You come to the US to make it, don’t jeopardize that by making mistakes. (We’re The Brits In America S1:E31)

CPI increased by 0.2% in August, putting the year-over-year rate at 2.5%. So, inflation is stabilising and we can all celebrate? Possibly. The U.S. added 142,000 jobs last month too, leading to a slight decline in the unemployment rate. What does this mean for markets?

Richard and James are back in the trenches, to bring you the latest cross-border financial advice. What does the CPI data tell us? What’s the rest of the year got in store?

Rich was recently a victim of attempted identity theft, and he shares the steps he’s now taken to protect himself. There’s plenty of advice to stop it happening to you in this episode. Stay vigilant and listen closely.

Finally, remember the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme? What lessons are there to learn from that one?

This week’s From The Trenches is a mix of practical advice, personal stories and life lessons.

We’re the Brits in America is affiliated with Plan First Wealth LLC, an SEC-registered investment advisor. The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Plan First Wealth.

Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial adviser and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed herein. Plan First Wealth does not provide any tax and/or legal advice and strongly recommends that listeners seek their own advice in these areas.

About Richard

Richard Taylor is a British expat, dual citizen (UK & US). Originally from Bolton, he now lives in Greenwich, CT, where Plan First Wealth has its head office.

As the firm’s leader, Richard launched Taylor & Taylor, now Plan First Wealth, and continues to fuel the firm’s growth. Richard is a Chartered Financial Planner (UK – CII) in addition to holding the IMC (CFA UK) and Series 65 (US – FINRA).

Connect with Richard on LinkedIn

About James

James Boyle is the lead financial planner at Plan First Wealth. He is going on ten years in the industry on the American financial planning side, including having certification as a financial planner in the States. James is also CFP level four UK cross-border certified, making him exceptionally qualified in the niche in which he works.

Connect with James on LinkedIn

Transcript:

Richard Taylor:

[00:00:25 – 00:01:48]

Welcome to the we’re the Brits in America podcast, a planned first wealth podcast for Brits in America by Brits in America, dedicated to helping British expats thrive in America. I’m your host, Richard Taylor, and Plan First wealth is the business I founded and run today, and we work with successful British expatriates living across the US to make the most of their opportunity and avoid the expat landmines. However, while Plan First Wealth, LLC is an SEC registered investment advisor, the views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of planned first wealth. Information presented is for educational purposes only. Now, if you aren’t already receiving our weekly emails, please go to our website, planfirstwealth.com and sign up to WealthHub. It’s free and you will then be notified every time we drop a new episode and so much more. Alrighty, let’s get back to this week’s show. Welcome back to another episode of from the trenches, which is a show where myself and my planned first wealth colleague, James Boyle, get together to bring you behind the curtain at planned first wealth to share with you our thoughts and opinions on what’s going on in the world, to provide some technical information useful to Brits in America, maybe to help them thrive here, and finally, to bring insights and observations from our life and work. Hey, James.

James Boyle:

[00:01:48 – 00:01:50]

Hello, Richard. How’s it going?

Richard Taylor:

[00:01:50 – 00:01:56]

Still mildly angry. I’ve just, as you know, I just snapped a green screen in trying to put it down for the first time.

James Boyle:

[00:01:56 – 00:02:01]

I should. It’s really annoying. I should release that footage as special content.

Richard Taylor:

[00:02:01 – 00:02:12]

Well, you know, I should have put it in another room because I’m looking at the broken, twisted carcass of my brand new green screen right next to me on the floor here. And it’s like a reminder of my incompetence and I should get rid of it.

James Boyle:

[00:02:12 – 00:02:28]

For the listeners at home, this is one of those. They’re almost like fabric, a giant disc that then folds down on itself in some strange physics defying, you know, engineered manner. And you put that to pasture, I think.

Richard Taylor:

[00:02:28 – 00:02:42]

Yeah, yeah. Literally, as I was saying, how when you’re doing these things, you’re impressed with the engineering feat, but then you’re frustrated in the moment because you can’t remember how to do it. And then snap. As I was saying it, snap. It went back to the drawing board, or rather back to Amazon, I was.

James Boyle:

[00:02:42 – 00:02:50]

Gonna say, you could check the Amazon description and I bet somewhere on there they describe it as unbreakable or, and.

Richard Taylor:

[00:02:50 – 00:02:54]

It’D be remiss of me not to say it before we get going, but happy birthday, James.

James Boyle:

[00:02:54 – 00:02:56]

Thank you. Thank you. Appreciate it.

Richard Taylor:

[00:02:56 – 00:03:08]

Recording on your birthday. What an honor it is. What commitment. What commitment to our clients and fans and listeners that we’re bringing you all this british content to help you thrive in America. On James birthday.

James Boyle:

[00:03:09 – 00:03:13]

This is the best gift I could ask for. What a great answer.

Richard Taylor:

[00:03:13 – 00:03:16]

What a great answer. Okay. Right, so what’s on the docket today, my friend?

James Boyle:

[00:03:16 – 00:03:42]

Well, we’ll start off with our economy and markets overview. A lot has happened and for the listeners, we’re recording this on the morning of September 11, one week before this will go out. So CPI data has just released this morning, CPI rose 0.2% for the month of August, which is in line with expectations, puts the twelve month rate at 2.5%. I think the market’s going to have.

