julie watts has more on consumerwatch. >>> reporter: tired of bank fees? >> pretty sick of the whole thing with the banking industry, the financial industry period. they are just bilking the middle class. >> reporter: get ready for more. next month bank of america is redefining its mortgage grace period which means new fees for customers who don't bank with b. of a. >> it's one of a great many that we have heard from the megabanks that's bad news for consumers. >> reporter: joe rideout of consumer action says this is the latest way for b. of a. to makes up the $2.3 billion they used to make in overdraft fees. now they have found a way to collect fees from non-b. of a. customers. >> they are reducing the grace period in which you can pay your mortgage fee-free from 15 days to 9 days if you are paying from a different financial institution. >> reporter: so if you have a mortgage with b. of a. and you pay it with your b. of a. checking account there is no change to your 15-day grace period. but if you bank somewhere else, like, say, wells fargo, and you pay y

on the consumerwatch, julie watts explains what's behind this. >>> reporter: you likely know the song. ♪ [ music ] the touch and feel of cotton ♪ >> reporter: now the fabric of our lives just got more expensive. bad weather in india, pakistan and china destroyed cotton fields and slashed the global supply. >> cotton is up 70% in the last year which is phenomenal. >> reporter: and peter cohn, business professor of babson college, says that means the price of jeans is on the rise. >> what? it's going to go up? so the jeans are going to be more expensive? >> reporter: outside the gap in union square, this news did not go over well. >> why would they do that? >> i am a denim girl. i wear denim all the time. >> i'll pay a couple dollars more where now 30% more. >> reporter: according to cohn, he might have to pay just that. >> i think they are all going to increase their prices in spring because that's when china expects to raise their prices at least an additional 30%. >> reporter: one of the biggest brand names, levis says they are planning price increases in the spring 2011 and the

on the consumer watch julie watts looks at how it works. >> this is what i normally do. >> reporter: david dixon has a difficult time getting around and an even more difficult time paying his $3,700 a month mortgage. >> it's worse. i can't sleep at night. >> reporter: but the san jose stroke victim is finally getting a break thanks to the new state program for unemployed homeowners, it's shrinking his payments to $700 a month for the next 6 months, down $3,000 each month. >> all the worries that i was having started to diminish. >> this is completely new. >> reporter: stephen spears heads up cal hfa, the agency overseeing the programs intended to help california homeowners with hardships. >> just threw a lifeline to those who have nowhere to go. >> reporter: like homeowners behind on their payments or deeply under water. or those who can't stay in their homes and need money to relocate. >> on paper they are great programs, they look like they are gonna help a lot of people, but in practicality i have my doubts. >> reporter: sherry powers, a homeowners advocate, is sceptical about one

on the consumerwatch, julie watts with why it's leaving some kids out in the cold. >> reporter: when corinne turned 19 she was kicked off her family's kaiser health plan and had to get her own. then healthcare reform passed allowing kids under the age of 26 to stay on their parents' plans. and corinne's dad evan couldn't wait to move her back. >> want to be a savings until i bring her back to a better plan. >> reporter: it would have but kaiser refused to let her switch citing a pre-existing condition. corinne was recently diagnosed with cervical cancer. >> insurance companies got very tough on pre-existing conditions in the last 10 years. >> reporter: insurance advocates say depending on your health plan adding your kid back on isn't automatic until 2014. >> a private company selling individual not group policies can still reject a 19 through 26-year-old kid if they have a severe pre-existing condition. >> reporter: so because corinne is over 18 and evan has an individual policy, not provided through an employer, kaiser can get around the healthcare reform clause that prevents them

on the consumer watch, julie watts, cbs5. >> what about sports bras? roberta? >> what about them? >> i always wear those extra smaller. since you're asking. >> that's why i was asking. >> yes. >> all right. >> figure we could round it out with a sports bra. >> i guess you can round it out. i'm going to round out your numbers today because we spanned anywhere from 60 degrees in san rafael. looks like for the most part, topping off at 70. 70 in downtown oakland. richmond a brand-new record at 69. breaking the old one established back in 1984. tonight overnight we will see some areas of patchy, dense fog in the far reaches of the northern portion of our district as well as the east bay. seeping in towards walnut creek as well. low 50s with the clear skies at the beaches. your morning commute. you will have the fog and if you're traveling to the central valley we do have dense fog advisory in effect. stockton all the way through fresno. temperatures 40s to 50 out the door. storm track. north of the bay area. huge dome of high pressure not going anywhere very quickly. in fact, latest c

normally, you could begin filing electronically on this friday, but on the consumer watch, julie watts explains why you may want to wait. >> reporter: this year, the tax man needs more time. and that means you may have to wait a few more weeks before filing for the early refund. jessy weller of the oakland office of the irs says the agency simply is not ready to start processing certain 2010 returns. >> because of the late tax legislation that was passed in december, the irs needs to reprogram its computers to catch up to the new law. >> but does it affect you? well, it does if you're one of the millions of taxpayers who itemize their deductions on form 1040-a. or if you're a teacher who pays for classroom expenses out-of-pocket and then claims a $250 educator expense deduction. it also impacts parents and students who claim deductions for higher education tuition and fees. >> it is a massive undertaking and that's why it takes a month and a half. >> reporter: the irs doesn't expect its computers to be updated until mid to late february. and weller says affected taxpayers who do try to

