michael finney is looking into why. michael? >> you know, it seems like an easy enough transaction.ou just go online, find a couple of items, order them and then they're delivered to your door. but it just doesn't work that easy. not anymore. have you ordered groceries online? there's a good chance you v bay area grocery deliver company farm set had the business double since the pandemic began. co-founder and ceo. >> i think it's safe to say that nobody in online grocery was expecting this level of interest in this short period of time. >> leading app for cash back on every day purchases looked into nur new normal when grocery shopping and found deliveries used to be 4% of grocery sales. now -- 30%. the ceo says it's an increase impossible to keep up with. >> people are having bad experiences right now because of long wait times. i think that right now people are frustrated with how hard it is to get a time slot. >> i asked him on facebook, are you getting deliveries? marge wrote, there are no delivery slots. robert said, i was told i have to wait two weeks. martha told me, all spot

. >>> don't let the bad guys get your stimulus check. "7 on your side's" michael finney will have that story next. >> it's fabulous. it is fabulous. >> i have had people crying when i deliver the food. >> giving a little, and getting a lot. a lot. the volunteers step by step, we're going to figure this out. we're gonna find a way through this. we're working really, really hard in hospitals, our nurses, our techs, all the docs. it's about staggering when people get sick so that the hospitals can cope. we're gonna go through an awful lot of these. all across puget sound, people have been stepping up and donating personal protective equipment. we stay at work. for you. you stay at home for us. just know we're all with you. thank you, thank you so much. thank you doctors & nurses. >>> some of you may see the stimulus check in your account as early as today. the government payout is to help shore up the nation's economy in the wake of the pandemic. the first wave of deposits will be for those who have already given their bank account information to the irs, and social security beneficiaries

reporting live from my house, i'm michael finney. >> all right, michael, thank you. >>> gun sales haveged since around the same time shelter in place orders started coming down. abc7 news i team reporter stephanie sierra has the story. >> for dublin gun shop owner travis morgan. >> out of glock, out of beretta, you name it, we ain't got it. >> in his 20 years operating his shop, guns fishing and other stuff, he has never seen a spike like this one. >> business wise, it's great. >> if you ask morgan, the spike is linked to fear of covid-19. >> people are worried what's going to happen being locked down and staying at home. >> recent data shows california saw a 72% increase in firearms background checks since february. that same trend is seen nationally. a record-breaking 3.7 million background checks perform aid cross the u.s. in march. to put it in perspective, the last jump that even got close to that spiked december of 2015, ahead of the 2016 election. unlike election years, the data suggests this spike is tied to covid-19. the fbi reports the number of gun background checks performe

. >>> stimulus check problems. 7 on your side's michael finney has an update. >>> plus caught in the act. the man accused of stealing a pile of face masks and other protective equipment. >>> and howfaboigormatiinth coronavirus crisis. >>> i'm spencer christian. we've had a big cooldown since yesterday. clouds and rain are also on the way. i'll have the ♪ ♪ when you need it, jack delivers: order on uber eats, postmates and grubhub. is so irresistible, you'll wanna eat them anywhere, so don't resist! pop 'em outside, or on the go, or on the way home! pop my 100% all-white-meat classic or spicy popcorn chicken combo for just $5.99. >>> we have been sheltering in place for a month now. today is thursday, april 16th. day 31 of our shelter in place in the bay area. people in fremont, they're now required to wear a mask or a face covering when in an essential business like a ose businesses and the face r covers must be provided by their employer. if you're not wearing a face covering, you could be refused entrance or service. employers must also allow employees to wash their hands or use ha

reporting live from my home, michael finney. >> okay. l, thanks very much. >>> we are getting a glimpse of the scope of the financial impact the coronavirus pandemic is having on san francisco businesses. in a survey from the city's chamber of commerce, almost half of the businesses that responded say they have made staffing cuts. another quarter plan to cut staff in the next few weeks. more than 40% of businesses say they have had to close and have lost all of their sales. overall, the city of san francisco faces a potential 1.1 to $1.7 billion budget deficit over the next two fiscal years. today the mayor addressed what an impact that makes. >> that is going to mean really a hard blow to san francisco, a hard blow to our services. so as we are also spending money and dealing with this pandemic here locally in order to keep people safe, we also have to be mindful about what will happen if we are not financially responsible now. >> the mayor says she hopes the city can get financial help from the state and the federal > ri tonirus pandemi

a warning about scams from 7 on your side's michael finney. michael, it just seems like these are coming out of the woodwork here with everybody touting cures and bogus remedies for covid-19. >> it's awful. >> you guys can tell, you've been reading your own email. everyone is getting these things. what's happening is the bad guys are taking every old scam they can think of and then they're putting a coronavirus twist on it. let me show you several that i've been tracking. the federal trade commission says phony websites are cropping up, offering help and cleaning products, like this one selling face masks and even toilet paper. many offer hard to find items like cleaning wipes and hand sanitizer. the consumers place orders that never arrive. here's what one viewer received when she ordered toilet paper online. she paid $28 for this. >> you're paying for it because, you know, the advertisement is so convincing, and you don't get anything and you've lost your money. >> before you buy from an unfamiliar website, check out the sell erion line. type