Richard Taylor:

[00:03:42 – 00:04:18]

A bit of twelve month at 2.52.5% for reasons that will become clear later in this episode. I have not been checking my news this morning, other than when I first woke up to see what went on with the debate. So I did not know that. But 2.5% year over year, 2.5 headline. I got to tell you, on so many levels, thank goodness, like from a business perspective and client perspective, the economy is unremarkable. We got down from 9% so quickly. From a personal perspective, just thank goodness, because the cost of living here has just exploded. It’s insane. We’re all feeling it every single day. So thank goodness.

James Boyle:

[00:04:18 – 00:04:36]

The one thing to keep in mind too, is that I don’t know if anyone expected this to happen. Now, obviously, moving forward, anything could come up, right? There’s going to be fears of recession or slowdown, but as of this moment, it does appear that we’ve achieved. You put up the umbrella of a soft landing on it.

Richard Taylor:

[00:04:36 – 00:04:37]

Touch wooden.

James Boyle:

[00:04:37 – 00:04:42]

It feels like we’re in it right now. Touch wood. Now, obviously, it’s all the lagging effect.

Richard Taylor:

[00:04:43 – 00:05:09]

James, I think we’re at the crunch time and they’ve done phenomenally well thus far. But it’s the, it’s that whole thing with a flight, the most dangerous times, the takeoff and the landing. And they were late to the party, but when they were late to put interest rates up, and I think now we’re at the landing phase, interest rates going to start coming down. We believe, everyone believes, and if they can do this without crashing the economy, then I think they can say we’ve achieved it. It’s remarkable. We’ve avoided the recession thus far, but I do think we’re at a crunch.

James Boyle:

[00:05:09 – 00:06:02]

Period, speaking of the fed, because I think that’s the next important point. There was some hope potentially prior to this CPI release amongst traders and Wall street types that maybe we would be looking at an aggressive cut here at the next Fed meeting, which is, as of this release date, will be happening, the FOMC, on September 18. I would hazard a guess that core CPI, which came in slightly above estimates this morning, 0.3 versus 0.2, that may douse some of those hopes of the more aggressive rate, cut 50 basis points as opposed to 25. So we’ll see. I mean, time will tell. The Fed will be knocking their heads together, I’m sure. Job openings last week have fell, but the US is still adding jobs, 142,000 jobs added in August. So the unemployment rate did actually decline slightly.

Richard Taylor:

[00:06:02 – 00:06:25]

What a weird time we’re living. It’s still, it feels like the pandemic was so long ago, but we’re still in a pandemic economy, or the results of a pandemic economy, and I think we will be for years. It was such a huge seismic event in the economy, and not just the economy in our lives. The way we go about our lives has changed irrevocably as a result of that, I believe.

James Boyle:

[00:06:25 – 00:06:47]

Yeah, I don’t think it will ever go back fully. Right. It’s one of those things, too, that long term effects can’t be known until 510, 1520 years. You know, we always talk about the long term here, but we may not know how the pandemic impacted things until 20. Geez, 40. Imagine that. We’re almost over four years old now, but, yeah, wild.

Richard Taylor:

[00:06:47 – 00:07:08]

Yeah, wild times. Well, that’s good news. So economy is doing well. Inflation is up, but down. It’s heading towards its long term goal. We think interest rate is going to start coming down, maybe not super aggressively, but on the way down, which is going to be great for everyone, great for the housing market. All is well again, touch wood, please. But all seems to be going well.

James Boyle:

[00:07:08 – 00:07:22]

Yep. Layoffs have stayed depressed. There’s no immediate red flags, I would say. I mean, obviously these things are touch and go, as you say, and there will be revisions to come, and we’ll see what the Fed says next week. But as of right now, we’re looking.

Richard Taylor:

[00:07:22 – 00:07:40]

Okay, yeah, maybe I’m wrong, but it does feel a bit jittery at the moment. We had another pullback last week, and every time we seem to get. We do these once a month. Every time we seem to have this conversation in the last month, there seems to have been some sort of a mild panic. It does seem everyone’s kind of like on edge, almost just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

James Boyle:

[00:07:40 – 00:07:48]

Is the market feeling toppy? We’ll see. It’s one of those things that we certainly wouldn’t act on it, but it’s worth keeping an eye on.

Richard Taylor:

[00:07:48 – 00:08:12]

Obviously, Nvidia’s is just everywhere you turn right now. And I think there’s the remarkable run out of Nvidia, but then there’s also the kind of now people are saying, as they inevitably do, it’s gone too far, it’s got to pull back. And if that crashed, it would affect the market. So I think a lot of the time it’s not what’s going on in the market, it’s people reacting to or preparing for what they think is going to happen that really drives stocks in the market. So I think there’s some of that going on exactly.

James Boyle:

[00:08:12 – 00:08:36]

With Nvidia, the AI conversation was, we revisited that this week with Apple, which I’m an Apple user. I know you are too, Richard. A lot of our listeners, I’m sure the new models that will have, what are they calling it? Apple intelligence AI will be baked into the whole ecosystem. So as a user, as a consumer, it’s exciting to see what it can do. Is it going to help the bottom line? That remains to be seen, I think.

Richard Taylor:

[00:08:36 – 00:09:04]

Yeah. Okay, let’s move on. So next thing we’re going to talk about is we want to reflect back on some of our other podcast episodes. I recently concluded a three part cross border US UK estate planning series. One with the UK attorney, one with the us attorney. And I thought there was a lot of information in there, and I thought maybe we could just spend a few minutes reflecting on that and maybe bring it into how this manifests itself for us on a daily basis and the conversations we have with our prospective clients and our clients. So I don’t know if you have any immediate thoughts on that.

