Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, February 8, 1993 TAG: 9302060012
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MAG POFF
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
BANK BLAMES COMPUTER AGAIN
Q: I wrote to you after Signet Bank sent separate credit card solicitations to me for 9.9 percent and to my wife for 11.9 percent. You quoted the bank as saying there was no sex discrimination because the mailings were made at random in a marketing test.I accept that there was no discrimination because now my wife received a second solicitation at 9.9 percent while my new offer was 11.9 percent. And then my wife received still another letter offering 6.9 percent through April 1994.
I don't see this as a test or survey. They are offering loans for the same thing at three different rates. If I accepted their offer of an 11.9 percent rate and found that they were making a better offer to another person, I would be angry that the bank made me pay more for the same thing.
One could perhaps be suspicious of such a mailing. It could be taken as a method to determine how high a rate the market would bear. Why should they not give all their customers with a good credit rating the lower rate?
A: Nena Teller, spokeswoman for Signet Bank in Richmond, said the subsequent solicitations also 'ere mailed at random. Hence the bank was caught again by the slight difference in the rural route listings for your address. You appear from the listings to have separate households.
Like the first mailing, Teller said, the second was designed "to see what works" in persuading customers to try a credit card. The bank is testing various rates for the best customer response.
Teller said the bank has decided that anyone who received a mailing and who is aware of a lower offer can ask the bank for the better terms. The key here is that the customer must ask for it, a marketing tactic not limited to banks.
Also, she said, Signet will remove any name from the solicitation list upon request. You and your wife should not receive other offers from Signet Bank; both of your names have been removed from the list.
Zoe Baird fallout
Q: We have a woman who cleans for us every other week. She is self-employed and pays her own Social Security. Should we have it in writing, perhaps a legal contract signed by her, that she pays her own Social Security to protect us from any future problem that might develop? I don't anticipate any problem with her, but one never knows what might happen. She has been working for us about 3 1/2 years and charges $30 for each two-hour visit.
A: Such a contract would offer you additional protection in case of a future problem, provided she is willing to sign it. Her payment of Social Security tax would be evidence that she considers herself an independent contractor.
But are you certain that she really is making payments to Social Security? What evidence to you have of those payments? Is she paying income taxes or working off the books?
She might one day contend that she was actually your employee and that you should, therefore, have paid Social Security and unemployment taxes. She meets the financial threshold for taxation of $50 a quarter.
Evidence of employment status might be established by who sets her hours, who supervises her work and who provides the tools. You should be sure that she is the one who determines the conditions of how and when she performs the job.
If you want to be certain, you can ask the IRS to determine if she is an employee by filing Form SS-8, Determination of Employee Work Status for Purposes of Federal Employment Taxes and Income Tax Withholding. You risk drawing IRS attention to your situation, but you eliminate the threat of possible penalties down the road.
Q: If a person from any other country were deported back home, can he receive Social Security? How long must a person pay into Social Security to qualify? Do you have to be a citizen? Is it possible for alien residents living in the United States to qualify for Social Security benefits?
A: A lot depends on your individual circumstances.
A spokeswoman for the Social Security Administration said that, as a general proposition, anyone who qualifies for benefits can receive them in a foreign country regardless of citizenship. But it varies with the country where the recipient is living. Before the Berlin Wall came down, for instance, the government sent checks to West Germany but not to East Germany. Today benefits are paid throughout the unified nation.
If you are in your 50s or younger, you must have worked in a job covered by Social Security for a minimum of 10 years to qualify for benefits. People approaching retirement age can have a few quarters less. Anyone about the age of 62, for instance, must have worked in a covered job for 38 to 39 quarters, which is only slightly less time than the 40 quarters in 10 years. Resident aliens who work in covered jobs must meet the same standard.
Incidentally, if you work less than 10 years you don't get back the money you paid into the system.
You should visit the Social Security office to determine whether you qualify.
Mag Poff will find answers to your personal finance questions. Send them to her at the Roanoke Times & World-News, P.O. Box 2491, Roanoke 24010.