Rental Rag April 2002

As always, we alternate between Pegasus and the Trackside restaurants.

This year it’s Pegasus’ turn. Fill in just one line on this form and return it to us.

Name ______________ Company ________________ No. who will attend __________

It’s not as difficult as you may think to protect yourself from identity theft. Follow a few simple steps and put your mind at ease.

Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine, do both sides of each license, credit card, etc. In case of a theft, you will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place (not your wallet). If you have a scanner on you computer, you can scan them and store it on a floppy (not just on your hard drive).

A corporate attorney sent the following out to the employees of his company:

"We’ve all heard horror stories about fraud that can be committed with your name, address, SS#, credit cards, etc. Unfortunately I have first hand knowledge because my wallet was stolen and within a week the thief (thieves) ordered an expensive monthly cell-phone package, applied for a VISA credit card, had a credit line approved to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN number from DMV to change my driving record information on line and more.

"Here’s some critical information to limit the damage in case this happens to you or someone you know. As everyone always advises, cancel your credit cards immediately, but the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. Keep them where you can find them easily. File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where it was stolen, this proves to credit providers you were diligent, and is a first step toward an investigation (if there ever is one).

"But here’s what is perhaps most important: Call three national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and SS#. I had never thought of doing that until advised by a bank that called to tell me an application for credit was made over the Internet in my name. The alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen and they have time to contact you by phone to authorize new credit. By the time I was advised to do this, almost two weeks after the theft, all the damage had been done.

"There are records of all the credit checks initiated by the thieves’ purchases, none of which I knew of before placing the alert. Since then, no additional damage has been done, and the thieves threw my wallet away (someone turned it in) as it was no longer useful to them.

Equifax: 1-800-525-6285

Experian (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742

Trans Union: 1-800-680-7289

Social Security Administration (fraud line):

1-800-269-0271

"Keep this information where you keep the photocopy of the information you kept in your wallet. If you act right away following a theft the only thing you will lose is a bit of your time."

Thanks to our host, John Futcher, Jr. Of Unirents, Inc. in Haskell, NJ and to his sister for an exceptional spread of food and hospitality.

Associate Members were introduced and had some information to share. Ted Vetrini from Viking announced that he will carry the Quincey line of compressors instead of Emglo and Spark pressure washers to replace Mi-T-M. Murray Vale of A-1 Tablecloth, who is also the social chairman for the association, stated that the new swatches will be in the mail shortly. Kate from Bobcat of North Jersey informed the group of a new all terrain loader. Roy Peragallo is organizing a Vendor’s night in August at A-1 Tablecloth in Hackensack.

Steve Kohn, National Liaison, offered the group a wonderful opportunity. He invited Joe McKinney, REAP Advisor, to visit 2 rental stores on April 23 and 2 more on April 24th. The cost to each store is $125.00. He will critique each store and offer advice for improvement. There will be a meeting at United Rent-All in Hillsboro on April 24th to discuss his findings. The following 4 stores were selected in order along with 2 alternates:

1. Content Party Rental - Charlie Schwartz

2. Tri-state Rentals - Tim Voss

3. United Rent-All - Kristen Redmond

4. Taylor Rental (Ridgewood) - Russ Schroeder

5. Taylor Rental (Berkeley Hghts.) Paul Newwirth

6. Prestige Party Rentals - Tom Hazen

Jerry Kernes of Suburban Propane, Mahwah, NJ, informed the group on new propane regulations. As of April 1, 2002, all small propane cylinders from 4-40 lbs. Have to be equipped with an overfilling protection device (OPD). This is a safety feature that helps prevent small propane cylinders from being overfilled, no cylinder will be refilled after April 1, without OPD’s. The only exception will be forklift cylinders, tanks used in industrial process, and horizontal tanks. For identification, most cylinders with OPD’s have special triangular handwheels with the letters OPD. John Futcher of Unirents is working out a deal with Westgate Sales for a mass purchase of new tanks, if interested, contact him.

Joe Mihalko and Howard Heller will be attending the ARA National Caucus in March 14-17 in Washington DC. They will be talking with Richard Osworth about the changes with inflatable and amusement rides (see the March issue of the Rental Rag).

