For the people whove called in. We begin tonight with a call about a morbid mixup involving a familys cemetery plot. A 74yearold north bay viewer was simply looking to get his affairs in order when the cemetery told him his eternal resting place was already occupied by a stranger, and their mistake would cost him 4 figures. John you know, the older i get, the more we think about death. Chris john wilson plans to be buried in Benicia City Cemetery beside his parents. John my dad said, well, its got a really nice view of the bay. Chris james and madge wilson bought 2 plots back in 1955. Theyre buried together in plot 36a, leaving plot 36b for john. But while getting his affairs in order about a year ago, the City Cemetery delivered unexpected news. John i said, theres supposed to be an empty grave spot. And they said, no, its not. Theres another james r. Wilson there. And i said, well, hes not related to us. I dont know who he is, but he shouldnt be there. Chris john couldnt believe it. He says for nearly a year, the city insisted the unmarked grave next to his parents was occupied by a stranger who happened to share the same last name. John now, i dont think i even heard an apology. Chris john said the cemetery ultimately offered a refund for the blunder. John and he said, john, the best we can do for you is give you 15 back. Chris yes, 15. Benicia cemetery bylaws outline its right to correct errors with a refund. Now, john showed me his parents receipt from 55. They paid 30 for 2 plots, so john gets half. Chris a 15 refund . John yeah, a 15 refund, and i said, what about inflation . Chris prices have risen since 1955. A haircut is no longer 1. 42, gas no longer 0. 29 a gallon, a visit to the doctor no longer 3. 41, and a new burial plot in benicia no longer 15. Its as much as 1500. John and thats why i called you. I thought, well, maybe if theyre on tv, that might change their attitude a little bit. Chris we wrote the city, and within days, john was offered a plot elsewhere in the cemetery at no charge. But then, the following day, a cemetery supervisor called back to say johns plot next to mom and dad was not occupied after all. John id like to be able to believe him. He told me the other day, john, its all a big mistake. Theres really the empty plot there for you. Thats yours when you want it. And i said, well, how come for a whole year i heard theres somebody buried there named james wilson . Chris by email, a city project manager confirmed the cemetery had made a mistake, and said, we have resolved this issue. We asked the city of benicia for an interview, but werent granted one. John when you make a mistake that big, you know, and wont talk about it andrew sparrer its taboo to talk about death and dying. Chris funeral planner andrew sparrer applauds john for trying to put his Funeral Plans on paper early. Andrew everyone should have a copy of it. Keep it in a safe place. Chris todays typical funeral costs between 7 and 10,0000. Sparrer says preplanning your final wishes can cut expenses and reduce the stress families face when theyre forced to guess the dearly departeds desires. Andrew there are times when the whole familys gotta leave and go have a little meeting, then come back when theyve all come to an agreement. Chris as for john john im trying to enjoy my retirement if i can ever figure out whos buried in that grave. Chris hes still not 100 sure if plot 36b is empty or occupied. John and if theyre willing, give me a shovel, and ill dig it up. Chris johns final request for the cemetery is written proof that this proof is his. John now, if he wants to give me that gravesite and put it on paper that its legally mine, then that would make me happy. Maybe an apology too might help. Chris we got john that letter. It has two sentences, but zero apology. John i appreciate you goin through the time to check everything out for me. Chris johns story is proof planning a funeral is no small undertaking. The federal trade commissions checklist for consumers includes about two dozen different decisions to make. Ideally, while youre still alive. Next, we respond to a redwood city couple whose mortgage payments were out of whack, and they feared it would trigger a foreclosure. Their story is a refresher for everyone. Lynn its lovely, i love this home. I love the view. Chris lynn smart adores her new redwood city home, which she bought this past october. Lynn the home gives me happiness, it does. It just makes me happy. Chris however, lynn was quite unhappy when her new mortgage payment included an inflated charge for property taxes. She says the calculation was 1100 per month higher than it should have been, despite her repeated calls to her mortgage servicer to correct it. Lynn they continued and refused to lower my monthly payments. Chris the source of lynns mortgage trouble is a pair of california propositions, 60 and 90. They let homeowners who are aged 55 or older downsize without a punishing property tax reassessment. That means lynn is allowed to keep her previous property tax rate for her new home. But instead, her mortgage servicer, cenlar, was charging her the current