Hervey Bay Gossip

We can look forward to a Hervey Bay City Council by-election on October 28. The by-election became necessary when one councillor stood as the National Party candidate for the State seat of Hervey Bay.

The ABC is reporting that a senior Maryborough doctor is claiming that private GP services in the city are in crisis due to a severe shortage of doctors.

The Wide Bay Division of General Practice suggests that patients in Marborough will need to change their expectations of medical services until the shortage is overcome.

Got an interest in a timeshare somewhere down the coast? Then beware - there are scammers out to cheat you out of what you own.

Minister for Fair Trading Margaret Keech has warned Queenslanders of an international timeshare reselling scam which has just hit Australia.

Timeshare is a form of vacation property ownership, where people can buy a slice of the property and are entitled to use it for a specific period during the year.

“The new scam sees Spanish scammers call timeshare owners out of the blue, offering to buy the timeshares on behalf of their clients,” Mrs Keech said.

“A generous offer is made and a contract is sent to the owners. However, in order for the deal to go through they must first send an evaluation or administration fee by money transfer. Afterwards the owners hear nothing back and the advance, often totalling a few thousand dollars, is lost.”

A couple in their 40’s from Everton Hills in Brisbane have been stung by the scam, and are warning others not to fall for it.

Mrs Keech said the couple received a call out of the blue from a person who claimed to be the representative of a timeshare reselling company who buys timeshares on behalf of overseas clients.

“They said they were interested in buying their timeshares and, after consulting with their clients, they would give us them a quote.

“What appealed to the couple was the quote which was ways above market value.

“When the couple agreed to sell they received a contract via email that had to be signed and returned along with a 2,500 Euro ($4,200 AUD) evaluation fee.

“After sending the money the couple heard nothing back, later realising they had been scammed.”

Mrs Keech said these kinds of scammers are very convincing, clever and can seem genuine.

Timesharing is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

Mrs Keech said that anyone buying or selling timeshares should check with ASIC that the person you are dealing with licensed and if they are from overseas, is their company a registered foreign company?

To check these details, to find our more about timeshares, or to make a timeshares complaint visit www.asic.gov.au or call 1300 300 630.

For all other scams, or to report a new scam or suspicious offer, contact the Office of Fair Trading on 13 13 04 or visit www.fairtrading.qld.gov.au for more information on common scams.

The Queensland government seems intent on sending out important information disguised as junk mail.l Tucked away in the middle of one of the huge bundles of junk mail that was delivered here in Hervey Bay over the weekend was an important little piece from Queensland Health.

Some time back Queensland Health opened a 24 hour a day, 7 days a week health line that anyone can call if they have a health concern. In the weekend’s junk mail was a handy fridge magnet that clearly displays the phone number you can call if you have a health concern.

It’s certainly something that can come in very handy but why deliver it in the junk mail?

Well the great man of Australian motor sport has gone but won’t be forgotten. Whether you were a fan of Peter Brock or not you will find the Carsguide tribute to him interesting. It gives an insight into the real man behind the image.

Follow this link to read the Peter Brock tribute and you will also find a link there to a Peter Brock screensaver

Have you noticed the price of petrol in Hervey Bay recently?

It wasn’t that long ago that we were paying around 10 cents a litre above the Brisbane prices but not at the moment. Over the last couple of weeks the price of unleaded has been falling in Brisbane while in Hervey Bay it has stayed about the same - give or take a cent or two.

Today, according to the Courier Mail, this is what you would be paying for a litre of unleaded at the bowswer in Brisbane:

And the price here is around $1.22 a litre and no one seems to know why.