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Bikers and the VA

By General Posts

They Deserve Better Treatment
by Rogue, Senior Editor Bikernet.com, Founder Biker Lives Matter

“I am a Biker and A Disabled Veteran. There are a lot of people who are as well, including Bandit, and most of us deal with the Veterans Administration for our medical treatment. This was promised to us when we enlisted and or drafted into the military.

I have a close friend who is a Navy Veteran and he told me he was not allowed to sign up for VA because his wife makes too much money.

Some people say they are happy with the way they are treated, but most I have talked to are Not and the reasons vary.”

CLICK HERE and Read It and Support it !!!

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Vance & Hines Issues Statement on Federal Trade Commission Action

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Vance & Hines Issues Statement on Federal Trade Commission Action Against Harley-Davidson

Background: The Federal Trade Commission announced a complaint on June 23, 2022, against Harley-Davidson, ordering the company to “fix warranties by removing illegal terms and recognizing the right to repair, come clean with customers, and ensure that dealers compete fairly with independent third-parties.”

Link to Federal Trade Commission Press Release: https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/06/ftc-takes-action-against-harley-davidson-westinghouse-illegally-restricting-customers-right-repair-0

Statement from Mike Kennedy, President & CEO of Vance & Hines:

“This action taken by the FTC is a huge win for motorcycle riders. While we still need to see how this plays out, we anticipate that riders will have more choices in how they repair and update their motorcycles during the warranty period, which is clearly a big deal for companies in the motorcycle aftermarket, too. I hope that the “it will void your warranty” threat for someone who just wants a better sounding or smoother running Harley is a thing of the past.”

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Public Safety meeting discusses illegal dirt bikes and excessive noise

By General Posts

by Carolyn Noel from https://www.thereminder.com

CHICOPEE – A Public Safety meeting took place to discuss illegal dirt bikes, motorcycles, speeding and excessive noise in the City of Chicopee on May 19.

City Councilor William Courchesne, Ward 7, has been an active participant in the fight against this issue. At the City Council meeting on May 4, Courchesne spoke on the many phone calls he has received from upset residents in his ward. He also helped with updating the Code of the City of Chicopee to strengthen and modernize many noise ordinances.

During the Public Safety meeting, residents were given the chance to voice their concerns on illegal dirt bikes, motorcycles, speeding and noise. Members of the Chicopee Police Department were also in attendance to respond and answer questions.

One resident spoke on the danger of dirt bikes speeding along public streets.

“They’re turning our public streets into their playgrounds,” she said.

Attendee Gerald Lavoie agreed on the danger of dirt bikes speeding on streets, but also proposed that the city give them a safe space to ride.

“The kids need a place to ride,” he said.

Lavoie suggested opening up land for people to ride their dirt bikes safely by Westover Air Reserve Base, near Szot Park or anywhere else that could be accommodated.

Resident David Perault spoke on his motorcycle-related concerns at the meeting. He said that from April through November the noise is “crazy.” He even compared the area he lives in to a speed race.

“My apartment unfortunately faces the Chicopee River and what I like to call the Indianapolis 500,” said Perault. “These guys are flying.”

He spoke on the excessive motorcycle noise that he had to deal with during the COVID-19 lockdown when he was home. He said that a lot of the motorcycles backfire, which can sound like fireworks or even gunshots.

Despite the complaints, Perault did show understanding to the Chicopee Police force. He spoke on the lack of police staff in recent months, especially in the Traffic Enforcement Department.

“I understand that there’s not a lot you can do about it because you don’t have the manpower to do it,” he said. “Whatever you can do to address it, I would be eternally grateful.”

Two residents spoke on the issue of dirt bikes and motorcycles on Moreau Drive. They both emphasized the amount of kids who live there and how dangerous this could be to them, those at nearby Litwin School and those at the nearby Chicopee Country Club.

“We need to do something about this. We need to do better. Any assistance would be great,” said resident Jen Santere.

According to both, Moreau Drive has had three hit and runs within the last year. They brought forth a petition of over 100 neighbors demanding the excessive speeding to stop and asking the Police Department to restore safety to small neighborhood streets.

Many city councilors also attended the meeting to listen to concerns and voice their support. Courchesne said that he wants to see a task force of police officers who cover strictly traffic issues. This would ensure an instant response to these types of situations.

Councilor Gary Labrie agreed, as did Councilor Derek Dobosz. Councilor James Tillotson said that this needs to become a priority among the Police Department, especially now with nice weather approaching.

“I really think we have to make it a priority this summer and try to put an end to it. It’s only going to get worse once the weather gets warmer and the kids are out there more,” said Tillotson.

To finish the discussion, members of the Chicopee Police Department were given time to speak. According to the Captain of the Traffic Bureau, the department is having trouble making these issues their main focus due to a lack of overtime positions being filled.

