PSA

The Scooter Corrals are coming “beginning October 1, 2021, District-permitted electric scooters will be required to lock to city infrastructure when parked throughout DC”

By Prince Of Petworth

Thanks to Jeremy for sending the new scooter locks seen on Georgia Ave. Last week we learned that “Starting October 1, DC law will require all riders to lock scooters to a bike rack, sign post, or bike/scooter corral after use.”

And thanks to Rob for sending this sign from 14th Street:

T-4 days.

From DDOT:

“The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) today announced that beginning October 1, 2021, District-permitted electric scooters will be required to lock to city infrastructure when parked throughout DC. (more…)

“PSA: Locksmith Scam! quick update, what actually happened was even stranger”

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoPville,

I just wanted to share a scam that I unfortunately fell victim to this morning. I locked myself out of my house. I had a Nest lock that I was able to unlock, but we also had a regular entry door lock in the doorknob, for which I’d accidentally left the keys inside.

I called a company, which had great google reviews. With that service, you call dispatch, and they send a technician out. The locksmith arrived, and began working. She spent about one minute trying to pick the lock, then before I knew what she was doing, she pulled out a drill and completely destroyed the lock. She claimed it was necessary, and then offered to sell me a new one for $125 (the same lock costs $20 on Amazon). This was on top of the $250 she’d already charged for the service.

This all seemed wrong, since it was a regular door lock, no deadbolt, no damage. (more…)

9 foot tall fence (and pond) not enough to deter bike theft

By Prince Of Petworth

You know this. I know you know this. A reminder never hurts. Should you happen to spot this bike please email me at [email protected] and I’ll poss on to OP.

“Dear PoPville,

I had my priority continuum onyx stolen last night on the 700 block of Park Road NW (Park View). It was in our backyard (behind our 9 ft tall fence!) hidden behind our cars. Someone had to see into our backyard well enough to 1) jump the fence, 2) get it back over the 9 ft tall fence, and 3) navigate the small pond we have back there (which looks like they got pretty wet). (more…)

“Credit Card Theft from Mail”

By Prince Of Petworth


photo by fromcaliw/love

“Dear PoPville,

I remember seeing this post about credit cards stolen in the mail. I just had a similar experience. I got a new credit card, and Chase sent an envelope to return the old one for recycling, presumably because the card is metal.

I put the old credit card in the envelope and dropped it off directly into the mailbox at the USPS location at 3321 Georgia Ave NW on Saturday afternoon. Monday night, I got a notification that somebody used the card for a $120.05 charge at the Walmart on H St. (more…)

“Prius thefts of Catalytic Converters?”

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoPville,

I was wondering if you had heard anything about the thefts of catalytic converters from Prius in NW DC. Apparently the rare Earth metals in the converters have led to an increase in the thefts, including three on our block one night last week (including ours.) I hadn’t heard of this being an issue in a long time but apparently it’s on the rise. There’s a relatively inexpensive fix (compared to getting a new converter) a shield you can purchase.”

“Uber Scam Report”

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoPville,

I’m in the midst of a weird situation with Uber – wanted to alert others/see if this has happened to anyone else. Called an Uber this morning in DC, driver texted through the app and said he needed a pin/passcode that would be texted to start the ride. I had heard about Uber’s new safety pin feature- got the text, shared the pin. Then, the driver messaged back and apologized and said he needed the pin that got sent to my email b/c the first one expired.

I went into my email, got the pin. Then, we noticed the driver was not moving, so we messaged him back. No answer. Then we called the number in the app. Disconnected. Cancelled ride several times. Driver repeatedly accepted again (same driver). Then, I got kicked out of the app. Logged in, could not change it. My phone number was changed to a foreign number. Tried to reset password via the website, and lo and behold I cannot because the driver activated two step verification on my account, and all the notifications go to him. (more…)

In Other PSA reminders – the new D.C. 771 area code is coming October 9th and with that our days of easy breezy dialing local without an area code are over!

By Prince Of Petworth

From the DC Public Service Commission:

“The District is getting an additional area code – 771 – since we’re running low on 202 numbers. Starting Oct. 9, we’ll all have to start dialing the area code + number whenever we place a call.” (more…)

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