i'm michael finney. you want a fresh-smelling home, but some air fresheners use heavy, overwhelming scents. try febreze one; a range of innovative air fresheners avrf that y can feel good about using in your home to deliver a light, natural-smelling freshness. febreze one neutralizes stale, stuffy odors and releases a subtle hint of fragrance like bamboo or lavender & eucalyptus. to eliminate odors with no heavy perfumes, try febreze one. brand power. helping you buy better. that could mean an increase byin energy bills.. you can save by setting your heat to 68 or lower... unplugging and turning off devices when not in use... or just letting the sun light your home. stay well and keep it golden. >> announcer: now, your health, your safety. this is abc 7 news news. >>> this just in, this is a big one. burning hand man has been cance for the year. people will be disappointing about that. >> it's been called off, as ama said. >>> new york governor andrew cuomo says he's optimistic because for the first time

michael finney explains what's going on. >>> plus, the new rules about m. we took your questions and we got some answers, coming up, next. >>> i'm spencer christian. after a bit of a chill today, we can expect a nice warmup the remainder of the week. details in the forec in these uncertain times, look after yourself, your family, your friends. but know when it comes to your finances, we are here for you. what can i do for you today? we'll take a look at the portfolio and make adjustments. i'm free to chat if you have any more questions. our j.p.morgan advisors are working from home to help guide you through this. for more than 200 years, we've helped our clients navigate historic challenges. and we will get through this one... together. ♪ ♪ wefrom the 7,000 cignat, clinicians,. supporting front line doctors and nurses, to everyone staying home to protect others. find answers to your most pressing questions: at cigna.com/covid19 rand fast, reliable, secured internet from xfinity can help. we have plans to fit every budget with speeds up to a gig-all at xfini

michael finney explains that it's already a model being copied elsewhere. michael. >> reporter: as is so often the case, california is leading the way. this time it's with a website that was built in response to the pandemic. now, it's only been open for about two weeks and already it's so successful it's going nationwide. people no doubt are hurting. so to help, a tech startup and an oakland-based nonprofit have together launched a unique website where you can turn for help and inspiration. it is onwardca.org. freida kapor kline runs the kapor center. the charity in oakland works to bring more low-income youth into computer programming and s.t.e.m. >> to date more than 300,000 californians have logged on and actually gotten linked to one of three types of services. >> reporter: the kapor center along with several philanthropic and corporate partners are funding onward ca. it provides access to food and child care. it offers job training as well as more than 100,000 job opportunities from companies hiring now. governor newsom says the goal is to get people

it's complicated. 7 on your side's michael finney has been looking into it closely for us.orting live from his home tonight. michael? >> i got to tell you, people are interested in this. i'm receiving a bunch of questions, a bunch of really interesting questions. here is a look at a couple of them. kayla writes i had my baby in 2020 after our last tax filing will i get the extra $500 for my baby? yes, you do, but not this year. the payment is based on your last tax filing when you did not declare your child. however, under the bill, you are supposed to get that $500 next year in the form of a tax credit. donna writes what about those on state disability and social security? do they get nothing? actually, they do get stimulus checks just like everyone else, as long as they are not declared as a dependent on someone else's tax return. many of you have asked about disabled adults who are dependents. those folks do not qualify for their own stimulus payment. finally, elizabeth asks, isn't this stimulus check just an advance on next year's taxes? if i get $3500 this year, will i

7 on your side's michael finney has the story he's reporting from home tonight. michael?i have heard from a lot of consumers about this. i'm getting complaint after complaint after complaint. passengers gave good money for a ticket for an airline. the flight is canceled, but they can't get their money back. however, things might soon change. michelle parisi looks back fondly on her 25 years of marriage. one of the couple's most memorable trips was to florence. so they decided to return there to celebrate their silver anniversary. they booked their flight on swiss international airlines. then the pandemic broke out, and those plans came crashing down. >> my husband realized that our plans might be disrupted. >> they decided to reschedule the trip in october. they easily changed both their hotel reservations and train tickets, but swissair refused to make changes. senators kamala harris, bernie sanders, elizabeth warren and amy klobuchar recently wrote letters to 11 airlines asking the companies to refund all impacted customers. they pointed to the recent $25 billion bailou

let's bring in michael finney for more on those checks. michael? >> yeah, this is really important and really good news for many, many people. the irs has set up a brand-new website for those who normally don't file an irs tax return. this is important, let me tell you why, the irs uses the tax return information to identify those who are entitled to the payments. the new website is free to use and allows those who don't file to give their information and receive a direct deposit payment. now, i posted all the information you need, on abc7news.com. >>> tonight, a warning about those payments. it could be seized by debt collectors. anyone who is eligible to receive a check and faces a collection effort could be targeted. now, two senators, one a democrat, one a republican, have sent a letter to the treasury secretary urging the government to ban those types of collections. the senators call the payments a lifeline. >>> two more insurance companies plan to refund a portion of their premiums to policy holders. state farm says it will return up to $2 m