“Our guys are burnt out with working hours,” he said.

The Chicopee Police Department is also having issues hiring new officers, he said.

Chicopee Police Capt. Jeff Gawron also spoke on the issue.

Gawron said that the Chicopee Police Department is working with other communities to help combat this issue.

“There’s issues all over the place. We are doing everything possible,” said Gawron.

He spoke on the fact that there might be a delay in response to traffic issues, but officers will always show up. There is a need to prioritize calls and, for example, a shots fired call will always take precedence over a traffic call.

“We’re doing the best that we can. The officers on the street are doing the best that they can. They’re working long hours, but, like I said, they can’t be everywhere,” said Gawron.

NYPD offering cash rewards during crackdown on illegal motorcycles

By General Posts

by Marcus Solis from https://abc7ny.com

NYPD offering cash rewards during crackdown on illegal motorcycles and ATVs

The NYPD is taking a new approach to fighting an old quality of life problem, offering cash rewards for the public’s help during a crackdown on illegal motorcycles and ATVs on city streets.

Residents who report where illegal vehicles are being stored could collect $100 per motorbike seized.

Dirt bikes and ATVs cannot be registered as street-legal motor vehicles because they lack safety equipment like brake lights, turn signals and mirrors.

But that hasn’t stopped roving gangs of riders from creating public disturbances across the five boroughs.

Chief of Department Rodney Harrison issued a warning to those who operate them.

“They are illegal and dangerous,” he said. “Don’t ride them. If you do, you are endangering yourself and others.”

Complaints of illegal motorcycles on streets and sidewalks are up 15% this year. Last week, the NYPD responded to 144 911 calls, most of them in Upper Manhattan.

A 76-year old man was attacked in Inwood Hill Park by two motorcyclists after he complained that they rode too close to him.

Police say they rarely initiate pursuits because of the potential danger to officers and the public, but they will confiscate motorbikes when they are parked in public.

An average of 1,000 seized vehicles are crushed and their metal recycled each year.

Anyone with information is urged to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).

Harley’s shares hit 3-year high on EU-US trade truce

By General Posts

by Michael Taylor from https://www.forbes.com

Harley-Davidson Stock Soars As EU Decides Against 56% Tariff Surge

The Harley-Davidson stock price surged this morning after the European Union deferred a tariff plan that would have seen the classic American motorcycle maker face a 56% entry ticket into the European market.

Harley-Davidson Inc would have been one of the biggest losers if the tariff increase from the current 31% had gone through, though whiskey distillers and boat makers would also have taken a hit.

“We are encouraged by today’s announcement that tariffs affecting our products will not escalate from 31% to 56%,” Harley-Davidson Chief Executive Jochen Zeitz said.

“Harley-Davidson employees, dealers, stakeholders and motorcycles have no place in this trade war. These tariffs provide other motorcycle manufacturers with an unfair competitive advantage in the EU.

“European motorcycles only pay up to 2.4% to be imported into the US. We want free and fair trade,” he said.

The tariff hike was set to come into effect on June 1, but it has been shelved as both the US and the EU set about negotiations on steel and aluminum tariffs.

It is estimated that the tariff would have impacted US$4 billion in exports from the US.

The tariffs were initially imposed in 2018 in retaliation to a Trump administration tariff on steel (25%) and aluminum (10%), with further tariff retaliation slated to begin in June.

“We did not want to be in this position,” European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said in June 2018. “However, the unilateral and unjustified decision of the U.S. to impose steel and aluminum tariffs on the EU means that we are left with no other choice.”

The company may have dodged the tariff bullet, but it is still fighting on another front in Europe after having its Binding Origin Information (BOI) revoked, hurling its import tariff up from 6% to beyond 30%.

Its BOI credentials allowed Harley to operate at the lower tariff rate with bikes from its international plants, but their removal created a crisis.

“The company will continue to pursue its legal challenge to the Binding Origin Information (BOI) revocation, and its application for extended reliance.”

A soldier tried to buy a motorcycle in Anchorage. His lawyer says he was targeted by a ‘yo-yo scam’

By General Posts

by Zachariah Hughes from https://www.alaskapublic.org

This past August, Army Specialist Austin Deehan bought a 2014 Harley Davidson from a dealership in south Anchorage.

“It felt great. It was a beautiful bike,” Deehan said.

He made a $2,599 down payment, and financed the remaining $10,630 with at a decent interest rate.

But 19 days later, when he called the bank about setting up monthly payments, they told him the loan had never been approved. That, Deehan said, is when he knew something was wrong.

