damn well pleased, and paid the thousands of dollars in fines annually. Pretend law. If anyone was really interested in enforcing the no parking zones, then why wasn't this person thrown in jail?

An example of real law might be hunting violations. I am not nor have ever been a hunter, but since moving out to the bush, it fascinates me all the news stories I read. Thousands of dollars in fines and forfeited guns etc. for shooting an animal out of season or whatever. I read a story like this almost every week in the local rag. The penalties seem entirely out of porportion to the typical penatlies for say a home break in or assault, or even speeding.

The reality is that speeding has a chance of killing a person, shooting a deer out of season does not (in the sense that we are not discussing a dangerous use of firearms offence). Makes no sense to me that an offence with a non-zero chance of harm to a human ranks lower on the penalty scale than an activity with a zero chance of harming a human.

Law has nothing to do with right and wrong, or rationality, or risk, or fairness or any other qualities we would like to ascribe to it. Law is just law. It is analagous to weather. We can't control it, can only weakly predict or know it. Keep a lookout for big storms (really serious laws), but for the most part the best reaction is just to ignore it and get on with your life. If you break laws, so what?

I heartily support law breaking if it hurts nobody. There are too many laws and most laws are pretend laws anyhow. If anyone wants to fine me $1000 for turning right on my own street to go home, then maybe I'll obey. The level of fine says it is serious law, not pretend law. But if it is $35 and only happens once then who gives a damn. True story.

hboy43


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## Square Root (Jan 30, 2010)

"It's much harder to cheat an honest person" Paraphrase of old saying. I guess I am a pretty cynical person and have never been tricked to buy something the seller suggests might be stolen. My x wife once came back fron NY City with a few "gold" chains she bought on the street. She asked the guy if they were real ( great due dligence don't you think?) and the guy said "Lady, I don't make 'em, I just take 'em" I fell off my chair laughing saying I absolutely knew they were fake. She did not agree and had them checked-I was right. 

The other thing I don't go for is knowingly buying counterfeit things like purses/hand bags, watches, etc. I don't care how much the real ones cost, if you can't afford it don't. Buying an illegal fake just seems wrong(and stupid) to me. Would you buy a fake BMW?


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## rookie (Mar 19, 2010)

*got scammed by movers*

when we moved from the rented condo to our house. first of all, the movers were late and the time i had booked for the elevator in the condo expired. after they brought my stuff, the guy started demanding 300$ more than the negotiated price. it was raining and he said he would just dump the entire stuff on the road and started doing just that. i guess i was held for ransom at that point. 

glad that the cops came heavily on the movers recently in the gta.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

the-royal-mail said:


> Those who suggest speeders are at fault are missing the point. There are a good deal many roads out there with artificially low speed limits, set that way on purpose so as to maximize ticket revenue. Same thing with the traffic cameras. Why did they shorten the yellow light in camera intersections? Why do they reduce the speed limit to 60 in construction zones on weekends when there is CLEARLY no one around. They slow down the traffic for nothing, then are waiting for you with a radar gun when you are going 80 in a zone clearly safe to do 100-110. I can read from all the media coverage and political response that this is nothing but a tax grab. It has nothing to do with safety. Don't blame the victim.



Hmmm ... so the guy clocked at 231 Km/hr on the DVP in Toronto or the one in Ville-Marie Expressway in Montreal at 240 Km/hr aren't a safety issue, aren't at fault and shouldn't be blamed?

It seems to be more of a range to me.


Cheers


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

the-royal-mail said:


> Yes, after 5-7 years the repairs on any car start to get expensive. Pretty much anytime after that you are looking at some repairs or other.


I suppose it depends on the car as well. 

My co-worker's first repair for his Camry was at the 19 year mark for an alternator. 

For my 1st Escort, the first repair was a gas tank replacement at the 11th year. For the 2nd Escort, it was the $2K bumper when it was hit during a snow storm at the 14th year. 


Then there's my sister whose first repair was at the four year mark.


Cheers


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

SixesAndSevens said:


> ok, thanks, for appreciating my position and not making me feel like a freak of nature, an abhor of society, a criminal amidst law-abiding citizens.
> any law that makes brands 99% of the people as criminals is wrong and its only purpose of existence is for the benefit of the few that profit directly from it.
> 
> [ ... ]
> ...


I'm not sure it is as simple as "brands 99% of the people as criminals is wrong". I've driven through great neighborhood streets, peeved at how slow the limit was. Eventually I noticed the "deaf child" sign. 

There can be reasons that are not obvious for a slower limit.


As for the non-criminal violations being capped, the following URL seems to say that 51 Km/hr over the limit would be in the $622 range but does not seem to be saying it would be criminal.
http://speedingontario.com/penalties.php#fine-amounts

I've never been that far over so I can't say for sure. Maybe someone else knows.