michael finney has more, and he's joining us, like ama, from home.ot the same home, but his home. >> yeah, it is from my house. i've been here for a couple of weeks. it's amazing. and you talk about these scams. we're watching them build and build upon each other. this is a sales pitch you might soon get. and i want you to remember that the fda has approved absolutely zero at-home tests. in this case, it's the city attorney in l.a. filing a suit against yikon gemocis, a gene sequencing company in china. they offed at-home test kits for $39, saying you could test yourself and claimed it was fda approved. now, again, the fda has not approved a single at-home test kit. keep that in mind. the company agreed immediately to remove the ad to reimburse anyone who purchased one. they said in a statement -- >> reporter: now, authorities have warned about many schemes. we're keeping track of them here in your 7 on your side office. throughout the rest of the week, we'll do a scheme a day, if not more. so larry, everyone else, keep watching and we'll keep you up

i'm michael finney with the latest on stimulus payments. 7 on your side is coming up. >>> abc7 has launchedew streaming app. so wherever you are, you can get our live newscast, breaking news, weather, and more with our new abc7 bay area app on apple tv, android tv, fire tv and roku. search abc7 bay area and theand we want to thank times, the extraordinary people in the healthcare community, working to care for all of us. at novartis, we promise to do our part. as always, we're doing everything we can to help keep cosentyx accessible and affordable. if you have any questions at all, call us, email us, visit us online. we're here to help support you when you need us. take care, and be well. to learn more, call one eight four four cosentyx or visit cosentyx.com - [female vo] restaurants are facing a crisis. and they're counting on your takeout and delivery orders to make it through. grubhub. together we can help save the restaurants we love. >>> now your health, your safety, this is abc7 news. >> for the first time, gig workers and independent contractors and those self-employed can qualify fo

rorepter >> a wnde have consumener wso t cor.ve >> let'sbly bring in michael finney. >>> anfod r recipients of siaocl userity, they will not have to leax tet rurns in order to get eir stimulus money. they will get it automatically just as they do their social security payments today. and this is an abt-oufa.ce arlier seniors were tdol even without taxable income they would need to file a tax you were to qualify. d &epg is lowering your utility bi.ll l residential ctousmers will receive a statean mdadte climate credit. this will reduceou yr ailpr bill between $27 and 2.$6 eyth are aware many of its ustoms erarfae ci fngincianal ceairtn dii d. a amazon is no longeret lting thr eicuomsters buying n95 mas.sk they will hospitalge ancsie to apemployer f pliply for and the new norlma isom cing .othgeer andeo pplone the frontlines really need all that eqpmuient. d anth reest of us will be wearing masks soon as well. so we'll he avto take care of our needs. thank you, michael. > dan wnhe we come ckba, a >>> if you liked the weather ay, you willro pbaybl like morrow as well. and then there is the wee

just furious about it, the timing after all when people are sheltering at home. 7 on your side's michael finney is live from his home with their stories tonight. michael? >> pg&e says they have got to do this, that they need to protect us from wildfire. but the people we're talking to at 7 on your side, they're saying hey, let's get through this crisis first. california families hunkering down at home make lots of adjustments. kids learning online, parents working at home. >> i'm calling you from a picnic table. >> steven dunphy set up an office in his kids old toy room. his two daughters study in their rooms. contact with civilization is limited to a grocery store. and now this. >> you're mandated to stay at home, and yet they turn your power off. i don't think they can get worse than that. >> dunphy and hundreds of others were stunned to get this notice from pg&e. on top of everything else, pg&e will shut off their electricity all day tomorrow so workers can install new equipment to prevent wildfires. but residents say now's not the time for maintenance. >> when i called on monday to say, you

michael finney investigates why that hasn't been the case. >>> the international airport at the time of covid-19 is a ghost town, all coming up on "abc news" at 6:00. >>> finally, a family found a unique way to take all the trips they had to postpone because of covid-19. >> melli woodrow has the story. >> reporter: if you were ever told as a kid not to draw on the walls or ever told your kids the same thing you might have a hard time wrapping your head around michelle bell's dining room. >> i do a lot of things i think a lot of parents think i'm insane for doing. >> reporter: even bell's own kids thought, really, mom? >> i was thinking she was crazy. >> reporter: crazy for creative, you decide. it all started with spring break and canceled plans, thanks to coronavirus. >> so you're [inaudible] -- but we canceled it and we were going to go to new york, and then this happened. >> we obviously had to cancel that. >> reporter: so bell got out the paint. >> this is a great opportunity to get creative and places we wanted to go to or still want to go to and have a little fun and let the ki

