ConsumerWatch Wrap: Old Pesos, Tax Refunds, iPhone Screws
(CBS 5) – In this ConsumerWatch Wrap, Uncle Sam is making it easier to get your tax refund this year and Apple is making it harder for customers to open up their iPhones. Also, can you exchange old Mexican pesos?
Old Pesos:
When Mike Bothe traveled to Mexico in the late 1980s, he brought home more then just memories. Bothe brought back total of 6,000 pesos. But when he recently tried to exchange them at the bank he was told only new pesos were accepted.
Bothe emailed CBS 5 ConsumerWatch and we contacted Mike Assenzio with Currency Exchange International. According to Assenzio, Bothe is out of luck. "In 1993, in Mexico the Mexican government started the change from old peso's to new pesos," he said. The move was intended to combat inflation and the window to exchange the old currency ended in 1996.
But turns out Bothe pesos aren't worth much. "6,000 (old) pesos are worth maybe 50 cents U.S.," Assenzio said.
Tax Refund Debit Cards:
Tax season may be right around the corner, but the Internal Revenue Service is soon to make some changes. Instead of receiving a refund by check, the IRS will issue debit cards.
The pilot program is intended to reduce the cost of mailing paper checks. It will affect 6,000 unbanked taxpayers as well as 7 million workers who get paid with payroll cards. It's expected that refunds will be processed sooner. But there will be a service fee if the debit card is used at an ATM that's outside the MoneyPass network.
iPhone Screws:
Millions of Apple iPhone 4 customers may want to check to see if their phone has new tamper-resistant screws. The company is replacing the old Phillips screws if the phone is serviced.
According to the iFixit Blog, Apple has been putting in the new 5 petal screws which require a special screwdriver. iFixit is offering a $10 kit to replace the new screw with old Phillips screws. The new screws may also be found in some MacBook Pro and MacBook Air laptops.
(© 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
