Hyundai is jumping the shark over its response to the auto theft scandal

 Hyundai has been under intensive heat after youtube posts showed how easy it is to steal certain Hyundai models. After a shocking delay, Hyundai announced a solution - an antitheft kit that can be purchased from and installed by dealers - for about $750.00.  As this article points out, an owner might be able to get an equivalent fix outside the Hyundai network for half that amount.  

I suspect that the class action lawyers are going to prevail on this and Hyundai will eventually be sending checks for $750 to affected owners, but that might be years from now.  Meanwhile, Hyundai is losing customers because they deserve to.  

I don't have and don't want cases involving defective Hyundai.  This is just a comment from an outsider looking in.  

The Fall of Pink Energy (also known as Power Home Solar): Don't let the lenders pull one over on you.

 Two years ago, Pink Energy, formerly known as Power Home Solar, was riding high. It was one of the leading companies in home solar installations and a two billion dollar valuation. This week, the company announced that it was shutting down operations and laying off the remainder of its 2,100 employees.

The company had built up a backlog of discontented customers relating to systems that weren't completed or were not working. Pink Energy blamed most of the problems on suppler Generac, but really that doesn't help any of the property owners stuck with problematic Pink Energy systems.  

I have been trying to find out more information about the finance companies used by Pink Energy.  Consumers who did not get what they were promised may have a full or partial defense against payment to the lenders if Pink Energy referred them to the lenders.  Lenders that I am looking at include Sunshine Financial and Technology Credit Union, but there may be many more. 

IF you have a Pink Energy system AND YOU LIVE IN INDIANA, please call me at 317-662-4529.  If you live in another state, go to www.consumeradvocates.org/find-a-lawyer and find a NACA lawyer in your state to talk to.  I can't return calls and emails from people not located in Indiana.  https://www.wral.com/hours-after-5-on-your-side-report-solar-company-goes-out-of-business/20487543/

Broadening our Horizons in Floorplan Defense - Kinetic Advantage, Carbucks, XL Funding, Backlot Cars

 Keith Hagan and I have represented hundreds of clients, defending them in lawsuits brought By Nextgear Capital and Automotive Finance Corporation, but in recent months, we have worked cases involving other floorplan lenders as well, Kinetic Advantage, XL Funding, Backlot Cars, and fielded questions regarding Carbucks.  If you have issues regarding any of these lenders, call Steve Hofer at 317-662-4529 or Keith Hagan a 317-531-4575.  

The Wild West in 401(k) investment scams

 One of the limitations in what investments you can put in 401(k) protected retirement savings plans is that the investment has to be a passive investment. That is: you can't start a business and put it in your 401(k), or more specifically, the performance of the business can't depend on your efforts.  

Lately I have seen a lot of sales pitches for what used to be considered to be risky investments to be put in peoples' 401(k) plans.  

The first is Cryptocurrency. Personally, I think cryptocurrency is a social cancer and should be illegal. I agree with Paul Krugman, Nobel-prizewinning economist. He says Crypto is becoming the new "subprime", and that's not a good thing. I agree with him that Crypto serves no socially-useful purpose, and it is used for socially harmful purposes like money-laundering and spreading cash through illegal enterprises.  It is also socially harmful because unscrupulous promotors can sell cryptocurrency "investments" to people who don't really understand Crypto - which is 99+% of the population including many people making their living off of it.  In my view, Crypto doesn't belong in your IRA at all.  If you ignore this advice, please limit your investment to what you can afford to lose.. If you get scammed, it is unlikely that the government or a private lawyer will be able to get your money back.

The second IRA scam is "Turn Key Real Estate Investments".  According to the seminars, the company helps you find and buy a property, then you hire the company to manage it, and you don't have to do a thing except pick up your money.  Well there is nothing passive about being a landlord. A property that is rented today may be vacant and torn up tomorrow.  Consider this: if the property being offered is such a cash cow: why is it being offered to you?  Why didn't the company buy the property itself? Most of these companies do own properties that they manage.  The cream they keep for themselves.  Ultimately, I think some of these operations will be found to be illegal, but that's not going to help most of the investors.  

The third - Precious Metals - see Cryptocurrency above.  If you don't understand the market, you are liable to get hosed.  

I may add to this post when I think of things.  However you decide to invest your money, I suggest that you diversify both the types of your investment and who you trust to hold onto your money.  People who invested all their money with Bernie Madoff made their first mistake by investing all their money with any single entity.  Don't invest in assets you don't understand.  

On Pareto Efficiency and Business Deals

 When I did my undergraduate degree at Purdue University, my major was in Management, and we didn't have minors as such, we had "concentrations". One of my "concentrations" was economics, and one of the courses that I took was Public Policy Economics. It was the most surprisingly useful course I took as an undergraduate. 

In addition to game theory (which I was familiar with as a poker player), there were three topics that I remember specifically: 1. he difference agenda setting can make in the outcome of a transaction; 2. the "prisoner's dilemma" scenario - (which I may cover in another post); and (3) the doctrine of Pareto Efficiency.  I want to talk about Pareto Efficiency because I use this every day.  

Pareto Efficiency is an economic theory that in its simplest terms says that there is room to make a deal if one party can be made better without any other party being made worse.  The corollary to that is that if a party can't be made better without another party being made worse, there is no room to make a deal. At the outset of every case I try to eyeball whether there is room to make a deal by determining whether we are already at a pareto-efficient state.  

Determining that there is room to make a deal is the first step, The first step is generally explaining to the client the dynamics of trade possibilities, and the second step is making sure the opposing party understands that their is an opportunity to making a deal rather than taking on litigation until the end.  

As a matter of policy we rarely take cases where I don't think there is room for a pareto gain. If I don't see room to make a deal, I explain to the client that I don't see a probable settlement, and we talk about the pros and cons of litigating the case in court.  In business cases and consumer cases, it rarely makes sense to take a case that you can see at the beginning is going to have to be fought to the bitter end.  This approach is why we can often take business cases where the amounts are around $250,000 and keep our attorney fees at $5,000 or less.  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_efficiency

A Marked Uptick in Collection Efforts by Nextgear Capital after Judgments

 Though Nextgear Capital hasn't been filing quite as many lawsuits since Covid hit, it looks like they have stepped up their efforts at collecting after judgment.  Many people have called us and told us they have received numerous telephone calls from Nextgear's in-house debt collectors.  Because these are business collection accounts, and not consumer collection accounts, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act does not apply to these calls.  Nextgear has also been filing their Indiana judgments in the states where the debtor lives to take advantage of wage garnishments and other allowed collection actions in the debtor's state.  Don't panic if you get these calls. We have found Nextgear open to dealing on judgment debts. I urge you to call us to talk to us about how we can help you negotiate a reduced debt with Nextgear.  

After 8 Years A New Identity - The Beginning of Hofer Hagan LLP, the end of Consumer Law Office of Steve Hofer

 As of today, I am ending my practice under the name Consumer Law Office of Steve Hofer, BUT I have joined up with attorney Keith Hagan, and we have formed a new firm, Hofer Hagan LLP.  Other than the new name, not much is changing. Keith and I have been doing most of our cases together for a few years now. We are going to be trying out a few different website looks, but the practice will stay mostly the same.  Right now, we don't even have new phone numbers.