. >>> i'm michael finney with the latest tips on how you can get the groceries you need and the ones you want. 7 on your side is coming up. >>> and abc7 has launched new streaming apps. so wherever you are, you can get our live newscasts, breaking news, weather, and more with our new abc7 bay area app on apple tv, android tv, fire tv, and roku. just search abc7 bay theand we want to thank times, the extraordinary people in the healthcare community, working to care for all of us. at novartis, we promise to do our part. as always, we're doing everything we can to help keep cosentyx accessible and affordable. if you have any questions at all, call us, email us, visit us online. we're here to help support you when you need us. take care, and be well. to learn more, call one eight four four cosentyx or visit cosentyx.com >>> now your health, your safety. this is abc7 news. >> good evening once again. a small but significant step taken today shows the bay area is making progress against the coronavirus. >> with new protocols, car washes are among the outdoor businesses that could reopen un

. >>> i'm michael finney from 7 on your side. this is a great time to be buying a car. not so much eveso we can stillg a answer your calls. now. and we are monitoring our system 24/7 to ensure that we have a fast reliable network, keep tmers conneednitoring our system 24/7 and making sure people are staying safe. and we're still on the road. solving critical issues as they arise. ♪ go to xfinity.com/prepare. thank you. in these uncertain times, look after yourself, your family, your friends. but know when it comes to your finances, we are here for you. what can i do for you today? we'll take a look at the portfolio and make adjustments. i'm free to chat if you have any more questions. our j.p.morgan advisors are working from home to help guide you through this. for more than 200 years, we've helped our clients navigate historic challenges. and we will get through this one... together. ♪ ♪ [ closing bell ] >> the stock market ended another turbulent day with early gains washing away by the end of the session, the dow gained 39 points. the nasdaq lost less than a point an

. >>> plus boredom busters. 7 on your side's michael finney has a look at the best online >>> welcomeack. time now for the four@4. new help from the uc system to ease stress for students trying to get into college during the pandemic. uc is relaxing some undergrad r. one includes suspending the use of the s.a.t. in applications. of course, for schools being out for the year, transcripts are in jeopardy. so uc will suspend the a through g letter grade requirement for any classes completed in 2020, and they will accept a pass/fail. the s.a.t., larry, your kids are so stressful, i'm sure there is a big sigh of relief from many kids right now. >> would you have been happy or sad if you happened to be a senior who was getting ready to take this test? >> i think if you did really well on the. s.a.t. or really good grades, you're going to be bummed. save parents a lot of money. >> the coach, yeah. >> you still have for the uc schools, you have your grade point average and you have the two -- i think it's still two essays. so you can guess how a student is likely to perform. i think you and i

and michael finney is live now with how exactly that went today.hael, talk about an inconvenience. >> oh, brother. it was really rough for a lot of people. but there was one sliver of a silver lining. one good samaritan saw my report last night and helped out a family. check this out. this is caylen dunphy, studying online this morning. and then -- >> here we go. >> all the electricity shut off in the dunphy home as pg&e turned off power to hundreds of homes in danville and orinda. >> it was about 9:05 and everything went black. >> steven dunphy lucked out. a good samaritan saw our story last night and came to the rescue. >> he let me borrow his generator, 10 gallons of gas, and five extension cords. >> they plugged it in and kids are back online for school. and the refrigerator is running. stephen is grateful to the man who stepped up. >> after your newscast last night, a neighbor called us up out of the blue. never met him. it's amazing to see how the community rises up even in the face soluch a bad thing. >> got my air conditioning going. it's a

consumer news now, and a big question we're getting is really about laundry. 7 on your side's michael finneyoins us now with more. michael? >> kristen, you know just like everybody else that doing simple little chores can turn into a huge hassle during this time of pandemic. and laundry is a big one, like you just said. so here are some tips to make it just a tad easier. if you're living with someone who has a suspected or confirmed case of the novel coronavirus, there are important precautions you need to take. first, keep any contaminated laundry in a separate bin. >> we don't know exactly how long this coronavirus survives on fabrics or clothes, but researchers think that it's possible the virus can remain infectious on clothes for hours or even days. so for any clothes that may have been exposed to the virus, consider those contaminate and keep those in a separate laundry bin. >> when it's time to do the laundry, use disposable gloves if you have them, and throw them away immediately after you finish. >> if you don't have gloves, you can absolutely do the laundry with your bare hands. an

michael finney is looking into why and joins us now. it's interesting. welcome. >> yeah, it is interesting. we're all getting a small little break from robocalls. so you may ask why. well, actually, it's a side effect of a worldwide pandemic. i asked ingrid koolen in san francisco to show me how she is working from home, something she had never done before the pandemic. she finds it has come with an unexpected benefit. almost no robocall interruptions. >> surprisingly very few since i've been staying at home. >> ingrid can actually quantify the change. >> i went through my caller id on my land line to see how many i had. and it was almost like three a day before shelter in place. and now it's -- i'm down to i think i've had two since i've been home in the last month. >> umail, the robocall blocking app has seen a huge drop in irritating calls. alex ulicci. >> the main reason robocalls are dropping is there are far fewer call centers that are active right now. so they've either closed or they're doing social distancing so they have far fewer seats. >> he