on the consumerwatch, julie watts introduces us to the l cup. >>> reporter: >> don't look good in your clothes if it's too tight. if it's too loose your boobs are going to sag. >> reporter: no matter your shape or side. >> 38dd. >> reporter: it's important to get hooked up with the correct cup. >> i just think it's really important to have good support. that's -- you want to keep them... >> reporter: it's estimated 80% of ladies are laced up with the wrong size. the average bra size in the u.s. is a 36dd. and the biggest bra we could find was a 44h. but there are many women who are even more well endowed and for them -- >> if you're gifted, sometimes it gets harder. >> reporter: until now. introducing the first-ever supersized l cup bra released by a british company. these are from mail online.com. >> if you need an l size, it's great. >> reporter: the company claims the l cup gives more support and comfort than the previous kk. this shop owner is open to the idea of bigger bras and she has noticed a more voluptuous demand in recent years. >> today fashion is for the small women. this

on the consumerwatch, julie watts, cbs 5. >> call our hotline for help at 1-888-5-helps-u. volunteers are right there. >>> stay with us. we'll be right back. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, >>> well, today's tip of the day is going to be is with zucchini italian squash coming in now from mexico and some parts of florida not locally grown but the flavor is great. they coming in big, that's okay. let's talk about selection. nice and green all the way around and nice and firm. a little bit of a light green is okay but if it's too dark do not buy it. that means it's been stored for too long and they have to be firm and check the tips right here. this will bruise up and get soft. put that away you don't want it. when you bring them home in the refrigerator right away, that's very important. if you leave them at room temperature they will become soft and lose texture. zucchini like this sliced up in the oven or just grill it. what i like to do is cut them in half long ways and put them into the oven, gut them out a bit and stuff them and a stuffed zucchini, stuff it with ricotta, sausage, u

allen. >> julie watts on the consumer watch. thanks. >>> time for the weather, roberta, we're not freezing your account, we're freezing this morning. frost were bad. >> temperatures dipped down into the upper 20s in the bay area to kick start a new workweek. this is the scene as the sun begins to set at 5:09 increasing clouds over the bay area, today we had temperatures anywhere between 3 and 7 degrees below normal for this wintertime. meanwhile if you have any plans or are going to be out and about take a look to the north. to the east danville at 42, belmont around the peninsula is 40 and 40, 3 degrees, a as the sun sets in sunnyvale it is now 44. increasing cloud cover from the inland area through the bayside all the way to the sea shore, dipping down below freezing again in santa rosa, we have some areas where we have pounding on the roadways we can certainly see some black ice developing in the overnight hours. away from the bay temperatures freezing otherwise mid-30s santa clara valley, note 36 degrees redwood city and 40s

on the consumerwatch julie watts reports. >>> reporter: tired of bank fees? >> pretty sick of the whole thing with the banking industry, the financial industry period. they are just bilking the middle class. >> reporter: get ready for more. next month bank of america is redefining its mortgage grace period which means new fees for customers who don't bank with b. of a. >> it's one of a great many that we have heard from the megabanks that's bad news for consumers. >> reporter: joe rideout of consumer action says this is the latest way for b. of a. to make up the 2.$3 billion they used to make in overdraft fees. now they have found a way to collect fees from non-b. of a. customers. >> they have gone from 15 days to 9 days from a different financial institution. >> reporter: so if you have a mortgage with b. of a. and you pay it with your b. of a. checking account there is no change to your 15-day grace period. but if you bank somewhere else, like, say, wells fargo, and you pay your b. of a. mortgage with that checking account, you lose six days on the grace pe

on the consumerwatch, julie watts, cbs 5. ,,,,,,,, i love to eat. i love hanging out with my friends. i have a great fit with my dentures. i love kiwis. i've always had that issue with the seeds getting under my denture. super poligrip free -- it creates a seal of the dentures in my mouth. even well fitting dentures let in food particles. just a few dabs of super poligrip free is clinically proven to seal out more food particles so you're more comfortable and confident while you eat. super poligrip free made even the kiwi an enjoyable experience. [ charlie ] try super poligrip free. where police are surrounding bank of the west >>> we're continuing to follow this developing story in westboro in south san francisco where police are surrounding the bank of the west. >> details still coming in but witnesses say there is a hostage situation. right now that's unconfirmed. but s.w.a.t. teams have gone into that bank so we have a crew there. we'll have an update for you coming up on cbs 5 at 5:00. >> that's for the cbs 5 news at noon. have a great weekend.

