Fast-Buck Artists Follow Disasters

Price gouging is the first of many pitfalls that survivors of Monday’s quake may face, law enforcement officials said this week.

As the aftershocks subside and water and electricity are restored to homes, prices on water, batteries and other items--inflated to two to three times their usual levels in some areas--should fall.

As they begin to pick up the pieces in earnest, San Fernando Valley residents are likely to encounter a small army of con artists posing as loan expediters, contractors and fund-raisers, officials said.

The so-called loan expediters typically promise they can get you a government loan faster for a fee. In fact, many of them are scam artists who will take the fee and run. City Atty. James K. Hahn said people should “be wary of anyone who says they can get you special assistance for a fee.”

Head Deputy Dist. Atty. Thomas A. Papageorge warned against doing business with unlicensed contractors, some of whom may demand large payments up front or liens on your property.

Officials also warn of charity scams, in which con artists pose as fund-raisers for schools or homes in need of repair. Authorities said people should not donate to unfamiliar charities over the phone and should instead ask for a mailing. Anyone who solicits funds in Los Angeles must first obtain a permit from the city’s Department of Social Services, and notice of the charity’s permit should be included in the mailing.

People who think they’ve been victimized or approached by a con artist, or who are looking for further information on how to protect themselves, can call the Earthquake Fraud Prevention Task Force Hotline at (800) 897-6677 between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Officials said more than 100 people have already used the line.

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Nothing to sneeze at: Early results on sales of cold remedies are in, with some types of products showing healthy gains. For the 12 weeks ended Dec. 5, sales of over-the-counter sore throat remedies were up 11.2%. Sales of cold tablets jumped 5.8% from the same period in 1992, according to the marketing firm International Resources Inc. Sales of cough syrups fell 1.3% as consumers reached for cough medications in pill or tablet form and boosted sales of those products 2.3%. Among the new remedies contributing to sales, according to New Product News, were capsules containing liquid cold medication, called liquicaps.

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Buckling up: More parents are using child safety seats in the wake of a year-old law that increased the penalty for not using them, a recent state survey shows. But use of safety seats still lags behind compliance with the seat belt law.

In its annual survey, the state Office of Traffic Safety found that 73.8% of infants and toddlers traveling in automobiles in November were strapped into safety seats, compared to 59.3% in November, 1992.

The same survey found that more than 80% of adults were using seat belts last November.

People involved in child safety say that raising the fine for not using safety seats to $100 from $20 has prompted more parents to comply.

The safety advocates say ignorance of the dangers of not using a safety seat, as well as the cost of the seats--as much as $80 each--are reasons more parents don’t install them.

“A lot of people think (an accident) will never happen to them,” said Stephanie M. Tombrello, executive director of Inglewood-based Safety Belt Safe USA.

Another problem is that many parents who use the safety seats don’t use them correctly, Tombrello said. In a roadside spot check her group conducted last year with Signal Hill police, only one of 49 motorists carrying a child in a safety seat had secured the seat properly. Very often, the seat belt holding down the seat was too loose. But this problem can be corrected by attaching an inexpensive “locking clip” to the belt, Tombrello said.

Safety Belt Safe provides information about child safety seats and can tell low-income parents where to get the seats at the lowest price. The organization can be reached at (800) 745-SAFE.

Buckling Up

Use of child safety seats has not kept pace with increasing use of seat belts by adults. Figures are for November of each year.

Year Drivers Passengers Infants 1985 25.8% 19.2% 58.8% 1986 42.6 37.1 68.7 1987 49.3 40.7 75.7 1988 51.1 42.5 79.0 1989 52.3 32.1 62.4 1990 57.8 55.5 69.6 1991 63.5 63.8 62.7 1992 70.7 67.7 59.3 1993 82.8 80.9 73.8

Source: State Office of Traffic Safety