Maybe you’ve been here before. You’ve just come off the plane, picked up your baggage and gone to the rental car counter. You’re tired from the flight, about to begin an ambitious vacation or a challenging business project. And, this is the point at which you’re asked, “Do you want insurance with that?” Most travelers, […]
April 11, 2017
“Never trust a mechanic who drives new cars. They’re either charging too much money for their work, or they can’t keep an old car running — maybe both.” —Patricia Briggs, author Okay, maybe that approach is a bit simplistic when your car breaks down and you need to choose a mechanic. But for many people, […]
March 22, 2017
Spring is just around the corner, and that means something else might be lurking around the corner, too: A nasty pothole. February, March and April are the worst months for potholes, according to Popular Mechanics, because roads are going through a constant process of freezing, thawing and then freezing again. That can lead to cracking, […]
March 13, 2017
Shopping online. Visiting the doctor. Buying gas. In nearly all of the things we do from day to day, there’s the risk of identity theft. You could unknowingly give your information to a fraudster thinking you’re shopping at a legitimate site. Your doctor’s office could experience a data breach. Or, you could come across a […]
February 27, 2017
Every year, unintentional carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning (not linked to fires) sends 20,000 people to the emergency room and causes more than 4,000 hospitalizations. And, you might consider them the fortunate ones. CO also is responsible for more than 400 deaths in America each year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. […]
February 17, 2017
The Internet and social media in particular have made it easy to share more of our personal lives with our friends. But, it’s also become easier to share with people we don’t even know. Online privacy isn’t just about protecting your personal information — name, address and birthdate — to help prevent identity theft. It’s […]
January 24, 2017
No matter how safe you are behind the wheel, you’ve probably done things like: Shift into drive while the car is still rolling backward. Ride the brakes on steep hills. Roll into the gas station on empty. Guilty? If so, you may not have even realized you were doing everything wrong. After all, most everybody […]
January 4, 2017
You’ve heard all the talk about driverless cars. Yet we’re still years away from living in a world where you can just tell your car where to go, kick back and relax with a book or your phone. Even still, technology already plays a big role in the way we drive. Nowhere is that more […]
December 19, 2016
Technology has made home alarms of all kinds — from security to smoke, radon to radiation — more accessible than ever. Many of them can be configured to work together, and some even alert you to trouble through your phone or other mobile device, so you can feel confident even when you’re out of the […]
December 1, 2016
It seems like a no-brainer to leave the lights on outside your home to deter burglars while you’re away (or even while you’re asleep). But, does that really work? Or, is it just a waste of electricity — particularly this time of year, when the days keep getting shorter and shorter? Those answers can differ […]
November 17, 2016