on the consumerwatch, julie watts is going to explain those charges. what are they? >> reporter: verizon and sprint are make changes to some of their most popular plans and that means many customers would be paying more for the same level of service. ♪ [ music ] >>> reporter: talk is cheap but data, that's going to cost a bit more. sprint is raising the cost of its unlimited data plan by $10 from $59 to $79. that's the same as t-mobile but compare that to verizon, which charges just $29 a month for unlimited data use although that is on top of other fees. and at&t no longer offers the unlimited plan at all. at least not for new customers. for its part, sprint, the world's third largest carrier, says the hike is needed to maintain its network. the change takes effect january 30. verizon customers can say good- bye to a popular perk, the company is quietly ending its new every two deal. until now, customers got big discounts on new phones every two years. but not anymore. current customers who have been with the company for more than two years will be grandfathered i

on the consumerwatch, julie watts, cbs 5. >>> a new movie asks, what were you doing last july 24th? we'll take you inside the documentary with over 80,000 stars. so that story and more tonight only on the cbs evening news. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, we're working on for eyewitness news at 6. there are lots of unions in san francisco. now there's one for a group you might not ion dedicated to >>> i'm dana tyler dane. there are lots of unions in san francisco. and now there's one for a group you might not expect. a union dedicated to drug users. and it may change the way you see things. unveiled the first tv shot using an iphone. that and more at 6:00. >> we knew it was coming. >>> hey, video of a gorilla walking upright like a human has become an internet sensation. the male silver back part of a group of endangered western lowland gorillas at a british animal park southeast of london. the keepers say all gorillas can stand upright but few do as much as this guy does. they believe the big -- it looks fake. they believe he stands to simply look over the wall to watch for when they're going to fee

on our consumer watch julie watts brings us a shattering glass investigation from consumer reports boom you know, it was like whoa. >> she has bitter memories of the last time she used pyrex. >> i removed my dish, closed the oven, and turned to start walking towards the counter, bonk it exploded. >> reporter: she suffered burns and deep cuts, she was browning chicken under the broiler, something the instructions say not to do. her friend carla fadden was baking tomales when -- >> i heard this boom, opened the oven, and to migrate surprise there was a mole ten melted mass. >> reporter: prompted by stories by valerie and carla's they studied it for a career. they found reports of 163 shattering incidents with 42 reports of injuries, it also compared american made pyrex and hawking glass bake wear to more expensive european made pyrex made of a different material called borrow sil eye keith. they put dry sand in which gets hotter than food and undertake the dishes in an oven for 80 minutes at 450 degrees. then they were placed on a wet granite counter, something tells fine print tells you

on the consumerwatch, julie watts, cbs 5. >> and if you have a story idea or something you want to us investigate, just log on to our website, cbs5.com. click connect. call 1-888-5-helps-u. we'll be right back. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, >>> today's tip of the day is rainbow swiss chard. usually i do a tip like this in the summertime and see this in green markets but now you can find them in the winter. they look so beautiful. they are called rainbow because of the colors of the rainbow. when you buy them make sure all the colors are nice and bright. make sure it carries all the way through the leaves, the veins, have nice beautiful colors. and goes all the way through. that's perfect. when you bring them home, take them out of the plastic bag so they can breathe and put them in the refrigerator. now, all you have to do is saute with gar little, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper, super food swiss chard! ! if you never tried them, give them a try because they look beautiful and they taste even better. i'm tony tantillo, your fresh grocer. and always remember to eat fresh and stay healthy. o

on the consumer watch julie watts, cbs5. >>> what about sports bras? roberta? >> what about them? i always wear those extra smaller. i do. since you're asking. >> that's why i was asking. >> all right. >> figure we could round it out with a sports bra. >> i guess you can round it out. i'm going to round out your numbers today because we spanned from 63 degrees in san rafael to 72 degrees at the museum in oakland shattering more records across the bay area. looks like for the most part the record was 69, topped off at 70 in downtown oakland, richmond, a brand-new record at 69 breaking the old one established in 1984. tonight overnight we will see areas of patchy dense fog in the far reaches of the northern portion of our district as well as the east bay seeping in towards walnut creek as well, low 50s with the clear skies at the beaches. your morning commute you will have fog and if you're traveling to the central valley, there's a dense fog advisory in effect through fresno, temperatures 40 to 50 out the door. storm track was to the north of the bay area, huge dome of high pressur

on the consumerwatch, julie watts brings us a shattering glass investigation from consumer reports. >>> reporter: >> boom, you know? it was like, whoa. >> reporter: valerie has painful memories of last time she used pyrex. >> i removed my dish, closed the oven, turned and started to walk towards the counter and boom it exploded. >> reporter: the northern california woman suffered burns and deep cuts. she was browning chicken under the broiler, something the instructions say not to do. her friend carla was simply baking tamales when -- >> i heard this boom. i opened the oven and to my great surprise, there was a molten melted mess. >> reporter: prompted by stories like valerie and carla's consumer reports conducted a one-year investigation of glass bakeware. it found reports of 163 shattering incidents with 42 reports of injuries. it also compared american made pyrex and anchor hocking glass bakeware made of soda lime glass to more expensive european-made pyrex made of a different material called bror silicate. testers put dry sand in the bakeware which gets hotter than food and put th

julie watts with more. >> reporter: g stands for generation. the i phone operates on a 3g network so what is 4g? >> i don't know. >> i don't think anybody really knows. >> it is just a faster internet connection, i think. >> reporter: you may not know how to explain it but you will likely know it when you see it. on the right, that's 3g. on the left, a new 4g phone. both are downloading the samaveda yo clip. >> the 4g loaded probably at least a third faster and i've got a high deaf picture here. then on 3g i've got standard def picture. >> reporter: it is all about speed. >> 4g represents to you a better wireless experience. >> hey, how are you? >> i'm good. >> reporter: video chatting is standard on a 4g phone. >> front facing camera which catch eses the image. >> reporter: and downloading shows is just a beginning of the capability. >> you can hook up 5 to 8 devices to your phone. a laptop. hop on the internet using your phone internet. >> reporter: providers like t mobile, verizon and sprint are on the 4g tech front. at&t is next in line. wi