Dave Hinck introduced Kevin Schulman, a sales training expert of Shulman, Turrisi & Assoc. He discussed with the group the idea of networking to improve you business; exchanging and sharing information, meeting new people. It could be accomplished in a formal or informal setting. Always have a definition of success before the start of a function; how many people would you like to meet tonight? His basic principal of doing business is Emerson’s Law: If you want more, give more. Also, how to get people to love you: let them talk first, let them talk about themselves and listen carefully.

Future events: April 24, ARA Meeting, United Rent-All, Hillsboro

May 15th, Night at the Races, Pegasus. Get your reservation in to Carl ASAP

July 17th - Board Meeting

August 21st - VENDORS NIGHT! At A-1 Tablecloth in Hackensack, NJ.

October 16th - Regular Meeting. Location and program to be determined.

November 13th - Board Meeting

MEET THE SPEAKER

Joe McKenney

Mr. McKenney come from Blurrton, SC

Store Affiliation: The Rent-All Shops Inc., Former Owner

Started the Rent-All Shops in 1972, Sold Company to RentX in 2000

Had Six stores-45% Mechanical, 55% Party, 5 in SC and in Georgia

Specialties: Banking, Business Valuation, Equip Maintenance, Selling a Business, Operations,

Financial Management

Why is your website becoming more effective than mailing out rental rate brochures?

One person’s catalog is another’s junk mail

Consumers who don’t want to receive catalogs say they’d rather go to the Internet to shop and skip receiving catalogs altogether. StopTheJunkMail.com, which sells a paid service to consumers who want their names removed from mailing lists, says 42% of consumers who responded to a poll posted at the site prefer to shop the Internet and not receive catalogs at all. The respondents cited catalogs as the second biggest senders of unwanted mail, right behind banks.

50% of those who responded to the poll said they receive up to 5 catalogs per week, but 38% said they’d prefer to receive only one or two catalogs a year and receive updates by e-mail. The results are based on 543 people who answered the questions at the web site in a three-month period. Not all respondents are paying customers of StopTheJunkMail.com.

Steve Kohn

O.P.D.?

O.P.D. - what is it? What does it mean? Fortunately for us it is another way to make money this year. The beauty of it is that we can blame it on the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and their 58LP Gas Code 1998 Edition.

O.P.D. Stands for Overfill Protection Device. This mechanism is installed inside the tank by the manufacturer. It prevents the filler from overfilling the tank. It will be mandatory for use in all propane tanks weighing from four to forty pounds. Effective on April, 2002; no tanks shall be filled without an O.P.D. This is where we refer the customer to the NFPA law and cry, "It’s not our fault!" With a smile on our faces we take their money, because the purpose of this law is to make more money for us and the manufacturers. No, not really, but that, coupled with customer headaches, is how it will translate. Its purpose is safety. However this does not prevent the customer from mistreating their tanks. Moral obligations is what compels us at Do-It-Yourself to inform our customers not to leave a propane tank in an enclosed vehicle on a hot summer day. There may or may not be legal ramifications for not telling a customer; however, you may have a lawyer claim that you overfilled the tank and that is why the nozzle burst off sending the tank rocketing through the air - rather than the boiling temperatures inside a car on a hot summer day.

So stupidity happens, people get sued, laws are passed, and this spring we will begin to profit from it. Oh, yes, and the world will be a safer place.

Dan Mihalko

NEW HAZARD COMMUNICATION

TRAINING VIDEO

Hazard communication complies with OSHA 29 CFR 1910.1200

The potential for injury and illness due to improper storage, handling, and exposure to hazardous chemicals and materials is great. An accurate and comprehensive hazard communication program is essential to most industrial and manufacturing companies.

Effective hazard communication is vital to workplace safety for industrial and manufacturing workers. In many ways the Hazard Communication regulation has become the "mother of all safety regulations, encompassing a wide range of safety issues from chemical labeling and storage to safely working with hundreds of types of hazardous materials. Hazard Communication is comprehensive regulation "not because employees routinely violate the standard more often, but because it applies anywhere there is any kind of hazardous chemical," Says Michael Wright, safety and health director for United Steel Workers of America, in Pittsburgh. OSHA estimates that more than 32,000,000 workers are exposed to 650,000 hazardous chemical products each year.