rate, which is 1100 a month more. Lynn i couldnt have afforded to do it with chris lynn complained to cenlar and says the company told her it would revisit the math after she lived in the home a year. It would then give her a refund, in a year. So, lynn started paying the extra 1100 a month because she feared foreclosure if she paid less. Lynn and i paid it and paid it and paid it. Chris but it didnt sit right with lynn, so she pressed cenlar to square things up right away. It finally refunded her some of what it owed her, 5400, but it wouldnt refund it all. So, she contacted us. We contacted cenlar. Next thing you know, lynn received this 4300 check, settling up the nearly 10 grand she had overpaid. Lynn plus, my loan amount is exactly right. Chris finally. Lynn finally. Chris lynn is confident her call to nbc bay area responds prompted cenlar to recalculate her payments. Lynn you fixed it completely. Chris cenlar didnt respond to our requests for comment. Now, for homeowners everywhere, and of all ages, lynns story is a reminder that, while automatic escrow accounts for insurance and property taxes are very convenient, they still require your attention. Double check your mortgage companys figures against your actual tax bills and insurance policies, and if those numbers are off, challenge them to find out why. Announcer coming up Louis Rodriguez we dont whats going on. Weve never been challenged with the law. Announcer the landlord says these dogs can stay, but the Homeowners Association says they have to go. We set the record straight. Then amy if we hadnt made a big ruckus, i would have been writin a check tomorrow. Announcer they felt wrongfully accused of setting off fireworks, so they asked us to challenge their 500 fines. And later Nick Williams i was trying to remain calm. Announcer a hamilton Ticket Holder ends up on the hook for 2 grand, even though he sold tickets to the show. Well have a lesson for everyone. Now to the couple that feared they would be forced to move because they have assistance animals. This couple was convinced the law protected them, but their Homeowners Association pushed back. Louis come here, come on. Shell come up and sit right with me and look at me, and that immediately calms me down. Chris louis and Gloria Rodriguez rented a morgan hill condo back in january. They moved in with their three emotional support dogs, pepe, david, and daisy, who help them with their disabilities. Louis its kinda like having a lifesaver, if you will. Chris the rodriguezes say their landlord welcome the dogs, but the Homeowners Association, cottage green, didnt. Louis says a month after moving in, cottage green said they were violating its twopet policy. Louis our dogs arent pets. Chris louis says the cottage green board asked to see proof the couple needed the dogs. Louis says they supplied these notes from their doctors, stating they both functional limitations imposed by their disabilities, and the dogs enhance their ability to live independently. But louis says cottage green wasnt satisfied. He says the association asked for an updated note from his doctor, and requested to see the dogs perform their service. Louis we dont know whats going on. Weve never been challenged with the law. Chris louis was baffled. He was certain the law protected them. Kevin kish thats why were here. A lot of landlords dont understand the legal obligations that they have. Chris kevin kish heads the California Department of fair employment and housing. One of his jobs is to investigate complaints about housing discrimination. Kish says assistance animals play many roles. Some are trained to help people who are blind, deaf, or have other physical disabilities. Others offer emotional assistance. Its their mere presence that helps. Well, state and federal laws protect them all. Kish said the rodriguezes doctors notes should have been enough proof for the hoa to allow pepe, david, and daisy. Kevin if someone is providing a landlord with documentation from a medical professional that establishes that the person has a disability and that the animal is assisting the person with the disability use the dwelling place, then, generally, that is all the tenant needs to show the landlord. Chris so, we went back to cottage green. By email, a board spokesperson said they never received louis doctors note. But a few weeks later, he said the rodriguezes dogs would be allowed to stay. We still had questions, but cottage green declined our request for an interview and even a phone call. Instead, the board spokesperson said in an email the issue is satisfied as to mr. And mrs. Rodriguez. There is nothing further to discuss. Louis and gloria hope other people with disabilities and assistance animals learn from their struggle. Louis if its happening to me, it must be happening to other people. We just wanna get on life, respect our neighbors and the community, and just be part of this community. Chris another Important Note here, people with assistance animals do not have to disclose what their disability is. Also, the state says landlords can refuse an assistance animal in two circumstances one, if