on the consumerwatch, julie watts shows us how to do it right for less. >> we bought two heaters. >> reporter: phillip neal was willing to do anything to warm up his drafty apartment except spend a fortune weatherizing a home he doesn't own. >> we had the drafts in the door and the air conditioning unit. >> reporter: but according to the department of energy, fixing those drafts by weatherizing could save him up to $437 a year. so to get the most bang for his buck, we decided to test this $20 do it yourself weatherizing kit. after reading the instructions he applies this self-adhesive door sweep to the base of the door and foam tape to the gap on the side and around the air conditioning unit. >> how are you doing? >> reporter: then we brought in a handyman to check his work. turns out the one size fits all kit doesn't fit when it comes to phillips' door. >> you still have a good quarter inch or so gap right in here. >> reporter: instead of the kit's plastic door sweep that sticks to one side of the door, newman recommended the $10 to $15 door shoe that protects both sides. as for the

julie watts on the consumer watch for cbs5. >>> halfway through the week and we saw some more sunshine today. we got more coming, roberta? >> we certainly do. but first we have to make it through a very col night tonight. currently temperatures mid- 50s. city of san francisco low 40s. that will be our overnight low. 43 degrees in san francisco. away from the bay, 27 degrees. 20s in santa rosa and in pengrove. freezing from napa through fairfield. delta, concord. tri-valley. mid-30s santa clara county. we do have some fog that is now beginning to seep into the northern and eastern portion of our bay area. a dense fog advisory is now in effect for the strait as well as the delta and with the fog and the freezing temperatures that will cause some freezing fog for the morning commute. and dress in layers. it is going to be cold as you head on out. but sunshine will return as high pressure diverting that very vigorous storm tracks to the north of the bay area. sure we have some storms there. i'll show you how it will affect your seven-day forecast. but first off you can bank on tomorrow bei

on the consumerwatch, julie watts, cbs 5. ,,,, yeah, dirt? do you think the two of us will ever find the one? well, we've been left behind by so many mops and brooms... aw, man! ...but we have got... see ya! ...each other. ♪ what about love?! [ male announcer ] swiffer attracts dirt. the 2 in 1 swiffer sweeper uses electrostatic dry cloths to trap and lock more dirt than a broom and uses dirt dissolving wet cloths to clean better than a mop. you're quite the pickup artist! [ male announcer ] 2 in 1 swiffer sweeper gives cleaning a whole new meaning. >>> coming up at 6:00, it's part 2 of our series outsourced. last night we got a glimpse of india's growing tech industry and connection to silicon valley. tonight a different side of the growing superpower, the wealth gap. >> i would miss the birth of my child before i missed this. ♪ [ music ] >> you can probably think of the giants as a huge highlight from this past year but that was hardly the whole story. while we still have a few hours we'll take a look back at 2010. that and much more to

on the consumerwatch, julie watts, cbs 5. >> and if you have a story idea or something you want to us investigate, just log on to our website, cbs5.com. click connect. >>> the government is investigating whether a specific brand of flu shots causes seizures in young children. the fda has received reports of 36 fever-related seizures in children after receiving the flu shot called fluzone. the children were between the ages of 6 months and 2 years. 10 of them had to be hospitalized but they all recovered. the maker of fluzone says there is no clear connection between the vaccine and the seizures. >>> a new study shows curling up with your dog or cat at the end of the day could be dangerous. even deadly. researchers found people who sleep with their pets have a higher chance of contracting parasites, diseases or even the plague. also a no-no, kissing your pets or letting them lick you. probably especially on the mouth. why the danger? well, fleas are a big reason. also, the birds and rodents that some animals catch when they're outside. and then you go to kiss them? yeah. gross. >>> act

on the consumerwatch, julie watts, cbs 5. >>> time now is 4:45. it seems like passengers are just starting to get home. now a new winter storm could cause havoc with air travel once again. what airlines are doing to ease the pain. >>> plus, convertibles are sporty, stylish, but could they be hurting your health? the warning that may make you think twice about riding with the top down. ,,,,,, i think someone at my friend's school has this thing called autism. my friend's brother's son has autism. my neighbor's son has autism. my son has autism. announcer: autism is getting closer to home. today, 1 in 110 children is diagnosed with autism-- that's a 600% increase in the last 20 years. learn the signs at autismspeaks.org. station. >>> hayward police are searching for the suspect who shot and killed a dog near a bart station. the dog's carcass was found yesterday afternoon at the corner of tennyson road and dixon street. that is near the south hayward bart station. police held bart service to question people but there are no suspects named. >>> there