7 on your side's michael finney is up next with a new tool that can help. >>> i'm spencer christian with a look at wednesday warmth coming our way. possibly some weekend rain. vial the accuweather f well i didn't choose metastatic breast cancer. not the exact type. not this specific mutation. but i did pick hope... ...and also clarity... ...by knowing i have a treatment that goes right at it. discover piqray, the first and only treatment that specifically targets pik3ca mutations in hr+, her2- mbc, which are common and linked to cancer growth. piqray is taken with fulvestrant after progression on hormone therapy and has been proven to help people with a pik3ca mutation live longer without disease progression. do not take piqray if you've had a severe allergic reaction to it or to any of its ingredients. piqray can cause serious side effects including severe allergic and skin reactions, high blood sugar levels and diarrhea that are common and can be severe, and lung problems known as pneumonitis. tell your doctor right away if you have symptoms of severe allergic reactions or high blood s

s i'm michael finney, 7 on your side is straight ahead. >> you can join better bay area project thanks and share your gratitude for everyone on the front lines of the covid-19 battle. use the #better bay area to show ♪ oh, oh, (announcer)®! ♪ once-weekly ozempic® is helping many people with type 2 diabetes like james lower their blood sugar. a majority of adults who took ozempic® reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. here's your a1c. oh! my a1c is under 7! (announcer) and you may lose weight. adults who took ozempic® lost on average up to 12 pounds. i lost almost 12 pounds! oh! (announcer) for those also with known heart disease, ozempic® lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as heart attack, stroke, or death. it lowers the risk. oh! and i only have to take it once a week. oh! ♪ oh, oh, oh, ozempic®! ♪ (announcer) ozempic® is not for people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. do not share needles or pens. don't reuse needles. do not take ozempic® if you have a personal or family history of medullary thyroid cancer, multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type

michael finney is answers questions from people as far away as south carolina on this. the results of the large scale study of coronavirus patients and the health factors they shared most up until now. there's new interaction tonight. people we spoke with today fell into one of three categories, see if you're one of them. that's all coming up at 6:00. >> first responders are usually the ones getting the thanks and gestures of appreciation for all the work they do. >> and they deserve it, today they're the ones expressing gratitude toward a different group. >> have a good day. thank you. >> thank you. >> isn't that nice? >> yes. >> it was a surprise show of support for those on the front lines of the battle against covid 19. central county fire, the san mateo county sheriff's office and countless others lined up, cheered and shouted for health care workers during shift game in burling game. >> it's hard to go into the hospital and do your work hours there and -- it's really nice to see everyone just kind of support everyone. >> check out the larger than life sign greetin

. >> 7 on your side's michael finney is here with those stories. michael? >> reporter: hey, dan. coronavirus rebate. we're driving a whole lot less so insurance companies are paying less for accidents so now they're going to cut back and you'll get part of the deal. consumer advocates called on auto insurance companies to give money back, saying taking the money from policy holders amounted to a windfall profit. after two weeks of the sound of cricket two companies have stepped forward. allstate and american family. allstate is rebating $600 million. most customers will receive a 15% rebate for the months of april and may. this puts pressure on all other insurance companies to do the same. airlines will be returning money, too. consumers have been complaining that airlines were refusing to refund air fares to passengers whose flights had been canceled because of the pandemic. the airlines often insisted on issuing credits rather than cash when flights were canceled because of the pandemic. they said shall we didn't cancel them. the disease did. now the u.s. transportation departm

i'm michael finney. >>> happening today, isn't this nice. banks getting a huge donation. they're $2 million worth of steaks from snake river farms. that is about 30,000 steaks. going to the san francisco marine food banks and the golden gate restaurant association. listen to this, the steaks sell for $60 each on the snake river farms website. now, we invite you to join better bay area project thanks and share your gratitude for people helping out during the covid-19 battle. you can use the #betterbayarea for how you are saying thanks and we'll share the love. my friend works at, she works at a services helping older people here in the area and she was so excited. she's like, we're getting steaks today. knowhe people that she helped are going to be really excited, too. that is a nice little something to lift your spirit. >> nice surprise, nice treat. just another way to lift people's spirits in this trying time. let me say about the food trucks. i wasn't surprised there were food trucks. i guess i was surprised as how close they were together

let's bring in 7 on your side's michael finney. >> are there things renlters can do to deal with the uncertainty right now? >> yeah, a little bit. there's not a lot to tell you the truth. and that's the sad thing. rent is due tomorrow. people are stressed out. advocates are telling us they've never seen anything like it. >> so i think it's a very scary time for renters right now. >> he's from the housing rights committee. the hotline received a record 75 calls recently in one day, mostly from people like these entertainers who lost 40% of their income due to the coronavirus shutdown. or this hairdresser who virtually has no money coming in right now. >> we fell off the titanic and we're looking for a piece of wood to hang onto. >> i can't pay the rent. they're scared and worried. they don't understand they have rights. >> nearly one dozen jurisdictions are passed eviction moratoriums. those include san francisco, oakland, berkeley, alameda, ala, concord, san jose. the moratoriums buy you time but wll require you to eventually pay the landlord for any rent past due. >> our recommendat