Summit’s superb safety program in corporates a variety of work environments. And high-end graphics to clearly explain the components of effective Hazard Communication. Keep your employees safe and well educated about chemical hazards with this comprehensive training program. That teaches:

Their programs come with support materials to enhance learning and include a facilitator guide with answers to frequently asked questions, a quiz to document comprehension and training, and a Power Point presentation for classroom usage. Employee handbooks provide reinforcement and a quick reference on the job.

Free previews of Hazard Communications are available by calling 800-842-0466 John Futcher

For some reason I always miss getting a Mother's Day card for the Mrs. Actually, the problem is I’m seldom aware that Mother's Day is upon us until it's upon us. Consequently, between procrastination and the mail service being what it is, my wife has yet to get a card from me for Mother's Day (or flowers for that matter). Mother's Day will be upon us soon and I have every reason to believe my record will hold.

My laxity regarding Mother's Day upsets my wife who will not accept the fact that she is not my mother, no matter how many times I plead my case. My mother has been long gone to that perpetual Mother's Day in the sky and I've never sought a replacement.

It's not that I have anything against mothers. Actually, mothers are my favorite people. Who else would remain blind to all your faults, regardless? Who else would insist, as you are marched from death row to the electric chair, that you are a good boy? Oh, sure, misunderstood, perhaps, but good. Fathers are nice, too, but they're not as soft as mothers - or as forgiving. When you were a tot and cried on dad's shoulder you weren't likely to linger but mom, on the other hand, had to peel you like the skin off a banana to get rid of you.

Moms are not what they were when I grew up and children, though loved, were not as revered as they are today. Today's kids are on firmer ground, they are placed on marble pedestals and there's not an authority in this world high enough to knock them off. For instance, being kept after school was not a punishment for me - it was pre-punishment. Mom believed in the infallibility of the school system. A smack upside the head was waiting for me at home for being kept after. I was not given a chance to explain even if I stayed late just to clap erasers (which was never actually the case). By the way, am I dating myself with the eraser clapping bit?

"What did you do?" Mom demanded, after she whupped me upside the head, when I walked in late. She didn't wait for an answer but continued on with, "your sister was never kept after school! We'll talk about this when your father gets home." When pop got home I was called for dinner and pop said, "Don't do that again." No discussion. End of trauma.

Today's moms are more involved with their children's education than mine was. In the olden days parents left education to the educators. They believed that since educators were trained to do the job, they should be allowed to do it. It was a belief educators encouraged. Over the years, however, parents began to demand more and more involvement in the education process. This was a good thing but the downside is that teachers had to be paid ever bigger salaries to compensate for the disadvantage this put them at. Handling parents is tougher than teaching kids - you can't keep parents after school.

I think I like the old-fashioned moms best. They were less complicated. I will say, though, today's kids don't seem to be hurting because they have mommies who are so much more involved in their everyday existences. Play dates are arranged as is TV time, game time, homework time, and even time-outs. It was different with us, we were sent out to play in the street. There were no formal arrangements. When it was time to come indoors your mother stuck her head out a window and called your name. And you didn't dare come home hurt because, if you did, you’d get another one upside the head before your wound(s) were tended to. How dare you scare the hell out of your mother?!

Punishment, when required, was swift. If we misbehaved we weren't allowed out to play and were forbidden to listen to the radio or even play the Victrola. Reading was your escape and security blanket. If you said you read a book, your friends wanted to know what you did wrong. Boy, times have changed and, thankfully, it's mostly for the better.

When you come right down to it, a mom is a mom, is a mom. Old fashioned or new fashioned - a mom is the one who worries about you, prepares your meals, cleans your clothes, comforts you when the whole world is on your case, gives you control of the remote and watches the TV shows you want to see. Yep, you can't beat a mom for being there when you need her, or for sugar coating bad news, or for calming you down when you go off half cocked. To paraphrase a song, "There is Nothing Like a Mom."

You know, come to think of it, what I just said about moms sounds a lot like my wife; perhaps she does deserve recognition from more than our kids on Mother's day - she deserves it from me, too. Heck, I've got to make it up to her. I'll make a nice gesture for Mother’s Day - I wonder when Mother's Day cards go on half price.

Belated counts, too, doesn’t it?

Carl Sparacio

ARA of NJ
Copyright © 1999 MWENTALP. All rights reserved.
Revised: 04/29/2002