Are trash contents safe from prying eyes after being picked up?
Q. Once the city of Boston has picked up my trash, can a criminal looking to steal identity information, such as credit card bills, etc., get access to the trash? Or is the trash considered safe from this?
Peter Slingluff, Allston
A. One man's trash can be another's treasure. Unfortunately, people do engage in so-called Dumpster diving or fishing through people's trash to steal identities. In many people's trash there are documents that can give an enterprising thief enough information to apply for credit and use someone else's credit, or otherwise profit from identifying information.
The good news is that a spokeswoman for Mayor Thomas Menino said such activity hasn't been a big problem in Boston. "The Public Works Department has had no complaints from residents regarding people going through their trash," spokeswoman Jennifer Mehigan said. "In general, the city is not aware of a large problem with information being stolen from trash."
While not revealing any specific safeguards taken by the city's trash collecting companies to protect garbage that has been collected, she did offer some common sense advice: If you're going to put personal information into your trash, shred it. Also, a thief is far more likely to target trash before it hits the garbage truck and is commingled with other trash and compacted.
Q. I have a small claims judgment in my favor. Essentially, I sued an online vendor for selling a flat-screen TV that did not work straight out of the box. The vendor refused a return. I sought recourse through my credit card company and the small claims court. Ultimately, I won my case, a $2,000 judgment against the company. My question is how can I go about collecting on the judgment from an out-of-state company (New York)?
Anonymous
A. Your aggressive pursuit of trying to right a wrong is commendable.
It is, indeed, difficult to collect a judgment against an out-of-state company. You could hire a collection agency, but that would likely cost you half of whatever you might collect. There are a series of legal steps you could take to enforce the judgment involving filing your judgment and an affidavit in the proper New York court.
There can, however, be a problem if your judgment was won by default. Such judgments can often be dismissed by out-of-state courts.
You should use your judgment as leverage to beat the company into submission. File complaints with New York consumer authorities and the Better Business Bureau and include a copy of your judgment along with a description of what happened. Often, pressure can be the best way to gain a favorable resolution. You already have some leverage.
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