. >> plus, michael finney with the story of a woman fighting eviction in the midst of the pandemic.all in a half hour. >> okay. finally tonight, a sacramento man making the most of his time, you can say, at home during this pandemic. >> he's making picnic tables, but a very special picnic table. our reporter shows you what's going on. >> he's not a carpenter by trade. but the stay at home order has inspired juan, who is in the refrigeration business, to pick up a new hobby. >> i handed out 75 of them. 43 on a waiting list as of this morning. >> using scrap wood from home projects, he's making picnic tables, but these are not your average tables. no, these are one of a kind. >> sit outside, put it in a tree. squirrels come up, birds come up. >> that's right. these miniature wooden structures are for the squirrels. >> i put it on the next door neighbor app. from there, people are going nuts for it. >> pun intended. it's a project he never thought would take off the way it has, but juan's creation is all the buzz saw. >> hopefully, it lights up somebody's day and brings joy in the diff

. >> let's check in with 7 on your side's michael finney. hi, michael. >> hey there, you guys.he government is going to send out thechecks andhe good news is we know pretty much when you're going get them nowadays. the government says it expects to begin sending out checks to millions of americans in mid-april. but if you don't sign up for direct deposit for your tax refund, get this, you may not see the money until mid-august or potentially later. according to the irs, it expected to make about 60 million payments to americans through direct deposit in mid-april. >>> the california public utilities commission announced today it is taking action to help produce your energy bills. here is what is going onthe cal. i already told you about that. il a ready been planned. peou bills. the agency is also making sure californians have full access to the care rate kiss count program which provides a 20 to 35% discount. now those who recently lost their jobs will be eligible for that discount, but you do have to call your utility and apply for it. >>> the fcc and the federal trade commis

. >>> for michael finney and the 7 on your side team, insurance companies are paying for far fewer accidents state says it will send out 6$600 million in rebates, and all of their members will get a 15% refund of their premiums. the move is putting pressure on other insurance companies to offer refunds. >>> no more peloton glasses. we have been doing their floor classes which are free. the company canceled the live versions because an employee sadly tested positive for the coronavirus, and so they are putting a pause on their live classes, but in the meantime the company is airing prerecorded classes. it will let members take a class a specific time of day. again, you don't have to have a bike to do these. the app is free. you can stream it to your tv. i just did three of them last night. if you need another streaming service while staying at home, kweufy is live, they are short little video sessions. there are 175 new shows, anything from scripted series, and dramas and fluff. >> what we know is there are 2 billion people that watch 2 billion hours of content on their phone today, and they

questions are still pouring in to 7 on your side's michael finney. he's live working from home tonight. michael, that's disastrous news for a lot of people. >> it is. let me underline how tough it is out there. over the past two weeks alone, two weeks. more than 1 million californians have filed for unemployment insurance benefits. >> many of the newly unemployed are wondering if they qualify. among them is grace who writes, i'm paid an hourly wage plus commission. the business is closed due to coronavirus. they are still paying my hourly wage but i cannot earn the commission. would unemployment cover this? >> yes. the bill allows to you claim unemployment if your income went down due to coronavirus. you may qualify for the standard unemployment pay plus the flat $600 per week payment. a common question i'm getting about the stimulus came from bree who says we're waiting for our 2018 tax refund. will this disrupt the process for receiving stimulus money? >> no. you should have no worries. the irs says stimulus checks are issued separately from your re

. >> michael finney joins us live to say there is a call for change. chael, tell us about it. >> reporter: yeah. you know, a lot of mortgage holders, many of them as a matter of fact, have received a vacation from making monthly payments. and consumer advocates, and some lawmakers are applauding that, but they say more additional bold actions are needed. for instance, the consumer federation of america and senators shared brown of ohio and brian sach of ohio are calling for credit agencies to place a moratorium on negative credit entries. >> people have to remember that your credit score is incredibly important, from how much you pay for a cell phone, to getting credit, to your mortgage cost and so forth. and that's why during this covid time, you have to protect your credit score like there's no tomorrow. >> reporter: lendors are opposed to this. they're concerned that bad actors will take advantage of this. the consumer advocates i've been speaking with say it is extremely important for consumers to call all of their creditors and tell them what's goi