James Boyle:

[00:09:04 – 00:09:34]

Well, before we dive in, I would say if you’re listening to this episode and you haven’t listened to those, the two with Aiden grant of Collier Bristow, then the third with Paula Jones of Jones Estate group, certainly go back and after you’ve heard us kind of reflect on it, go back and listen to those. There is a ton, ton of enormously valuable content in there. And like Richard said, we’re going to kind of do a highlight here and talk about what it means in practicality, but there is a lot of information in there that I think certainly listeners of this podcast would benefit from enormously.

Richard Taylor:

[00:09:34 – 00:11:02]

James, I’ll tell you what, shall I just set the scene a bit more even so, I had Aidan on originally, because Aiden’s a UK based cross border estate planning attorney. He’s actually american by birth, although he since renounced it. And I wanted to get Aidan on because we talked about many things, but one of the main things was domicile. This concept of Brits who come here for the most part, are domiciled in the UK and will be for a long time. And it can be a very hard thing to shed, and it can have real consequences when you setting up a us estate plan. And I wanted Aiden to come in and talk about that concept and the pitfalls to be avoid. And he shared so many nuggets, for the first time ever, we had to split the podcast into two parts, because there’s so much good stuff in there, all about the concept of domicile, the repercussions, the living trusts and all this great stuff. He also, it’s under the caveat that the UK government is currently looking at this centuries old concept of domicile and might be making changes to it. And if they do, and they affect our clients, we’ll have him back on to talk about those changes. But of all the things he shared, the one thing that stayed with me the most is the way he positioned estate planning for Brits in America. And I think we all have a tendency, those of us who are aware of this, to overcomplicate it and fret and worry. And he basically said, when you’re doing estate plans for anyone, you’re in a corridor and you have a number of doors to choose from. And based on your personal situation and what you’re trying to achieve, you will advise a client to go through a particular door. When it comes to Brits in America and Americans in Europe, you still have options, good options, you just have fewer doors to go through.

James Boyle:

[00:11:02 – 00:11:03]

That’s a good analogy.

Richard Taylor:

[00:11:03 – 00:12:50]

And I thought that’s a wonderfully. Yeah, you take some of the sting, some of the fear out of it, you know, rather than having eight doors, you’ve got four. That’s not a bad thing. But the thing to be really aware of is behind those three or four doors that you shouldn’t walk through, there are some really nasty and unexpected and expensive repercussions. I think the biggest bugbear for all of us in this is people will walk through those wrong doors before seeking appropriate advice or going to see someone who isn’t aware that this concept, you know, of british domicile or whatever, and they walk through the wrong door, but then they speak to someone like us and we’re aware of this and it’s after the fact. So it’s trying to highlight, promote. I just. Fewer options. Not necessarily worse options, just fewer options. But just make sure you don’t walk through the wrong doors. So I really, really enjoyed that part with Adam. And then I had Paula on. Because Paula is a US based, cross border international estate planning attorney. We talked about loads of good stuff, again, especially we got into the weeds about inheritance tax at the state level, which I hadn’t even talked about with Hayden. But the reason I wanted Paula on was because I believe I started talking about cross border US UK state plans. And it just freaks clients out thinking, like, what I’ve got to pay a us attorney when that us attorney’s gonna be a cross border specialist. That’s gonna be super expensive. Oh, and then they’re gonna wanna go and get a british lawyer involved. Oh, and if I got property in another country, I’m gonna have to get another lawyer involved. And they’re just seeing dollar signs and pound signs in front of their eyes and it’s terrifying. What’s gonna cost me $30,000 to get an estate planning? What’s the point? So they don’t do anything or they go and see the wrong person. And I wanted Paula to come on to talk through the actual mechanics. What she does with clients in the US with these needs and how it doesn’t have to be a break the bank process or experience in order to get a solid cross border estate plan in place that protects you and your heirs, your family.

James Boyle:

[00:12:50 – 00:13:37]

That idea is so key, I think, you know, being on the ground, so to speak, speaking with people every day, it’s overwhelming, right? It feels overwhelming. It feels like a big. This huge mountain that you have to climb. And I think Paul’s episode, as you mentioned, was so illustrative of the fact that it shouldn’t be this enormous weight weighing on you. There are options, to use Aiden’s metaphor. There are doors available to you. Don’t put off taking action thinking that it’s going to be massively expensive or just mentally overbearing. Right. If that it feels like this insurmountable challenge. There are people in this space that do exactly this for people just like you, the listener, to ensure that at the end of the day, your money is going to your family or to the charities or to the organizations that you want it to.

Richard Taylor:

[00:13:37 – 00:14:41]

And if you can, you’re not going to get stuck in a costly and time consuming probate purgatory process. And I think the financial aspect of it, something that overwhelms people, and I think you touched on it a minute ago. It’s also the network. I actually talk about someone I spoke to recently, they’re in California. Everything’s more difficult in California. So they’ve got federal, state, UK, they’ve got a property in France. They’re still both working. They’re thinking, I got to find a us lawyer in stanzas understands federal California. I’ve got to find someone in the UK, I’ve got to find someone in France. I’ve then got to have it all joined up. Like, where’d you even start? And the answer is, one of the things that I have learned, I’ve been doing this nearly ten years now in the US. One of my most valuable offerings to clients, and it’s free of charge, is my network. I know where to go when you need a UK US cross border tax advisor, tax attorney, estate planning attorney, and I’ll be leveraging Paula’s network. I don’t know where to go for a french attorney. She does. And it’s this cross border thing. You need professionals and you need cross border professionals and they need to have good networks. And if you can do that, that’s how you win at this.

