Grabbers and Delayers
Izzy Sommers, MD[retired]
7-140 Elmview Street, West
Welland, ON L3C 4K7, Canada
TELEPHONE: 905-788-2237
EMAIL: canadizzy@yahoo.ca
Monday, November 28, 2005
The Editor
The Welland Tribune
228 East Main Street
Welland, ON L3B 5P5, Canada
TELEPHONE: 905-732-2411
EMAIL: tribune@wellandtribune.ca
RE: Delay means Money
Dear Editor and Staff:
The techniques of “Delay,” and “It’ll Take Us A While To Process This,” and “Don’t Expect This To Show Up In Your Account For 10 Business Days,” are well-known to everyone. They are matched by “Grab First and Ask Questions Later,” and “Pay Immediately Upon Receipt Of This Letter,” They are practised by your friends and enemies and those huge institutions we all know, the Government, Insurance Companies, Credit Card Companies and Banks. The “delayers and grabbers” are easily identified by the huge buildings and huge staffs which shows their power and proves their authority.
It is a universal experience that premiums for insurance policies are payable on time, and in full, on the threat that the coverage be cancelled. It is known that the occurrence of late payments for mortgages and credit cards, is “carved in stone,” remembered by banks, insurance companies, credit card companies and governments, reported to each other and frequently penalized. It is also a universal experience that receiving insurance claims and government refunds, government pensions and bank credits, are frequently delayed beyond all reasonable expectations.
Besides the inconvenience, Delay and Grabbing, can embarrass one’s situation, stop money for food and rent, affect one’s credit rating and engender further costs such as overdrawn interest and insufficient funds charges. In my experience, the most aggravating situation is the grabbing from one’s bank account that occurs on Friday while the crediting is not done until after noon on Monday. It is the banks’ policy to do this, most of the time. Often this results in an inability to get funds from the bank which would be closed for the weekend. Moreover, if the result is an overdraft, even an overdraft of less than one dollar, then there is an unreasonable charge to your account. Ironically, this can sometimes be reversed by talking with the bank manager and begging for mercy, especially when it is obvious that it is merely the difference in time between grabbing of funds and delaying of credit. And, it sometimes takes until Tuesday or Wednesday to get to the bank and beseech the manager before your meagre funds become available.
The bank makes money by holding your money even for a few minutes. Imagine if it can hold your money for a day or a week or longer. This is “peanuts” compared to delays in payments of pensions and insurance claims. It is well known that government pensions are delayed 6 months to a year, while labourious, repeated processing is endured. It is suspected that government agencies and insurance companies disregard the first three, or more, claims that are sent to them, citing investigative complications and inaccuracies on complicated forms. Sometimes one needs legal help or political pull to get a claim processed. Sometimes the waste of time and the additional expenses are immense, not to mention the inconveniences and aggravations, premature aging and rises in blood pressure.
If you’ve never done the calculations, you may be surprised how much money is really involved with delaying and grabbing. Suppose that 10,000 Canadians reach their 65th birthday this year. Suppose the combined OAS and CPP payments to them will eventually be about $1,000 monthly. Suppose the average delay will be 10 months, when a lump sum settlement would be paid to the new pensioners. That would amount to about a hundred, million dollars, ($100,000,000.) The interest on that huge amount of money is gained by the government, while the pensioners will be put at a temporary tax disadvantage. They will not be allowed to distribute their income in retrograde monthly amounts, but will be required to pay taxes in full on the lump sum, ironically, as if it was a windfall profit. Thus, the government will be taking your accumulated payments, making tremendous interest, giving it back, partially, with one hand, and taking it back, partially, with the other. Obviously, continuous, huge, windfall profits are gained by the delayers and grabbers, not by us ordinary citizens. Moreover, this is all unavoidable, so long as those that make the policies have authority and power within their tall buildings and with their huge staffs, to continue to do so.
Thank you for listening.
Sincerely,
Izzy Sommers.