On Tuesday, Deehan filed a civil case in state Superior Court alleging misconduct by a local car dealership over a financial arrangement critics call a “yo-yo scam.” Though hardly a blockbuster piece of litigation, it highlights something federal regulators, lawyers, and financial services observers say is commonplace: nationally, military service members are some of the most commonly targeted demographics for credit and financing scams.

When Deehan spoke to the bank he believed was financing his loan, they told him the denial was because his application was missing paperwork.

He went back to the dealership, Chevrolet of South Anchorage, where he was told that since the financing deal didn’t go through he would need to take out a more expensive loan, he said.

“They gave me two options: Either I could refinance the bike with a higher interest rate, or I could return the motorcycle and lose my whole down payment,” Deehan said.

That’s when Deehan sought out legal assistance at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, where he is stationed. His complaint was filed by the Northern Justice Initiative, a private firm that handles civil rights cases. According to Nick Feronti, one of the lawyers on the case, the dealership wrongly told Deehan that if he returned the motorcycle the company would keep the full balance of the down payment, plus charge him hefty mileage and daily-use fees that are generally prohibited under Alaska law.

“The dealership actually tried to use an illegal contract to coerce him,” Feronti said. “The way the law is supposed to work is: they tell you you have financing, and then if you don’t get approved, well you can bring the vehicle back and get your down payment back.”

He believes the actions alleged are a textbook example of a “yo-yo scam.”

“These dealerships will count on consumers to buy a car, buy a motorcycle,” Feronti said. “You go home and show it off to your family and you’re feeling really happy about it. And then later on you learn that for whatever reason you actually have to accept much worse financing.”

Reached by phone, Chevrolet of South Anchorage General Manager David Raff wouldn’t agree to a recorded interview. He had not seen the complaint, and said he was only able to speak in general terms. But he defended the business’s practices, saying there are no shady financing deals or use-fees, in part because in a state as small as Alaska those kinds of things would damage the company’s reputation. Asked about an allegation in the complaint that Raff called Deehan in September and “threatened to make his ‘life a living hell’ unless he immediately returned the motorcycle,” Raff said it wouldn’t be appropriate to comment on a specific legal case. He added that if there were those kinds of complaints against the business, they should be assessed against the company’s otherwise strong record.

Online, that record does not look great.

In the last three years, 10 complaints have been filed with the Better Business Bureau against Chevrolet of South Anchorage, ranging from accusation of shoddy mechanical work to what sound like predatory financing arrangements. With 29 reviews, the business has two stars on Yelp, many of them making similar complaints.

The dealership is part of Lithia Motors, one of the country’s largest car retailers. Over the years, Lithia has had multiple class action lawsuits filed against it over business practices. Kara Southard, corporate counsel for Lithia Motors, said she had received the complaint in the Anchorage case, but was not able to comment on it.

State officials in Alaska recognize that servicemembers are frequent targets of scams.

“There’s national data out there that says that a lot of scams are perpetrated against members of the military, that’s a really common thing,” said John Haley, the assistant district attorney in charge of the Department of Law’s Fraud Division.

Those complaints are often taken up by U.S. Government agencies like the Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and Department of Justice, all of which have special efforts to specifically combat fraud against active duty military and veterans. According to Haley, state offices like his don’t get a large volume of calls from active-duty military, but they understand the reasons they are often targeted.

“Scammers want go after members of the military because they have very steady paychecks that are guaranteed by the government,” Haley said. “And because so many of the members of the military are relatively young people who are getting money and getting paychecks for the first time.”

Eventually, Specialist Deehan got his down payment back. He’s suing the car dealership for damages of up to $10,000 plus legal costs. And he wants the dealership to agree to halt the lending practices he believes are wrong.

“There’s guys out there that are fresh out of high school that I work with, and if they went through the same situation that I went through they probably would have signed another contract” Deehan said. “That’s just not ok.”

Deehan no longer has the Harley Davidson, but hopes to get another after he leaves the Army next year.

Berlin to tighten rules for electric scooter users

By General Posts

City transport officials said after a meeting with scooter providers that they’ll designate special on-street parking zones for the battery-powered vehicles

BERLIN: Berlin plans to stop electric scooters from being left haphazardly on sidewalks and other anti-social behavior that’s drawn the ire of residents in the German capital since the vehicles were made legal two months ago.

City transport officials said Wednesday after a meeting with scooter providers that they’ll designate special on-street parking zones for the battery-powered vehicles, which are popular among tourists and young people.

Berlin police will also step up patrols to prevent illegal behavior such as doubling.

Police say seven people have been seriously injured and 27 suffered minor injuries in scooter accidents since mid-June, saying most were due to riders behaving carelessly.

In Paris, where about 20,000 scooters roam the streets , authorities recently proposed limiting speeds to 8 kilometers per hour (5 mph) in areas with heavy foot traffic.