Every Friday our Personal Finance team will round up consumer news you need to know ahead of the weekend, on a segment we call “Family First” for YFi PM. Read below for this week’s round-up.
Millions more auto recalls added in March
The record-breaking recall for Takata airbags keeps growing. This time Honda is pulling models as old as 2001 to 2010 off the road for the airbags that could spray sharp metal pieces. Check out the list of all the affected models for both Honda and Acura vehicles on airbagrecall.com and put in your license plate or VIN number.
Scion FR-S and Subaru BRZ owners are reporting engine failure, even after taking their cars in for a recall fix. In a statement Toyota said it is investigating these reports. The recalls were announced in November 2018.
Don’t count out high-end luxury in this week’s recalls either: Bentley is recalling models of its Mulsanne for rear seat-belt buckles detaching in the event of a crash. Bentley didn’t produce many of the Mulsanes, so only 1,059 cars are affected.
Record-breaking spring break travel
Attention spring breakers: The TSA is predicting a record number of over 100 million travelers this season, up 3% from last year.
To expedite your travel, check out programs like TSA Pre-Check, Global Entry, and Clear. For travelers lacking priority status, some airlines like American and United will let you purchase a one-time priority check-in.
For travelers concerned about the recent grounding of Boeing’s 737 MAX aircraft, the U.S. has grounded all of these planes. Only around 60 of these planes were in operation across U.S. airline fleets, so effect on travel will be minimal. U.S. airlines are swapping out aircraft and offering free flight changes for travelers on cancelled flights.
Taxes on track
For the third week in a row, tax refunds are up – 0.1%, or $4 – from the same time last year. Total refunds issued by the IRS are behind by 3.3%.
March 15 is the deadline for businesses to file their 2018 S-Corps and partnership returns and 2019 elections. Taxpayers struggling to make this deadline can file an extension by midnight.
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It's likely you've been in an Uber or Lyft that's been recalled