James Boyle:

[00:14:41 – 00:15:24]

The other thing I think you and Paula touched on and speaking to this, the idea of having properties in multiple different countries, the world is getting smaller, right? People work remotely, people are traveling, more people have houses, real estate in different areas, certainly the people that we talk to. So there is infrastructure available. It may not feel like that at the onset, right? But this is becoming more and more common. There are ways to navigate these issues such that it’s not, again, this enormous burden and to make sure that the right steps are taken. Obviously, we have clients worldwide, right? Most in the US, a not insignificant chunk back in the UK and some in mainland Europe or beyond. There are ways to navigate this. No matter what path you take in the future or are planning to potentially.

Richard Taylor:

[00:15:24 – 00:15:52]

Take, you really do, especially if you’re a us citizen, you absolutely need professionals trying to do go this alone. I accept that for regular Brits in Britain and regular Americans in America, it’s possible. Do I think it’s necessarily the right thing to do or smartest thing to do? Probably not. But I absolutely understand it’s possible to do this as a cross border person, and even in a cross border person in a third jurisdiction, just no chance. Don’t even go there.

James Boyle:

[00:15:52 – 00:16:08]

You’re effectively making a decision, and maybe this comes off as too dismissive, but you’re making a decision that at that stage, whoever I’m leaving my assets to, I’m understanding they are going to have an absolute swamp to cross upon my passing.

Richard Taylor:

[00:16:08 – 00:16:17]

And not even. I know we’re talking about estate planning, but not even just estate planning. Like, if you try and do that without a good cross border tax advisor, you’re going to create a nightmare for yourself to handle as well.

James Boyle:

[00:16:17 – 00:16:24]

Yep. We talk about the landmines. They abound, right? You want to make sure you have the right professionals in place to navigate around them.

Richard Taylor:

[00:16:24 – 00:16:41]

So if anyone. I hope there’s lots of Brits listening to this. Brits in America. Brits thinking of coming to America. Honestly, anyone with a cross border, especially Paula’s episode, anyone from outside the US living in the US, check out these three podcasts. It’s just a wealth of information.

James Boyle:

[00:16:41 – 00:17:28]

The one piece, too, that I wanted to make sure we jump on before we, we move on here. Real estate. Just having a property in the UK and being a us person can create complications. Again, these enormous, insurmountable challenges. But it creates complications from everything as basic as legal documents, right, wills, power of attorney, but also the contradiction and interaction of those legal documents. So many of our clients, many of the people we talk to, have real estate abroad, right? Speaking outside of the US now have a home in the UK. Maybe they’re going to spend significant time there in retirement. Maybe they’re renting it out. If that applies to you, that is reason enough alone to speak to a cross border estate professional, because that in and of itself, can cause complications.

Richard Taylor:

[00:17:28 – 00:18:03]

Yeah, 100%. And let me just build on that. I have, in numerous times in my career, had Brits and other people turn up on a call and tell me their affairs are really simple and then go on to explain, I’ve got a few accounts here, I’ve got a couple of investments there, I’ve got property. And I have to say, look, the moment you mention something outside the US, even just the fact you were born outside the US, the moment you do that, you no longer have a simple affairs. There could be landmines lurking in there. Not saying they necessarily are, and I’m not saying you definitely don’t have all the options. You might have fewer options, but there’s definitely stuff to be careful of and be aware of.

James Boyle:

[00:18:03 – 00:18:32]

Yep, that is a. That is a critical point. I think directionally, all of these things, so much of the content we put out, so much of the work we do, is designed to get people to realize that the US is somewhat unique in the way they tax and assess tax on worldwide income and assets. And also that just by being an expat in the states with any ties to foreign assets, real estate, you automatically do not have a simple lifestyle or scenario.

Richard Taylor:

[00:18:32 – 00:19:35]

James, let’s be clear. This podcast has grown out of two things. One, over the last ten years, I’ve learned so much, and a lot of it is idiosyncratic, terrifying, unfair, ridiculous. I’ve learned so much. And second of all, in ten years, I realize how little people know, myself included, when I first started and ten years on, people still don’t really know, even though it’s all over the Internet and stuff now. So this podcast, part of it, the mission is to try and get this information out there. I can only have so many one on one conversations and only so much lands in a one on one conversation, and I don’t have all the answers and all the knowledge. So a lot of this podcast is about getting that information out there as a permanent record with true experts, which people can go back to again and again and again and hopefully spread this information. Because what I would love to see is my next ten years. I would love it if when people come to us, we do less spotting and diagnosing problems and suggesting solutions and more preemptive preventative stuff. I would love that.

James Boyle:

[00:19:35 – 00:19:36]

Yep, that’s the mission.

Richard Taylor:

[00:19:36 – 00:19:50]

Help brits thrive here. That’s the mission. You want quality of life. People go to Europe. If you come to America because it hits America, you come here to make it. And I don’t want people to jeopardize that by making understandable but avoidable mistakes and missteps.

James Boyle:

[00:19:50 – 00:19:52]

Yep, absolutely. Moving on.

Richard Taylor:

[00:19:52 – 00:19:53]

Great.

James Boyle:

[00:19:53 – 00:20:00]

We have quite the adventure here. I think adventure maybe is too optimistic of a term. I’ll let you, I’ll let you take it away.