Cheers


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## tombiosis (Dec 18, 2010)

I was recently selling my truck on auto trader, kijiji etc...I got 3 or 4 emails from people offering me more than the asking price, saying they were "at sea" but wanted the truck for their father, brother etc...they just needed my paypal account # so they could deposit the money, then they would send a "broker" to pick up the vehicle...needless to say, I never replied, but apparently if you fall for this, they will indeed pick up the vehicle, but somehow the money that was in your paypal account gets snatched back...not sure exactly how the scam works...just beware.
On the scam with the offshore buyer deal...I would have just let them deposit the 150k in my account, then done nothing...LOL
On the fraudulent mechanic scam- saw that on W5 I think...they even had a hidden camera, and caught the guy squirting brake fluid on the inside of the tires while doing an oil change...then ding the customer for a caliper or brake line job!
On the cops and yellow lights...I got dinged by a red light camera...tried to fight it by saying it was "unsafe to stop" due to the load in my truck, as I would of ended up in the intersection blablabla-was hoping the judge wouldn't show as well...and he didn't! but then they told me they would "get another judge from downtown" so I paid...but I drive there almost daily...sometimes the red light camera is there, sometimes not. They move them around. When the camera is there functioning, I swear to god, the yellow is only about 3 1/2 seconds long! no cam...6-8 seconds...I've seen it over and over...so now if it is even about to turn yellow, I stop.
great thread!
T


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## Rico (Jan 27, 2011)

Many years ago I bought a TV from Future Shop "on sale" for $540 (or so) . . . 3 months later my brother-in-law bought the same TV from Superstore for about $300. I was a bit choked about that and I try not to give Future Shop my business as a bit of b!%$h tax. Yeah, yeah, caveat emptor and all that but they still suck.

My cousin fell for the "send us a MoneyGram for a cheap car" scam. They had an ebay-ish "purchase protection" e-mail that looked convincing on the surface. Unfortunately, he called me after he sent the money. I read the e-mails (the e-mail address looked funny, like e_bay-link.com) and I googled "moneygram vehicle scam" and within 2 minutes I had the whole scam outlined in pages and pages of people who had been taken. I told him his $2600 was gone and there's nothing he could really do about it. I felt bad for him (and I told him to call me BEFORE he sends the money next time).

My one brother paid $1200 for a vacuum cleaner sold door-to-door; He still gets very fired up if you mention it (and it's been over 15 years, lol).

When I was 20-ish I worked for a contract courier company I hit a parked car. It had freshly snowed which blanketed a gigantic sheet of ice in a parking lot (it was that melt/freeze time of year). I hit the brakes, started sliding, let off, tried steering and nothing worked. I did the right thing and left a note and called my boss. He told me if I didn't pay for the accident out of my pocket he'd fire me. The real kicker is that the parked car had no engine and had sat in that same spot for months. I actually suspect that the guy who owned the car said "don't worry about it" and my boss pocketed the cash (he was that much of a dirtbag).


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## Rico (Jan 27, 2011)

Oh, I almost forgot my parking ticket story. Last summer my wife and I stopped in downtown Toronto for about an hour and a half to do a small bit of shopping before heading north to see her grandparents. We were in a rental car and headed from the airport straight downtown. We finally found a parking spot but we were nervous whether it was actually a spot you could park in. There were so many signs about hours, etc. but it seemed OK - there was a hydrant but we were far enough back. There were no other signs so we figured we were good (we double checked).

We bought an hour and put the stub on the dash. Later, as the time was running out, my wife bought another hour and was going to the car to put it on the dash. When she got there, there was a ticket on the windshield stating we were parked in a "no parking" zone. We searched AGAIN to find where it said so and couldn't see where it said "no parking". At that point, we'd paid for parking that we were ticketed on anyway (arrgh!).

I called the telephone number to appeal and explained to the lady on the phone that we were from out of town and that we looked and looked for this supposed sign, that we weren't blind or stupid, and that there was no sign. She said she could order a "sign check" but it would take 3 weeks. She mentioned that since we have a rental car, if the ticket was not paid in 2 weeks, it would be forwarded to the rental company (who has my credit card) and I'd likely be charged the ticket plus a fee by them. She suggested that recovering that from the rental company was improbable, even should the sign check prove there was an error. I said "I hope your city enjoys my money" and paid the stupid $60 parking fine. I highly doubt a "sign check" was ever done.


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## the-royal-mail (Dec 11, 2009)

Yes, I agree that what you describe is a scam. Maybe take photos of the scene, might help your case for future. That's why I don't like certain partys of cities. There's never enough parking and the lots make a fortune for basically doing nothing.


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## 72camaross (Apr 26, 2010)

my two screwed over stories
1- young, bought a car from a guy who sounded like who knew what he was talking about, I did a little bit a research but not enough. Bought the car simply for the motor to put in my 68 camaro, turns out it wasn't the same motor as I had thought or he had thought...he didn't know there was 2 different kinds. I took the blame and once I realized there was no way to get my 1050$ back I just let it go. lesson learned.