julie watts has today's consumer >>> from a ticket master refund to a sweet bargain for valentine's day, julie watts has today's consumer news on the consumer watch. >> we will get to the chocolates in just a minute, but first a bit of a victory tonight for ticket master customers who have long been complaining about the company's hefty service fees. ticket master and its parent company live nation have agreed to settle a class action lawsuit over ticket delivery fees, fees that can run up to $25. the suit claims the fee was just a profit setter for the company and unrelated to the actual cost of sending you the ticket. it all means consumers who pay that delivery fee anytime in the last decade will be eligible for some reimbursement. you may get cash but more than likely you'll get a discount on future purchases that is yet to be determined. >>> from tickets to taxes. more delays for taxpayers who want to file early. you know those important 1099 forms, the one you get from your bank to report interest. well, they may be late. taxpayers are supposed to get them by january 31st, but wor

on the consumer watch, julie watts, cbs5. >>> tonight taco bell says its seasoned beef is 88% beef. that as it fights back against the lawsuit claiming it doesn't have enough beef to be called beef. the remaining 12 percent water, spices, oats and other ingredients that contributes the quality. a lout suggests that the filling contains less than 35% beef. the suit does not seek monetary damages but asks the court to order taco bell to be honest in its advertising. roberta tosses back to >>> where is the beef? >> i can tell you that roberta gonzales' weather is 100% ready to go. >> yeah. all right. so 9 days of record warmth here in the bay area. now coming to an end. after a record today of 75 in is a leap as, that's 13 degrees above average, oh let me get out of the way so you can see mount dean below where, today, we had a high at the bottom of the mountain there in danville, and alamo, 68 degrees. on the other side where the fog gathered in concord only 53 degrees. we have a dense fog advisory in effect again tonight through tomorrow morning through the eastern portions of the ba

on the consumerwatch, julie watts shows us how a little weatherizing can go a long way but one size doesn't necessary flit all. >>> reporter: >> we bought two heaters. >> reporter: phillip neil was willing to do anything to warm up his drafty apartment except spend a fortune weatherizing a home he doesn't own. >> we had the drafts in the door and the air conditioning unit. >> reporter: but according to the department of energy, fixing those drafts by weatherizing could save him up to $437 a year. so to get the most bang for his buck, we decided to test this $20 do it yourself weatherizing kit. after reading the instructions he applied the self-add thesive door sweep to the base of the door and foam tape to the gap on the side and around the air conditioning unit. >> how are you doing. >> reporter: then we brought in a handyman to check his work. turns out the one size fits all kit doesn't fit when it comes to phillips' door. >> you still have a good quarter inch or so gap right in here. >> reporter: instead of the kit's plastic door sweep, sticks to one side of the door, newman recommends t

on the consumerwatch, julie watts, cbs 5. >>> the iphone alarm glitch that left many people sleeping into the new year lost one woman her job. she worked as a waitress in somerville, massachusetts. after working late new year's eve, she went home to catch a few hours of shut-eye before her next shift. she set her alarm on her iphone but it never went off. garvey got to work 40 minutes late thinking it was all her fault. >> told that i -- they had to let me go. i cried. i cried a lot. i mean, i just figured i did something to mess up my alarm clock. >> well, the next day when apple announced this alarm glitch, garvey realized that she wasn't the one that messed up. she has since written a letter to the head of apple. garvey says all she wants is an apology from steve jobs. >>> could we see a repeat of the gulf oil spill disaster? the warning this morning from federal investigators. plus... >> i'm simon perez live in oakland. six days into the new year, more than that many people shot. >>> and in addition to the empty lots here in san bruno, more of the aftermath in the form of fights

on the consumerwatch, julie watts >>> marketing a business can cost thousands of dollars. a tweet can cost next to nothing. on the business watch, julie watts tell us how one bay area boutique quadrupled the business to her website after joining twitter. >> it's made with organic extra virgin olives, a little coconut to give it big bubbles -- >> reporter: and the number one seller at her boutique. she found herself priced out of a traditional advertising game. >> some of the health magazines that i would fit in pretty good, 5, 6 grand for a small ad. i can't afford that kind of stuff! >> reporter: enter a new game, called treasure hunt, on twitter, where debbie, along with several other bay area business owners, promote their product with the help of jason southerland. >> majority of people are in front of their computers at this moment. i wanted to leverage that digital power. >> reporter: so his marketing company, peninsula shops, gets twitter users to answer trivia questions about local companies for a chance to winfrey goodies. >> i said there has to be a gimmick or st

julie watts, thank you. >>> after stanford's orange bowl win monday night the bay area is abuzz because of college football. this person wants to know what will cal's memorial stadium look like? ken bastida has tonight's good question. >> reporter: it was open in november, 1923 and closed just a couple weeks ago. >> we are going to be taking two thirds of the stadium out and the only thing that will be left is the wall. >> reporter: cal's memorial stadium is coming down literally caught between a rock and an active fault line. the hayward fault. the old stadium has been moving for almost 90 years. >> you can pick up walls that are buckled and doorways that don't close. sewer pipes that need repairs that are offset. it definitelyly is beginning to increase. >> reporter: cal assist tant athletic director says work has already begun on a renovation that will take 20 months to complete. >> it will be built on a fault rupture block where the fault line is. so the way the engineers described it, it is basically a concrete raft. >> reporter: a large section of the historic outer shell of the s