the animal poses a known threat, like a history of biting or lunging at people. And two, if the animal causes significant damage to the property. Announcer just ahead nick it was so much money i was on the hook for that i was about lose for something that, you know, i feel like i did no wrong in. Announcer the concert tickets that came with an unexpected amount of financial drama. And later, why a 9 car wash dispute got our attention. If you have a consumer complaint, tell us about it. Call 888996tips or go to nbcbayarea. Com responds. Well be right back. Im consumer investigator chris chmura. Next, were helping a San Francisco man who learned that selling tickets on the secondary market can be risky and can cost you thousands of dollars. He had tickets to the hottest show in town, hamilton, so they were easy to sell. Yet he somehow wound up on the hook for thousands of dollars, heres why. Chris when hamilton tickets went on sale in San Francisco, Nick Williams was lucky enough to snag a half dozen. Nick i was like, yeah, this is great. I never expected for that to happen. Chris nick bought six tickets for 500 each, and was excited for his girlfriend and family from the east coast to join him. But weeks before the show, a work commitment hit nicks calendar on the same day as the show. Hamilton was now a no go. Nick we definitely wanted to go to the show, and ive been wanting to see it since it came out. And so, yeah, everybody was bummed. Chris nick sold his six hamilton tickets on stubhub, but it wasnt quite a done deal. Nick hadnt yet received the tickets from the shn orpheum theater. Stubhub says its okay for consumers to sell tickets before they have them, but sellers must provide the date that theyll have them in hand, and nick did. He says he based that date on when the orpheum told him it would mail the tickets. But the tickets never arrived. Nick i was trying to remain calm, and hopefully, i could still rectify the situation. But every day that passed, it didnt look good, so i was kinda, i was getting extremely nervous. Chris nick says he called the theater asking for his tickets, but he was told to just keep checking his mail. Then, because nick couldnt deliver the tickets to stubhub on the promised date, it canceled the sale and penalized him 2400. This penalty is spelled out in stubhubs policy, and really, its something all ticket sellers should know. Stubhub considers nicks transaction a dropped sale since a buyer had purchased his tickets. So, stubhub can then charge the seller, in this case nick, the additional cost to get the buyer similar seats to the same show. Nick was frustrated because he felt the dropped sale wasnt his fault. Nick it was so much money i was on the hook for that i was about to lose for something that, you know, i feel like i did no wrong in. Chris nick says the theater eventually said it would reissue his tickets and leave them at will call the day of the show, but that did nick no good, so he turned to us for help. Nick i was mildly panicking, i would say. Chris we contacted the orpheum theater, and it refunded nick the 3 grand he paid for the hamilton tickets. The theater would not comment for this story. We also contacted stubhub. It refunded nick the 2400 penalty. In a statement, stubhub said it was unfortunate that the venue was unable to fulfill this customers order. So as a onetime courtesy, stubhub stepped in to pay for the lost tickets. Nick basically, you solved everything for me. Chris nick is happy to have that money back in his pocket. He jokes the next time he tries selling tickets, he wont put as much money on the line. Nick i guess the Lesson Learned is try to buy, you know, giants tickets instead for 50 instead of hamilton tickets for 500. Chris well, next, we are bringing about change at San Jose City hall. We were the first to report that the city was slapping people with 500 fireworks fines with little or no proof. Well, the accused called and eventually, the city called off the fines. Chris on garrison circle, theres a collective sign. Female its awesome. Chris a vindication. Amy i feel relieved. I feel really great. Chris this small street exposed a large flaw in the citys new fireworks enforcement. Fines were sent to several homes here, as well as other parts of san jose, without a single visit from law enforcement. Chris how Many Police Officers visited you . Male not one. Chris how many firefighters . Amy none. Chris Code Enforcement . Female no. Chris the 500 citations came about when the city invited people to report illegal fireworks using this online form. We found that those accusations rarely had video or photo evidence, sometimes included just one word, and in several cases, didnt even a specific address. Yet the fire marshal still issued 45 citations. We challenged the city. So did these residents. Now, san jose is conceding mistakes were made and the fines are unjust. Dave sykes we all apologize for anyone who was issued a citation unfairly. Chris assistant city manager dave sykes says all 45 citations are being dismissed because the criteria for fireworks citations had not been evenly applied. Dave