2- was in Halifax for new years the year they had the huge storm (2010 I believe) anyway the storm was so bad that all the buses were off the streets, the city was closed and I was forced to stay another day. My truck was parked in an empty parking lot across the street from the hotel, I had paid for my 3 days but not the 4th, the parking lot booth was closed due to the storm anyway and when I went out I had a 15$ parking ticket. I don't even know how they were out giving them because nothing, not even the streets, were plowed.


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## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

We must always be on guard 72camaross because the people who will screw you over will come under any condition and they will never sleep. And telemarketers will phone you when the hockey game is on and your having dinner.


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## warp (Sep 4, 2010)

You all forget about the NUMBER 1 RIPOFF without a doubt....

The large TAXES we are forced to pay to all levels of Government, who then proceed to squander it on ill-conceived projects, and perks for themselves.

The mafia in a disguise.

Think its not true?.....We are getting screwed EVERY DAY.


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## Toronto.gal (Jan 8, 2010)

warp said:


> The mafia in a disguise.


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## CuriousReader (Apr 3, 2009)

warp said:


> The large TAXES we are forced to pay to all levels of Government, who then proceed to squander it on ill-conceived projects, and perks for themselves.


You mean the tax that we pay for the salary of the not-even-20-yearolds MP who just finished 1st year university?

Or our tax money that pay for $1B e-health?

or the union wages? (not to mention their benefits, sick day, and all kind of perks)

and of course ... Ontario gave secret wage hike to public-sector workers, documents allege

I sure hope the Conservative takes over Ontario too.


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## HaroldCrump (Jun 10, 2009)

CuriousReader said:


> or the union wages? (not to mention their benefits, sick day, and all kind of perks)
> 
> and of course ... Ontario gave secret wage hike to public-sector workers, documents allege


This is just shameful, scandalous.
Further confirms my belief that the Ontario Liberal party led by McGuinty are just a bunch of lowly sleazebags who otherwise couldn't earn 1 day of decent wages.
At this point I don't give a damn about the merits or demerits of any of their plans and policies - I have nothing but disgust and contempt for them.
October 8th can't come soon enough for me (sigh).


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## Square Root (Jan 30, 2010)

Oh, I just thought of another scam. If already mentioned I apologize. This is the one where they tow your car away from a parking lot that looks unattended. True there were warning signs that your car could be towed but these are everywhere and it was, after all, a parking lot. So we park there and they tow the car. This was quite a while ago when paying to park seemed like an extravagence. It turns out the car was towed within 15 minutes of us parking. Obviously they were waiting arond the corner hoping some schmuck(that would be me) parked there. It cost about $240 to get my car out of the pound the next day. This included: actual parking at the pound($60), the cost of the actual tow($80), time for "special" officer to ticket the car($60), and charge for some special equipment to effect the tow($40).

Boy was I pissed off as this was a lot of money for me then. Obviously, it was more lucrative for the owner of the lot to hope that some guy like me would try to park for free and then get his kick back from the other players.


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## Rico (Jan 27, 2011)

tombiosis said:


> I was recently selling my truck on auto trader, kijiji etc...I got 3 or 4 emails from people offering me more than the asking price, saying they were "at sea" but wanted the truck for their father, brother etc...they just needed my paypal account # so they could deposit the money, then they would send a "broker" to pick up the vehicle...needless to say, I never replied, but apparently if you fall for this, they will indeed pick up the vehicle, but somehow the money that was in your paypal account gets snatched back...not sure exactly how the scam works...just beware.
> T


One of my brothers is trying to sell his replica Mad Max Interceptor and he gets e-mails like this constantly. He just laughs and hits "delete". He told me the scammers just offer to buy and don't ask any questions.


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## Rico (Jan 27, 2011)

OptsyEagle said:


> About 3 weeks later, the cheque bounces and he owes the Royal Bank $150,000. When he calls to complain, he is informed that although the company that owned the account of the cheque had the $175,000 (hence the clearing) the cheque was a forgery that was automatically identified about 3 weeks later.


I remember something like this, it was a W5 episode:

http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/W5Archive/20090206/wfive_cheque_090207/


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## warp (Sep 4, 2010)

CuriousReader said:


> You mean the tax that we pay for the salary of the not-even-20-yearolds MP who just finished 1st year university?
> 
> Or our tax money that pay for $1B e-health?
> 
> ...


I mean all of that....and the endless number of other ways they blow our tax dollars at every government level.
Just look at the Senate......people who were never elected, but appointed as political favours, and cost us a ton of money...for what, I have never been able to figure out.

Then again it might be explained by the fact that it's not their money...and they didnt work for it.


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

To balance out the 20 year old MPs duh

How about we cut the senate and the salaries and the pensions. That way the only people who want to be MPs will be 19 year olds that worked at McDonald's

Anyone who would make a decent leader/MP etc would rather aim to get rich as a CEO and avoid all the public scrutiny. That's why we have 20 year old MPs and a senate


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