michael finney has put together a guide to help get through -- help people get through some tough times. michael? >> reporter: dan, we talked to a tenant's right attorney and an advocate for landlords, and we found up expectedly they agree more than you might suspect. janeane nelson is like so many others these days. the dental hygienist lost her job due to the coronavirus pandemic. >> both offices i work in shut down. so it's just a struggle to put food on the table and an inability to pay rent. >> reporter: she cares for a 15-year-old son and her father. she says her next rent payment will eat up her entire emergency fund. >> if this goes on for another month or so, we might have an issue. >> reporter: for advice, 7 on your side consulted two different people who on the surface you might expect would have opposing views. tom bannon is chief executive officer of the california apartment association. a trade association for landlords. and jacqueline is a tenant's right attorney. >> it's about communicating what you are financially able to do. >> our message is to basically be sympatheti

and michael finney is live with their stories tonight. michael? >> that's how tense it is all over the country. i'm hearing from a great many people from texas, iowa, south carolina, and they all have the same question. where is my money? when am i going to get my money? when the irs began sending stimulus payments to millions of americans this week, sharon broussard felt a glimmer of hope. >> i'm definitely waiting because i've been laid off my job. >> so she went to the irs website and found her stimulus check was deposited, but not to her bank. >> the last four digits was 6865. >> it turns out her payment went to a temporary account with h&r block, an advance on her tax refund loaded on this debbed by card. but the card expired last year. sharon wanted h&r block to renew the car to get her money, but the h&r block offices are all closed. she marched down there anyway. >> nobody answered the door, so i took my keys and hit on the windows. banged on the door so somebody can hear me. >> finally someone did come out and gave her a toll-free number

. >>> it's time for consumer news. 7 on your side's michael finney joins us with a look at today's headlineschael? >> americans who were sent their stimulus money also received a letter with the signature of president donald trump. printed on letterhead from the white house, the letter announces your economic impact payment has arrived and explains the money is being sent because of the coronavirus aid relief and economic security act. the letter confirms the amount of money sent to the recipient and offers contact information for those wanting additional information. >>> the irs is issuing an alert for those who don't usually file the stimulus payments.to claim here is the important part. the deadline to file for that is may 5th. this is important for each eligible child. recipients receive a $500 stimulus payment. many of those getting the alert receive ssi or veterans affairs benefits. >>> retail spending around the world is expected to fall by more than50 bse of the pandemic. company global data released a report today showing retail spending worldwide is expected to fall 3%. now this is

time now for consumer news and 7 on your side's michael finney is here with today's headlines. of course amazon in the spotlight. michael? >> you're correct about that. they're being sued, accused of price gouging by two california consumers. the federal class action lawsuit says some prices rose by several hundred percent during the us in part amazon has chosen to take advantage of this global crisis facing all of us by profiteering on vulnerable consumers. amazon declined to comment on this lawsuit that said there is no place for price gouging on amazon, and that's why our teams are monitoring our stores 24/7. you can see both statements on abc7news.com. >>> two dozen states attorneys general including california are asking the federal trade commission and telephone companies to give consumers a break, or actually i should say more of a break. the companies have already agreed to 60 days of no terminations or late fees in creating more wifi hot spots. the recent request asks for an additional 90 days of relief. >>> new survey by wallet hub says 84% another stimulus check, even

it's a great question. "7 on your side's" michael finney looked into it, live from his home this evening with the story. michael? >> you know, this is something that you could look forward and see, so here's what you have. you have landlords making their usual profit a lot of the time and students left holding the bag. drew is back home with his mom in hercules after sacramento state, like so many other schools, moved their classes online. he still has four months on a lease he shares with other students, and his landlord isn't letting him out of it. that's $3,400 he's putting out for something he's not able to use. >> it's -- sometimes it hurts. you see that money go away to something that you're not using. >> his mom called her son's landlord to see if she could cut him a break on his rent. >> she said they had gotten a lot of calls but as of right now we signed a lease and so they're, you know, it's what's legally binding. >> jacqueline is a tenant rights attorney based in san francisco. she suggests tenants who want to get out of an apartment look closely at their leases. >> they're

rent, and she says the landlord responded by threatening her with eviction. 7 on your side's michael finney is live with the story. michael, i suspect there are going to be a lot of those stories out there? >> there's going to be a ton of them. we're beginning to get them here in our 7 on your side office. look, let me begin with some good news. we spoke with an attorney who tells us that an eviction right now pretty unlikely. however, it is still leading to some very anxious, anxious moments. she doesn't know how much longer she'll live at her walnut creek apartment of four years. about one month ago, she lost her job as a receptionist when the outpatient clinic she worked at switched to telephone and video visits due to covid-19. she wrote her landlord a letter explaining the situation. >> i'll be more than happy to pay him my rent. but at this moment, i have to choose between eating food or landlord sent her this three-day notice to pay the rent or move out. the property manager at quail hill apartments told 7 on your side it has every intention on working with her, saying we're not some