Richard Taylor:

[00:20:00 – 00:20:54]

Right. Well, and this is why I didn’t see the CPI print come in this morning. So last time we met, we talked about scams. Since we recorded that and dropped that podcast, it looks like I might be the victim of identity theft, or attempted identity theft, I should say. So. I’ll try and keep this brief, but Labor Day I get a notification on my phone and someone’s applying for credit cards, store cards, target, Home Depot in my name. And yeah, this then sets off a furious I’ll lay out what steps I’ve taken shortly, but I’ve had letters from these companies saying, talking about my applications, and today I called up both these organizations to report this was not me. Turns out someone’s out there with my name, my address, my Social Security number, my telephone number. A fake Gmail account for me.

James Boyle:

[00:20:54 – 00:20:55]

Terrifying.

Richard Taylor:

[00:20:55 – 00:21:16]

Yep. And someone’s got some form of id. One of them has done in person, and someone will have submitted id. So unless it’s someone on the inside there and the other one they quoted, are these the last four digits of your driving license? No. So either someone’s got a fake driving license or I don’t know, but someone’s out there pretending to be me, applying for credit in my name.

James Boyle:

[00:21:16 – 00:21:22]

This is terrifying, listeners. We didn’t pay someone to run through this, and this is a true story. We didn’t. This just dovetailed.

Richard Taylor:

[00:21:22 – 00:21:28]

As I said to James at the start, it’s like someone listened to our last episode and thought, you know what? These boys need some content. I’ll give them content.

James Boyle:

[00:21:29 – 00:21:30]

It’s all about content now.

Richard Taylor:

[00:21:30 – 00:21:35]

I’ll steal their identities or one of their identities, and then let’s see what they, let’s say what they do in response.

James Boyle:

[00:21:35 – 00:21:47]

So lucky you. You got chosen here as the content creator. But that initial red flag, was that credit karma? How were you notified originally? Or was that a credit card?

Richard Taylor:

[00:21:47 – 00:22:21]

I got an email from credit karma, and it said, you’ve had two new credit application checks on your equifax or transunion. And I was like, oh, that’s not me. So I went into my credit karma, and lo and behold, yeah, right then and there that day, two credit checks have been made, and there’s little I could do. It was Labor Day, and I wonder if that was an intention potentially on Labor Day. So no was open. But I got through to places, and it turned out there was no open. No open cards, but there were applications because I started getting letters the following week. And, yeah, then that’s caused. Kicked off a load more activity today.

James Boyle:

[00:22:21 – 00:22:26]

So this idea that they have id that came from one of the application.

Richard Taylor:

[00:22:26 – 00:22:30]

Well, one of the applications, she said it was done in person, and they will have shown some id.

James Boyle:

[00:22:30 – 00:22:31]

Okay, wow.

Richard Taylor:

[00:22:31 – 00:22:57]

So I guess that could mean there’s someone on the inside there, right? I don’t know. But the other one, she said to me, do you have a Gmail address? Yeah. She said, what is it? I told her my Gmail address. She said, that’s not the one we have. And then what are the last four digits of you? She gave me the last four digits of my driving license and said, is this the last four digits of your driving license? I went and looked and they weren’t so. And then we corroborated other information, and lots of it was correct, but a few things were incorrect.

James Boyle:

[00:22:57 – 00:23:16]

It’s one of those things where you almost have to behave as if your information is out there. Right. Assume that your information is in the hands of bad actors. And what are the steps you can take then to be preventative, be proactive, and make sure that if something were to happen, you can jump on it as quickly as possible.

Richard Taylor:

[00:23:17 – 00:23:25]

I should also mention someone has been trying to hack one of my email addresses. I don’t want to mention which one. Someone been trying to hack one of my email addresses.

James Boyle:

[00:23:25 – 00:23:26]

This is a personal email.

Richard Taylor:

[00:23:27 – 00:26:11]

Yeah. So I’m on the. Let me tell people what I’ve done. So immediately, as I, and let me also just preface by saying I was kind of alert about this because one of our clients suffered identity theft in a big way. This person got the whole, somehow managed to change their telephone number over to them, somehow managed to get a driving license in their name. The FBI were involved. I mean, it’s a really big deal. So I had lots of conversations with this client about the steps they took and things that are done differently. So I was slightly prepared with what to do. Here’s what I did. So the moment that I got the notification, I set up an account with Norton Lifelock. So Norton antivirus, they also have this service called Lifelock where they can monitor. I’m not entirely sure what they do. My client used this lifelock and said they were a game changer for him. They helped him get his life back, essentially. So I immediately signed up with Norton Lifelock, and I’ve raised a case for them. And now they’re just monitoring what’s going on. If anyone pulls credit in my name, if any suspicious goes on. So hopefully there’s a third party watching stuff in my name out there. And also, I think it comes with an element of insurance. If any of these attempts succeed, I think there’s an element of insurance in there. So I opened an account with Norton Lifelock through Norton. I then went and put a credit freeze on the Equifax transunion Experian. I’ve put a credit free. So anyone who now tries to pull a credit report can’t pull a credit report. I also raise a fraud alert with them. So if anyone does do that, it should notify the retailer there’s a fraud alert on this person’s account. And that’s what I did originally. And then when today, after I called these cards and found out all this other stuff was going on, it was worse than I thought. I visited identitytheft dot gov, and that’s a site where you can get tips and tricks on how to monitor this. But. And also if there is a successful. I think you can raise a case and stuff. I’m not there yet, but I’m following the tips and tricks and I updated Norton lifelock that this other information was out there about me. And I have gone on a service called Delete me. Delete me is a service where you put in all your information and they will go out there and contact data brokers and the dark web, and also lifelock does that. They’re monitoring what’s in the dark web and they will try and get you all your information. They will come back to the report and wait on a report with all the information that’s out there about you, who holds it. And I get the impression it’s gonna be quite a sobering read, and then they’ll help you delete it all. So I’ve got lifelock monitoring what’s in the dark web. I’ve got delete me trolling through to find out what’s out there for sale on me and my wife and get it all deleted. And then I’m just checking my credit karma constantly and I’m changing passwords, setting up two factor authentication, just battening down the hatches, so to speak. Yeah, it’s a violation. It’s a real horror, but it’s a horrible feeling.