theres obviously room for improvement, and so thats why weve, you know, decided to dismiss these citations. Chris the unfairness wasnt always so obvious to the city. Female this has been going on for a month. Chris residents say city hall was initially too stubborn to see the flaws. So amy guzules led the charge to keep the pressure on. Amy five hundred dollars is not easy to come by. Amy if we hadnt made a big ruckus, i would have been writin a check tomorrow. Chris do you think the city was counting on that . Amy oh, yeah. Chris amys happy she spoke up, and even happier someone listened. Amy nbc was the first to respond, and you guys have really, you know, taken the reins, and found out a lot of stuff i never would have been able to find out, nor have had the time or energy to continue to pursue. So i really appreciate that. Chris the city is reviewing its policy for issuing fines. Its also set to reexamine the appeals process because, as of right now, you can only contest a fireworks citation if you pay the 500 fine first. Announcer straight ahead david the 14day period start running the moment when you purchase your gas. Chris down to the second. David down to the second. Announcer the car wash customer and his beef with the fine print, or lack thereof, next. Chris welcome back, and finally, tonight, 2 minutes of proof that we respond to every call and every email we receive, no matter the amount of money in dispute. This is that story about a 9 car wash, a 9 car wash that a Union City Man paid for but never got. Yes, it is partly about principle, but its also about shelling out 9 bucks and getting nothing in return. Chris a gas station car wash. Your route to the rotating bristles is a routine. You pump fuel, you pay for a code, you punch it into the keypad, then you let the suds restore a showroom shine. But when david lin followed that routine at this union city shell, he couldnt get past the keypad. David the code didnt work. Chris oddly, the clock was his enemy. David prepaid for a works car wash the afternoon of may 6. The pump printed this receipt that says, expires may 20, so the car wash was good for 14 days. But when david tried to use the code the night of the 20th, the attendant told him he was too late because the Expiration Date here includes the time. David the 14day period start running the moment when you purchase your gas. Chris down to the second. David down to the second. Chris david bought his car wash at 2 pm. To be exact, 2 47 and 25 seconds. So, according to the gas station, his code had to be redeemed by 2 47 and 25 seconds 14 days later. Chris did you know that . David i didnt know that, and the car wash receipt only lists the day. Chris right, his receipt only says, expires may 20. Theres no mention of enforcing the expiration time down to the second. David argued that point locally unsuccessfully. Chris david filed his 9 complaint with shell corporate, which redirected him to the local franchisee. That went nowhere. David nothing happened, and thats when i contacted nbc bay area. Chris we contacted the shell station, and within 24 hours, it agreed to give david another 9 car was. By phone, manager romi deol told us, i was more than happy to help him, and, i immediately called him, right away. Chris deol declined to say whether hell be making any changes to his car wash. David, whos a lawyer, thinks the station should disclose the time restriction, or just stop doing it. David thats what i would tell my clients to do. Chris it was his 9, after all. David, amy, lynn, nick, john, and everyone else you met tonight got our help by simply sending us a tip, and you can too. The number is right there, 888996tips, or you can do it online at nbcbayarea. Com responds. You can also send documents and photos on our website, and we welcome you to do that. If youd like to see more of us fighting for consumers like you, please join us weekdays at 6 am and 6 pm. As we say goodbye, heres a look at just a handful of the people that we have helped, and the money they recovered with our help. Im consumer investigator chris chmura, thank you very much for watching. We hope you have a great night. Justin timberlake super bowl plans, welcome to access hollywood. Im scott evans. Justin will lead the super bowl halftime show. This will be his third time taking the halftime stage. Perfect timing for kit to lead with some advice for a show. Okay, wait. I dont know if i start with, ive got an idea for the super bowl halftime show. Im a choreographer. 1985 bears, super bowl shuffle. Do you know this . I remember the super bowl shuffle. We are the bears were not here too start no shuffle ill consider it, kit. His look may say otherwise. But justin still has four months until the super bowl to change his mind. Clearly theyve asked you year after year to do the super bowl halftime show. Why this year did you say yes . I dont know if thats entirely true that they asked me. Come on. I just think the timing feels right. Im mostly, being a father now, make my decisions based on like what type of experience can i share with
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