but as consumer watch reporter julie watts shows us, one bay area man ran into a snafoo when he tried to make a change. >> reporter: he grew up playing the piano alongside one of the greats. >> i learned song writing from ricky nelson. >> reporter: now in his 70s he is thinking about how he will say good-bye. >> i want to die in dignity and not burden anybody. >> reporter: last year he decided to amend his living will. the document that dictates how he wants to be cared for at the end of his life. but when he contacted keizer to make the change he says the hmo was unresponsive. >> i e-mailed them. i wrote to them. i called them several times. i filed a formal complaint with their member services department. they contacted their person and medicare. >> reporter: as a result they contacted us and we checked in with a specialist in the end of life care. she strongly believes everyone should have a living will. >> in a way we think it is a gift to your family because it is going to allow -- it will take away some of that burden that they will have at the time when you're seriously ill. >>

all right, julie watts, thank you. >>> you know what, it is a big problem to have in a place where people have to spend a lot of time waiting. why this critical transit hub has no place to go. >>> and how do we know how the bay area's water supply stacks up? well, a trip into the sierra for tonight's good question. ,,,,,, ♪ i may be mud, but i have standards. mops? please. some of them have bacteria. ♪ and they try to pick me up? ew. i'm really hard to get. uh! ♪ what about love?! [ male announcer ] swiffer attracts dirt. used mops can grow bacteria. swiffer wetjet's antibacterial solution eliminates 99.9% of bacteria that mops can spread around. i like your pad! [ male announcer ] swiffer cleans better than a mop or your money back. we're talking dynamite. and not just ite, >>> we continue now with a bang. that, my friends, is dynamite. and not just any old dynamite. in 1881 california powder works relocated its explosives operations from san francisco to san pablo bay and its leading blasting product was called hercules, named after the greek god and thus we have the name of the c

on the consumer watch, julie watts explains how it all works. julie? >> reporter: allan, networking and want ads and recruiters that's how people look for work. but one radical man has come up with a job idea offering a reward for a job. >> reporter: kim daly wants a job as a permanent assistant. >> it is a passion that i truly enjoy. >> reporter: she is willing to pay $1500 to get it. one of many job sookers now posting bounty-s on the website career benefit. its pitch offer a reward and land your dream job. >> i thought it was a great opportunity versus the traditional sending your resume out there or responding to different posts. well, let somebody do the homework for me. >> reporter: paul campbell got the idea last year when he was searching for a job. >> i wanted to work at facebook. and i thought i would pay around $7,000 to get that job. >> wishful thinking. but there was no place to make the offer. so he decided to create one. for the most part people that are on careernet are job seekers or recruiters or agents. >> edgy, kind of a flip on the

on the consumerwatch, julie watts, cbs 5. >>> it is 5:55. latest go to lawrence and elizabeth now with a look at our weather and traffic. and lawrence, you got a couple of those gift cards? >> i did get one of those bad gift cards one time. >> you did? >> i did. but i didn't want to tell the person that gave it to me. i didn't want to embarrass them. >> i kind of want to call a couple of people and say, is your gift card okay? >> it looks good but it just didn't work. >>> hey, folks, we have some fog out there today and some cold temperatures showing up around the bay area again. numbers down into the 30s and freezing inland. by this afternoon we have some great sunshine coming our way and temperatures in the 50s and the 60s. think we are going to cool things down though over the weekend as we will see more of a sea breeze, less fog and a chance we could see some showers coming our way as we look toward next tuesday. all right. let's get a traffic check now with elizabeth. >> all right. thank you, lawrence. yeah, you mentioned the fog now. w

on the consumer watch, julie watts brings us a shattering investigation from consumer reports. >> boom! it was like, whoa! >> reporter: valerie has painful memories of last time she used pyrex. >> i removed my dish, closed the oven, turned, started to walk towards the consider, and boom, exploded. >> reporter: she was browning chicken under the broiler, something the instructions say not to do. her friend, carla fadden, however, was simply baking tomales when this? >> boom, i opened the oven, and to my great surprise, there was a moltedden melted mass. >> reporter: prompted by stories like valerie and carla, consumer reports conducted a one-year investigation of glass bake wear. it found reports of 163 shattering incidents, with 442 reports of injuries. it also prepared american-made pyrex and anchor hawking glass bake wear, made of soda lime glass to more expensive european pyrex made of a different material. testers put dry sand in the bake wear, which gets hotter than food, and put the dishes in an oven for 80 minutes at 450 degrees. then, straight from the oven, the dishes were pla

and while those iphones may look alike julie watts explains what you need to know if you're thinking of switching carriers. >> reporter: the phones are very similar but how they function on different carriers may surprise you and while today's verizon iphone announcement was no surprise it does have everyone talking. >> i heard that verizon was going to have iphones. >> i'm very excited about it. >> word on the street is spreading fast. the long awaited verizon i phone is here. should you rush out to get one? >> i think a lot of people expect it to be this white knight that will come in and be so much better and solve all their problems and it is not necessarily true. >> reporter: it is pointed out the world's most reliable network may not drop as many calls as at&t but it does have some iphone drawbacks. >> verizon. >> reporter: you may have seen these commercials boasting the fastest 4g network but the iphone will run on their old 3g network for now and while tech analysts say it is more reliable than at&t they say it is slower. german points out they have limited international acc