James Boyle:

[00:26:11 – 00:26:26]

It’s almost like, you know, if someone ever broke into your car or your apartment, you know, hopefully that never happens, but you feel violated, like, you know, someone’s in your space and, I mean, this is digital, but it’s as. It’s as real as anything else. It’s a shame. First of all, sorry that you’re going through that.

Richard Taylor:

[00:26:27 – 00:26:39]

Weirdest thing happened to me around Christmas time in Lena, living in Manchester. I must have left my car unlocked, but someone went into my car. Nothing was stolen, but a bottle of wine was left behind.

James Boyle:

[00:26:39 – 00:26:40]

A nice bottle.

Richard Taylor:

[00:26:42 – 00:27:19]

I still remember what it was. It’s a Rioca that everyone drinks in the UK, and they have a purple label as the most expensive one, and it’s not expensive, it’s like ten pound a bottle. And they have a yellow label one and it was a yellow label of this famous Rioca. Everyone in the UK will know this bottle of wine on site and I don’t know if they’ve been disturbed or what. But there was just a bottle of wine in my driver’s seat and the door was slightly ajarat. That’s how I knew someone had been in my car. My passenger side door was ajar and I went in fearing bad things, and there was a bottle of red wine, red wine rioca on my passenger seat.

James Boyle:

[00:27:19 – 00:27:22]

Were there any, like, tasting notes scribbled on the bottle?

Richard Taylor:

[00:27:22 – 00:27:26]

No, no. This is not like I. It’s not. It is not worth it. This is not worth it.

James Boyle:

[00:27:26 – 00:27:28]

This is better than a bottle of buckfest.

Richard Taylor:

[00:27:29 – 00:27:33]

Yes. Yeah. So that’s the only time I’ve had my space filing.

James Boyle:

[00:27:33 – 00:27:43]

It is violated. Yeah, I think that’s true. Sorry you’re going through that. You had an injury in the summer, now you have this to deal with. Yeah, but it sounds like you’ve taken all the steps you can. Right. And then it’s. It’s monitoring.

Richard Taylor:

[00:27:43 – 00:28:16]

At this stage, I’m quite comfortable. It’s probably the wrong word. It’s deeply uncomfortable knowing someone’s out there with your Social Security number and a fake Gmail account. But I was alerted straight away. I’ve taken all the steps that I’ve been told to. I’m monitoring it, I’m aware of it. The problem with that client was he found out very much after the fact, and I’m kind of learning from his experience, and everything worked out well for him in the end. You know, it was a horrible experience, but everything worked out well for him in the end. I hope I’ve caught it quick enough. But be careful out there, folks. Scams have exploded.

James Boyle:

[00:28:16 – 00:28:28]

Absolutely. And there’s nothing you can do, really, but be vigilant and take the steps you can. And then if something seems suspicious you, like, you’ve done, jump on it and, you know, lock things down, batten down the hatches.

Richard Taylor:

[00:28:28 – 00:28:28]

Yeah.

James Boyle:

[00:28:28 – 00:28:33]

We’ll keep the listeners updated because I’m sure people want to know how it. How it turns out next episode.

Richard Taylor:

[00:28:33 – 00:28:33]

Yeah.

James Boyle:

[00:28:33 – 00:28:48]

Now for pick a mix here I have this boy band called Oasis that I’ve never heard of them, but apparently they’re. They’re touring. Any interest in getting in the waiting lines or anything for one of those shows?

Richard Taylor:

[00:28:48 – 00:29:18]

Yes and no. So I. Obviously, I was a. As a child of that generation, and from Manchester or near Manchester, I’m an Oasis fan, particularly early Oasis, and I’ve been to an Oasis concert and all that that entails, and I’m really, really intrigued to see if it’s going to be like that still or not, because it was an experience. Anyone who’s been to an Oasis concert or aware of what goes on at Oasis concerts knows what I’m talking about. But it’s some pretty unpleasant stuff that goes down. And it was violent, though, when I was out. Like, really violent. Is it gonna be like, when and.

James Boyle:

[00:29:18 – 00:29:19]

Where, if I can ask?

Richard Taylor:

[00:29:19 – 00:29:51]

I was in Nottingham, it was my final year of college, and I remember being in. We were standing in the, I don’t know what you call it, in front of the stage. There was these big, scary skinheads next to us, to our left, and they basically turn left and basically set upon a set of students just like us. Wow, they really violent. And then, to add an insult to injury, the stewards came out and kicked the students out, and I just had one eye on these guys ever since. But if they turned left and sat on these students, they turned right and sat on us.

James Boyle:

[00:29:52 – 00:29:54]

And for no apparent reason, there was some.

