Things You Had Better Do Today (and not Do in Jan. 2000)
THINGS TO DO DURING THE NEXT FEW MONTHS:
1. Write letters to financial institutions with whom you have dealing (banks,
mortgage company, etc) and ask if they are Year 2000 compliant. Send the
letter registered and ask for a signed return receipt. A sample letter is included
at the end of this report. Ask for up-to-date copies of your records. There are
going to be plenty of lawsuits relating to the Y2K problem. These letters may
come in handy.
2. Get copies of your credit report.
3. Make certain your financial records are complete and up-to-date. If you are
not already doing so, keep records of EVERY one of your financial
transactions.
4. Ensure you have copies of the last five years of your state and Federal tax
returns.
5. If you own stocks or other instruments, and the company holding them
does not convince you that they are Y2K compliant, consider selling your
holdings and do not reinvest until after Jan 1, 2000. Check with your tax
advisor for the best way to do this so that you do not incur unnecessary tax
liabilities.
6. Check your own personal computer for Y2K compliance. This involves
checking both the hardware and software packages you use. Checking the
hardware involves the use a small software package that will test to determine
if your hardware will function properly after 12/31/99.
7. Contact each manufacturer of your software packages and ask if they are
Y2K compliant. Again, the Internet is an efficient way to do this since nearly
all software manufacturers have websites. For example, Microsoft, at:
microsoft.com.
8. Carefully check every invoice and bill you receive. Errors are likely to occur.
9. If you are doing any traveling, check and recheck your reservation status
with hotels, motels, airlines, trains, rental cars, etc.
THINGS YOU SHOULD CONSIDER NOT DOING BETWEEN DECEMBER 30,
1999 AND JANUARY 5, 2000:
1. Fly on an airplane (air traffic control may be disrupted or fail; on-board
computer systems may fail)
2. Use an elevator (Elevators may stop suddenly between floors; doors may
fail to open)
3. Schedule any medical tests or surgery in a hospital (hospital records may
become corrupted; emergency systems may fail)
4. Make a long distance call at midnight, Dec 31, 1999. (you might get charged
for a 99 year long phone call)
5. Ride a train or any underground people movers (subways, etc) (traffic
systems may fail, automatic systems may malfunction)
6. Don't use an ATM machine (your bank account records may reflect an
incorrect withdrawal amount)
7. Don't make a bank deposit (your account may not reflect the deposit)
8. Don't pay any bills (pay any bills due the first few days of January, 2000 the
middle of December, 1999. Send payments via registered mail (this one time)
and keep good records of the payment! (You may find that your account is
not properly credited)
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Who was it again that had an FULLY-AUTOMATED solution to this mess ?
BTW- A solution that has been TESTED and PROVEN to work.
ConSyGen |