julie watts on the consumerwatch to explain for us. julie. >> reporter: allen, in case you didn't know, january 14 is coming tuesday. this coming tuesday, it's the first day to electronically file your 2010 tax return. but an estimated 40 million early birds are going to get a message from the irs saying essentially, come back later. this year, the tax man needs more time. and that means you may have to wait a few more weeks before filing for that early refund. jesse weller of the oakland obvious office of the irs says the agency simply isn't ready to start processing certain 2010 returns. >> this is because of the late tax legislation that was passed in december. the irs needs to reprogram its computers to catch up to the new laws. >> reporter: but does it affect you? well, it does if you are one of the millions of taxpayers who itemized their deductions on form 1040a or if you're a teacher who pays for classroom expenses out of pocket and claims a $250 educator expense deduction. it also impacts parents and students who claim deducti

on the consumer watch, julie watts, cbs5. >>> all right, call it two weeks for the niners to lock up another coach. you'll hear from the new man in charge. >>> and the warriors hit the hardwood tonight with a shot at grabbing second place. i'm not kidding. coming up in sports. ♪ hefty ♪ stinky ♪ hefty ♪ stinky, stinky ♪ hefty, hefty, hefty [ announcer ] hefty bags with unscented odor block technology... help neutralize odors and stop the stinkies. ♪ stinky, stinky, stinky ♪ hefty, hefty, hefty until i look at the gumline. the problem is, you could have plaque along your gumline that can lead to gingivitis. in fact, one in two adults actually has gingivitis and might not even know it. that's why i recommend new crest pro-health clinical gum protection toothpaste. it helps eliminate plaque at the gumline, helping prevent gingivitis. and it's been clinically proven to help reverse it... in just four weeks. it also protects these other areas dentists check most. new crest pro-health clinical toothpaste. for healthier gums. what are you doing, friending somebody? yeah. you g

on the consumerwatch, julie watts is going to show us -- what's the warranty problem? >> reporter: it's a common problem. as soon as your warranty runs out the product breaks but do you have any recourse? well, that's what sweet out to learn in the case of the -- that's what sweet out to learn in the case of the frosty fridge. >>> reporter: when ken bought a brand-new ge refrigerator two years ago never imagined it would turn into an ice maker. >> anywhere there is a slot there is an accumulation of ice. >> reporter: now scraping ice is part of the daily routine and the refrigerator is only two years old. but getting it fixed comes with a hefty price tag because his warranty only covered one year. >> i mean, look, what did we do? it's not our fault. >> reporter: richard with the consumer federation of california agrees. >> it's not normal. a refrigerator is expected to last about 15 years. if it breaks down after 2 or 3 years, they should repair it free. >> reporter: but there is no legal requirement for a company to make any repairs after the warranty expires. he says

julie watts has the update on that investigation and a few more problems solved this week by the consumerwatch team. >> reporter: when jeff mclain bought prewashed jeans at levis in petaluma he didn't expect they would shrink so when they did after just one wash, he brought them back along with his receipt that states they can be returned for a full refund for any reason within 60 days. but when the manager told him he couldn't get a refund because they had been washed, he emailed consumerwatch and we contacted corporate. levi strauss apologized for the manager's mistake and offered jeff that full refund. instead, jeff traded in his two short jeans for a new pair. >>> when james from castro valley emailed consumerwatch to tell us bank of the west had taken some $2,000 in fees in just 2 months we decided to investigate. after contacting bank of the west, they agreed to reimburse james $380 and provide him with some tips on how to better avoid overdraft fees. >>> and finally, you may remember this story from last week. >> we have a tv all out and what not so it's embarrassing. they said they are

julie watts has more on the consumerwatch. >> boom. >> reporter: valley biddle has painful memories of the last time she used pyrex. >> i removed my dish closed the oven, turned around walked towards the counter and boom it exploded. >> reporter: the northern california woman suffered burns and deep cuts. she was browning chicken under the broiler something the instructions say not to do. her friend carlaed that en however was simply baking tamales when -- >> i heard this boom! i opened the oven and to my great surprise, there was a molten melted mass. >> reporter: prompted by stories like valerie and carla's, consumer reports conducted a one-year investigation of glass bakeware. it found reports of 163 shattering incidents with 42 reports of injuries. it also compared american-made pyrex and anchor hocking glass bakeware made of soda lime glass to more expensive european made pyrex made of a different material called boro silicate. testers put dry sand in the bakeware which gets hotter than food and push put the dishes in the oven for 80 minutes at 450 degrees. then straight from the

julie watts is here with the details. >> reporter: each week we hear from dozens of viewers of various consumer problems and we do our best to help them all. sometimes a fix is as easy as a phone call from one of our volunteers. for instance, when anna smith bought a refurbished xbox 360 for christmas he expected it would come with all the parts. but to his son's disappointment, the unit showed up without an external hard drive. and when adam called game stop customer service, he says the rep kind of chuckled and told him, refurbished systems don't come with external hard drives. even though it doesn't say that anywhere on the product page or the game stop website. adam emailed us and we contacted them. they overnighted him his external drive. >>> when the perez family didn't get any hot water, they called above all plumbing. the technician fixed the problem for $387. but the next day they lost water pressure. so the technician came back. couple weeks later the family called again and then again. the final straw broke when they made the fourth service call and were told they would have