Richard Taylor:

[00:29:54 – 00:30:22]

No apparent reason. Famously, at Oasis, there used to be chucking of urine all over the crowd, like, really awful stuff. But 20 years is a long time, or nearly 20 years, and it is a different world now. And I just. I like to think that that kind of behavior, it was never acceptable then. Right. But somehow early noughties were a very different time, and one I don’t look back on particularly fondly for the kind of culture. I just don’t think that stuff’s gonna fly now.

James Boyle:

[00:30:23 – 00:30:24]

I wouldn’t think so.

Richard Taylor:

[00:30:24 – 00:30:46]

Yeah. And I really hope. But then we’ve just had these riots in the UK, you know, so there’s still an underbelly of unpleasantness, and I really hope. I’m intrigued to see how these concerts go down, what it’s actually like, whether it’s a return to that or the world has moved on and we’re better for it. Yeah, I’m interested to see. I’m excited. Oasis back together. There are a lot of Oasis haters, but.

James Boyle:

[00:30:46 – 00:30:53]

And hopefully the brothers can. Yeah, hopefully the brothers can keep it together and, you know, put on some good shows.

Richard Taylor:

[00:30:53 – 00:31:00]

I think so. Liam is a different. So Liam Gallagher now is hilarious, right? He’s a national treasure.

James Boyle:

[00:31:00 – 00:31:01]

So funny.

Richard Taylor:

[00:31:01 – 00:31:24]

And everyone loves him, as far as I’m aware. But when they got back together, I spent a lot of time on YouTube, going back to the old stuff, you know, going down memory lane. Tell you what, you realize just how kind of vulgar they all were. And now we have this, like, lovely, cuddly, friendly, funny Liam. But back then, he wasn’t really those things, and we’ve forgotten what that’s like. So that’s also going to be interesting for me to see.

James Boyle:

[00:31:24 – 00:31:39]

In some ways, it was like this perfect expression of this angst or, you know, young people sort of anger. And he was kind of a good, at the time, an accurate representation of that. Now, you obviously are way closer to it than me. That’s my american.

Richard Taylor:

[00:31:39 – 00:32:05]

Listen, I think we’ve got into the habit of apologizing, excusing for badly behavior. So when you say, like, it was an expression of the angst, I’m gonna push back into that. No, it was just. It was just a manifestation of some of the worst parts of society at that time. And it’s like when we make excuse for certain voters now, you know, the downtrodden or the forgotten parts of the country. No, they’re just. Just racist. You know, you’ve got to call a spade a spade at a certain point.

James Boyle:

[00:32:05 – 00:32:07]

No, that’s. That’s true.

Richard Taylor:

[00:32:07 – 00:32:30]

And I kind of. I don’t buy into this, the angst of the generation. No, they’re just. They just. They just allow people to behave really badly. And I’m saying this as someone who. I love oasis. I’ve been listening. Kate and I have been listening to the albums on repeat. Love it. They’re on all our playlists, you know, but you look back on a different time. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

James Boyle:

[00:32:30 – 00:32:43]

I would imagine that. I think, to your point, the venue, certainly, I mean, they’re not playing in arenas down the street. These are massive, massive places that hopefully, if the brothers aren’t keeping things in line or their organization, hopefully the venues will.

Richard Taylor:

[00:32:43 – 00:33:15]

The reason I went on that rampage about Liam is I do think they’ll. I do think they’ll keep it together because they are different people now, and Liam in particular, has just grown into, like, someone extremely likeable and funny from the limited stuff that I see. So I do think there’s a better chance of them. And I also don’t think they abused alcohol and drugs the same way they did on some of this stuff, which obviously causes enormous amounts of trouble. So it’s gonna be really interesting to see. I’m glad that they’re the back, because it’s a big part of my youth, but the ticket debacle that caused her. People got very upset about tickets.

James Boyle:

[00:33:15 – 00:33:27]

That was. Yeah, and that’s an ongoing thing. I actually. I don’t know how involved they were, but it feels like the ticket monopoly has ruined the experience of purchasing any kind of event.

Richard Taylor:

[00:33:27 – 00:33:36]

But then, wasn’t it always like that with touts outside? Was it? I don’t know. I’m not really a big gig person. I wish I was, but I just never. Just wasn’t really a thing.

James Boyle:

[00:33:36 – 00:33:38]

They haven’t announced us dates? I don’t believe so. We’ll see.

Richard Taylor:

[00:33:38 – 00:34:46]

No no, no us dates. So I’ve just finished reading a book on Bernie Madoff. And it’s called Bernie Madoff, the final word by a journalist called Richard Behar. And this guy had followed Bernie. He got interviews with him in prison and had loads of conversations with him. And obviously the Madoff Ponti scheme was just such a seismic event. I remember where I was when I heard about it. I was working scottish widows, as in someone’s office. I literally remember someone coming in and mentioning it. And I didn’t know what Ponzi scheme was at the time. And 15 years on, there’s time for reflections and people share more. And he’s got Bernie in his own words. It’s just really interesting. I learned loads about it. I got different perspectives and I’d just recommend anyone with an interest in that to read that book. If anyone’s got interest in how Bernie led that life for decades, knowing that it’s probably all gonna come crumbling down at one point, I’ll let people make their own minds up on whether Ruth and the kids are involved, but this journalist certainly thinks so. And are you aware of the whistleblower, Harry Marcopoulos? I’m not sure I can say his.

James Boyle:

[00:34:46 – 00:34:52]

Name, but I was gonna ask you, is this in some way related to the documentary that came out or this might be.

Richard Taylor:

[00:34:52 – 00:34:54]

It’s in no way related.