. >> 7 on your side's michael finney live from his home with today's headlines. michael?hey, guys. norh bay shoppers are being told be on the lookout for price gouging. price gouging up in marin county. the marin county district attorney said her office has received many reports of exorbitant prices on certain goods and staples, including the n95 mask. the d.a. says her office will not hesitate to respo riately. to be illegal, price gouging must happen during a state of emergency. we have one on right now and prices must be 10% over what the cost was immediately prior to the emergency. now the d.a. encourages anyone who thinks price gouging to contact her office and contact them right away. >>> we're getting hard numbers today on the pandemic's impact on air travel. fewer than 100,000 passengers went through airport checkpoints over the past two days. the lowest number since the tsa started keeping track. and get this? that's down 95% from a year ago, and it could be the smallest number since the 1950s. >>> close to a third of renters did not pay their rent for april. the

. >> yes. 7 on your side's michael finney is live from his home with today's headlines. , michael. >> lhey, you guys. borrow, especially home borrows are desperate. so the phone lines -- they have overwhelmed phone lines, the best way to put it, asking to delay their mortgage payments, well, they are packed. requests for delayed payments surge by 1200% during the first part of march, and more than 18% during the last half with so many calling, the mortgage bankers associations say the wait times are longer, averaging 17 1/2 minutes and that was taken two weeks ago. >>> the food and drug administration has taken steps it says will keep the supply chain of food moving, food labeling rules are being relaxed, like way relaxed. officials say if the feds enforced all regulations, bottlenecks could develop. >>> whatsapp is doing its part to curb the spread of misinformation about coronavirus. it's limiting how often users can forward messages. get this, as of today, if you receive a message that's been forwarded five times or more, you'll only be able to send it to one new chat.

. >>> let's get to some consumer news. 7 on your side's michael finney joining us live from his home th today's headlines. hi, michael. >> hey, you guys. we're getting a better idea today just how aggressively scammers are becoming in using the coronavirus to try and steal your personal information and of course eventually your money. google says it has seen more than 18 million coronavirus-related malware and phishing emails during the last week. and get this. that's in addition to the more than 240 million scam emails mentioning the virus being sent every day. the tech giant is warning users to be on alert. >>> authorities in maine are sending out a warning about a text message scam that's trying to trick people into thinking they've been exposed to the virus. some in maine are receiving a text saying, quote, someone who came into contact with you tested positive or has shown symptoms of covid-19 and recommends yourself-i s you sel get a test. police are warning recipients do not click that link, saying it could be a phishing scheme. >>> as more consumers turn to delivery apps to br

. >>> i am michael finney with how to get your money back if your travel h i'm susan and i'm 52 and iin san francisco, california. i have been a sales and sales management professional my whole career. typical day during a work week is i'm working but first always going for a run or going to the gym. i love reading. i love cooking healthy. it's super important to me. i was noticing that i was just having some memory loss. it was really bothering me. so i tried prevagen and it started to work for me. i wish i had taken prevagen five or ten years ago. prevagen. healthier brain. better life. eveso we can stillg a answer your calls. now. and we are monitoring our system 24/7 to ensure that we have a fast reliable network, keep the customers connected, and making sure people are staying safe. and we're still on the road. solving critical issues as they arise. ♪ go to xfinity.com/prepare. thank you. . >> announcer: now, your health, your safety. this is abc7 news. >>> president trump is now walking back his confounding suggestion that scientists should test whether disinfectants could be in

or as we've seen over the last month, things can happen you need to think, as one of michael finney colleagues at ge says, about the unthinkable. then i think you really need to make sure you define, even in that context, what good looks like what does winning look like? and then with that paradigm, that road map defined, make sure we're taking action. not contemplating doing this or that, but really taking the actions, many of which can be challenging and unpleasant, but necessary in a time like this. >> well -- >> to me that's the simple equation >> i have to tell you, larry, you are an inspiration to many one by one you've checked off the boxes. there are more boxes and more boxes. i am so confident you're going to check off -- all my charitable trust is buying your stock all the way down it's so right right here i know it's not the year to play offense, you have a little more day. but i think you're going to come out big next year. larry culp, chair and c.e.o. of general electric >> thank you, jim. >> we have more on the show. exclusive with okta, chipotle, health care heroes ring central,

>> let's get to consumer news now. 7 on your side's michael finney is here with a big concern of a lotople right i know, and that is wifi. michael? >> yeah, you guys, how is your wifi holding up? we're hearing from a lot of people that are saying they're having some real difficulties. and of course that makes sense, because now we have so many people in our homes all trying to use so much bandwidths. here are tips that will hopefully speed things up. has the advice to stay home revealed something troubling e out yreopleonne a long to feel the frustration of a crummy wifi signal. many of us have no idea to fix the problems. consumer reports tech editor nicholas deleon can help. the first especially the, locate your router and understand what it does. >> think of it as an electronic traffic cop. it directs the internet connection from your internet service provider throughout your home in the form of wifi. >> but there is a lot more to getting a good signal than just buying a good router, like knowing where to put it. >> for the best results, you should place your wifi router in the cent