on the consumer watch, julie watts, cbs5. >>> all right, call it two weeks for the niners to lock up another coach. you'll hear from the new man in charge. >>> and the warriors hit the hardwood tonight with a shot ,,, the new head coach of the forty niners just a few miles down the road at stanford... >>> jed york found a new head coach for the san francisco 49ers just a few miles down the road at stanford. >> i can feel the enthusiasm coursing through my veins right now. >> they signed jim harbaugh to a five-year deal worth $25 million and made him a promise stanford couldn't match. >> the chance to be a part of a team that goes after the highest award in all the sports and that's lombardi trophy. stanford is signature years. >> he played 15 years in the nfl and the former quarterback is ready to revive the niners 24th yanked offense. >> we will install the 24th offense the birth place of the west coast offense and i'm excited about that. there is really no sentence that you could put bill walsh and jim harbaugh in the same sentence as. i have a long way to go and a lot of work ahea

on the consumerwatch julie watts shows us several products that are losing weight by the year. >> reporter: you may not have noticed it but more and more products at the store are slimming down from peanut butter to toilet paper. they may look the same but looks can be deceiving and while consumers are starting to take notice. >> a quarter.5 now used to be a half gallon. >> reporter: that's not all. consumer reports found many other grocery staples are also losing weight. for instance, tropicana orange juice used to be 64 ounces. the same size as the safeway brand. now tropicana is 5 ounces lighter. the reason? last winter's florida freeze left the company with two decisions, either hike their prices or drop their package size. >> the manufacturer has to make some sort of a profit on what they're selling. and times are tough on their end, too. >> reporter: and this marketing expert says high fuel prices and a tough economy are to blame for smaller sizes throughout the grocery store. but the trick for manufacturers is saving money without losing brand loyalty. >> it's very dangerous for mar

julie watts here with the details on all of that. >> reporter: you know, we hear from dozens of viewers every week with various consumer problems and we do our best to help solve them all although some are easier than others. for instance, when helen and her sons returned from their european vacation they were exhausted. they didn't realize until the next day that little anthony left his bag in the cab they took home from the airport. helen called the cab dispatch but even though she remembered the cab's number, they weren't any help. so she emailed consumerwatch and we contacted the cab company's management. within two hours, they found the bag and apologized for the delay. making for one very happy little anthony. but not all of our cases are that easy. like when an oakland viewer emailed us about a $5 charge for a 411 call she didn't make. at&t told her 411 was a separate entity and they couldn't help but when she called 411 she got a second charge just for asking for help! that's when she called us. we called our contact at at&t and although it did take a few weeks, our viewer final

julie watts explains how one local lawmaker thinks so too. >> reporter: back in december we introduced you to leslie. >> i certainly didn't feel comfortable doing it. >> reporter: she was shocked when the children's place made her hand over id to make a simple exchange. >> i had never been to a retail store where i was required to provide a copy of my drive's license where they took the information and can scan edit into the database. >> reporter: more and more are doing it. victoria's secret are making you swipe for returns. >> they are trying to reduce the amount of returns, legitimate returns, by intimidating people by scanning their license then there is something wrong with their philosophy. >> reporter: congresswoman jackie spears says some are abusing the driver's license confidentiality. >> there is no reason for victoria's secret to be asking for your driver's license and i would suggest they are breaking the law. >> reporter: they are allowed to swipe your id when investigating fraud or impersonation. but returning an item does not fall under this exemption. >> and we should

julie watts picks up the story in india. >> reporter: they come from different worlds and speak different lappings but as it turns out, lady gaga's universal. [ singing ] >> reporter: pooppop music is one of the tools used to get the children to smile. however the smile disappears as he tells us his story abandoned by his grandfather and forced into child labor he will sleep on the street with hundreds like him. >> in the states it's like you're once in a while after school special. here it's like 50 and 60 kids a day. >> reporter: for some students it's a heartbreaking realization but for others it's a reality they are all too familiar with. >> to be honest, it's not so much of a shock for me. i mean, being born here. how many times i have been with my family on trains and buses. i have seen kids like them. >> reporter: india has more than 100 million child laborers, more than any country in the world. and many of them live on the streets of big cities like bangalore. >> these are just some of the 100 kids who joined the ranks of street children in bangalore every day. they come from out

julie watt is covering today. >> and we will get to both of those stories in just a minute. but first the answer to a consumer question about left overpocket change from a long ago -- left over pocket change from a long ago vacation. a ten isn't the only thing mike brought home from his mexican vacation. he wrote off to say he has 6,000 pesos left over from a trip he took in the late 80s. the problem when he tried to exchange them, they only accept current pesos. >> in 1993 the mexican government started the change from old pesos to new pesos. >> to combat inflation and the window to exchange the old ones for the new ones closed in 1996. but how much would mike's pesos be worth if he could exchange them. >> they would be worth six pesos. it's worth maybe $0.50 u.s.. >> not a windfall. but it could save others. be on the lookout for old pesos. street merchants sometimes give them as change. and speaking of money, there could be some big changes coming to your tax refund. instead of checks, they will start issuing debit cards. the pilot program will reduce the cost of mailing