7-140 Elmview Street, West
Welland, ON L3C 4K7, Canada
TELEPHONE: 905-788-2237
EMAIL: canadizzy@yahoo.ca
Monday, November 28, 2005
The Editor
The Welland Tribune
228 East Main Street
Welland, ON L3B 5P5, Canada
TELEPHONE: 905-732-2411
EMAIL: tribune@wellandtribune.ca
RE: Delay means Money
Dear Editor and Staff:
The techniques of “Delay,” and “It’ll Take Us A While To Process This,” and “Don’t Expect This To Show Up In Your Account For 10 Business Days,” are well-known to everyone. They are matched by “Grab First and Ask Questions Later,” and “Pay Immediately Upon Receipt Of This Letter,” They are practised by your friends and enemies and those huge institutions we all know, the Government, Insurance Companies, Credit Card Companies and Banks. The “delayers and grabbers” are easily identified by the huge buildings and huge staffs which shows their power and proves their authority.
It is a universal experience that premiums for insurance policies are payable on time, and in full, on the threat that the coverage be cancelled. It is known that the occurrence of late payments for mortgages and credit cards, is “carved in stone,” remembered by banks, insurance companies, credit card companies and governments, reported to each other and frequently penalized. It is also a universal experience that receiving insurance claims and government refunds, government pensions and bank credits, are frequently delayed beyond all reasonable expectations.
Besides the inconvenience, Delay and Grabbing, can embarrass one’s situation, stop money for food and rent, affect one’s credit rating and engender further costs such as overdrawn interest and insufficient funds charges. In my experience, the most aggravating situation is the grabbing from one’s bank account that occurs on Friday while the crediting is not done until after noon on Monday. It is the banks’ policy to do this, most of the time. Often this results in an inability to get funds from the bank which would be closed for the weekend. Moreover, if the result is an overdraft, even an overdraft of less than one dollar, then there is an unreasonable charge to your account. Ironically, this can sometimes be reversed by talking with the bank manager and begging for mercy, especially when it is obvious that it is merely the difference in time between grabbing of funds and delaying of credit. And, it sometimes takes until Tuesday or Wednesday to get to the bank and beseech the manager before your meagre funds become available.
The bank makes money by holding your money even for a few minutes. Imagine if it can hold your money for a day or a week or longer. This is “peanuts” compared to delays in payments of pensions and insurance claims. It is well known that government pensions are delayed 6 months to a year, while labourious, repeated processing is endured. It is suspected that government agencies and insurance companies disregard the first three, or more, claims that are sent to them, citing investigative complications and inaccuracies on complicated forms. Sometimes one needs legal help or political pull to get a claim processed. Sometimes the waste of time and the additional expenses are immense, not to mention the inconveniences and aggravations, premature aging and rises in blood pressure.
If you’ve never done the calculations, you may be surprised how much money is really involved with delaying and grabbing. Suppose that 10,000 Canadians reach their 65th birthday this year. Suppose the combined OAS and CPP payments to them will eventually be about $1,000 monthly. Suppose the average delay will be 10 months, when a lump sum settlement would be paid to the new pensioners. That would amount to about a hundred, million dollars, ($100,000,000.) The interest on that huge amount of money is gained by the government, while the pensioners will be put at a temporary tax disadvantage. They will not be allowed to distribute their income in retrograde monthly amounts, but will be required to pay taxes in full on the lump sum, ironically, as if it was a windfall profit. Thus, the government will be taking your accumulated payments, making tremendous interest, giving it back, partially, with one hand, and taking it back, partially, with the other. Obviously, continuous, huge, windfall profits are gained by the delayers and grabbers, not by us ordinary citizens. Moreover, this is all unavoidable, so long as those that make the policies have authority and power within their tall buildings and with their huge staffs, to continue to do so.
Thank you for listening.
Sincerely,
Izzy Sommers.
posted by izzy sommers at 6:57 AM
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