James Boyle:

[00:34:54 – 00:34:55]

Okay.

Richard Taylor:

[00:34:55 – 00:35:00]

This guy, Harry, whatever his name is, is a white knight who tried to save it. But he is guy.

James Boyle:

[00:35:00 – 00:35:02]

Was he the guy that was testifying and like.

Richard Taylor:

[00:35:02 – 00:35:03]

Yeah.

James Boyle:

[00:35:03 – 00:35:05]

Was going, yeah. He was writing letters.

Richard Taylor:

[00:35:05 – 00:35:07]

And this journalist says he doesn’t deserve the accolade.

James Boyle:

[00:35:08 – 00:35:08]

Really.

Richard Taylor:

[00:35:09 – 00:35:20]

He talks to sec people who say information provided would not have led to an investigation. Normally I’m not sure because this guy did shout and scream a lot and provide them information.

James Boyle:

[00:35:20 – 00:35:23]

And it was pretty obvious he was not shy. Yeah.

Richard Taylor:

[00:35:23 – 00:36:03]

But most of all, and I should note as well, this guy has a. His aunt was caught up in the scheme, lost $16 million. Now, not really $16 million, $60 million on paper. The amount she invested was much much much lower. And he is scathing. His final verdict is that every single investor. Now I personally have some sympathy for the feeder funds because they went through big institutions. And I think when you go through big institutions like big banks, there should be an extra level of due diligence. And liability, and they weren’t doing their job. And I have some degree of sympathy there, but certainly the ones who invested directly with Madoff, he takes the opinion that no one is an innocent victim, not one single person.

James Boyle:

[00:36:03 – 00:36:04]

Wow.

Richard Taylor:

[00:36:04 – 00:36:13]

Every single person is either directly complicit at the top. And I believe that. I believe that people at the top who are directly complicit. The biggest investors.

James Boyle:

[00:36:13 – 00:36:13]

Yep.

Richard Taylor:

[00:36:13 – 00:36:15]

And the rest were, at best, willfully ignorant.

James Boyle:

[00:36:15 – 00:36:17]

It’s a strong stance.

Richard Taylor:

[00:36:17 – 00:36:19]

All right. He bases that on the returns.

James Boyle:

[00:36:20 – 00:36:20]

Mm hmm.

Richard Taylor:

[00:36:20 – 00:36:39]

And the fact that all the statements were riddled with errors. People said they didn’t look at the statements, and I believe that we all know no one looks at statements. But the point is, we’re talking thousands of people and many, many thousands of statements riddled with errors. Like not one single person at any time picked up on any errors because there was never any complaints. The SEC.

James Boyle:

[00:36:40 – 00:36:40]

Yeah.

Richard Taylor:

[00:36:40 – 00:37:35]

So his point is there’s no pure innocence, and it ranges from outright complicit to willfully ignorant. And gotta say, I think there’s a lot of truth to that. I’ll sign off by saying one thing that staggers me, and I think this gives me some insight into why the IR’s are the way they are. Is the richest people in this country. The very richest. We’re talking hundred on millionaires and billionaires. How many of them are absolutely committed to evading, not avoiding, evading taxes at all costs? At all costs. And I just can’t wrap my head around why you would take that from an ideological perspective, but from a personal risk perspective, the arrogance, the cockiness, these are people who just would go to any lengths to avoid paying the IR’s. And these are people who had billions.

James Boyle:

[00:37:35 – 00:37:36]

It’s unbelievable.

Richard Taylor:

[00:37:37 – 00:37:38]

Yeah, it really is.

James Boyle:

[00:37:38 – 00:37:45]

Because for every story that you hear about, there’s probably ten that get away with it, unfortunately.

Richard Taylor:

[00:37:45 – 00:38:09]

Yeah. So if you’ve got any interest in that, if you’re like me, it’s like a pivotal, momentary career, but one of those where you remember where you were when you learned about the Madoff and you followed it with interest all these years, and you remember the photos from 2008, 2009. It’s a trip down memory lane, and there’s loads of perspective and insights and information, and it’s also a warning tale of caution. Everyone should read it.

James Boyle:

[00:38:09 – 00:38:26]

Honestly, I wonder if that’s the first time that Oasis and Bernie Madoff have been discussed back to back on a podcast. That’s us against time. Appreciate everyone listening. We’ll be back soon. And certainly to update on Richard’s goings on.

Richard Taylor:

[00:38:28 – 00:38:29]

Thanks, everyone. Speak to you soon.

James Boyle:

[00:38:29 – 00:38:30]

Thanks, everyone.

Richard Taylor:

[00:38:30 – 00:39:35]

Bye bye. Take care. All right, folks, that’s another episode of we’re the Brits in America under our belts. Thank you for listening. I appreciate it. And I appreciate you. If you’re enjoying the show and would like to support the mission, which is to help brits thrive in America, I’d ask you to subscribe to the podcast wherever you listen and also consider leaving a rating and a review. This stuff really does matter. Please help us get this information to the people who need it. That is your fellow Brits living in America. Just a quick reminder that this show is brought to you by plan. First, wealth. We are a us based US UK cross border financial planning and wealth management firm, and we help successful british expatriates living across the US to make the most of their opportunity and ultimately to retire Appiah. So if you’re a british expat living in America and you’d like to know more about what we do for people like you, you can find us at our website, planfirstwealth.com, or you can look me up on LinkedIn. Do get in touch. We’d love to hear from you. As always, thank you to the podcast guys for for their help producing this episode and the entire show. See you next time.