ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, January 23, 1997 TAG: 9701240004
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MEGAN SCHNABEL STAFF WRITER
THE SENATE TRANSPORTATION Committee will meet today to discuss this controversial legislation.
The big top could be coming down if the General Assembly passes a bill to prohibit auto dealers from holding off-site "tent sales."
But some Southwest Virginia dealers have called the bill unnecessary, and both the state credit union association and a consumer group have vowed to oppose the legislation at today's Senate Transportation Committee meeting.
So-called tent sales - even though many are held in a coliseum or convention center - are no help to consumers and may hurt the auto industry, said the bill's sponsor, Sen. Marty Williams, R-Yorktown. Twelve other senators and delegates also are listed as patrons of the bill.
The legislation stems from complaints Williams received from a Tidewater constituent, a car dealer who said his business was "constantly bombarded" by tent sales at nearby Hampton Coliseum, Williams said.
Williams' bill has received support from the state Motor Vehicle Dealer Board and the Virginia Automobile Dealers Association, which represents 600 new-car dealers.
Don Hall, VADA president, said his board of directors voted 29-1 in favor of the ban. "Tent sales have historically given our industry a bad image," he said. They often have a "circus or carnival" environment, he said, and don't give customers all the benefits of shopping at a traditional dealership.
Nor are the deals found at off-site sales usually better than those offered at dealerships, he said. That's because dealers have to pay thousands of dollars to participate in tent sales, and the costs have to be passed on.
But he acknowledged that the Roanoke area isn't a hotbed of controversy about tent sales. "This is an issue that's of greater significance in metro markets," he said - Tidewater, Richmond, Northern Virginia. Most of VADA's board members are from those areas.
In Southwest Virginia, where tent sales are less common than in more competitive markets, several dealers said the sales that are held here are business boosts, not busts.
An annual mid-summer sale sponsored by Roanoke Valley credit unions and dealerships usually draws large crowds. Last year, 150 cars were sold, according to Charles Perkins, president and CEO of General Electric Federal Credit Union.
"It's a wonderful, successful sale," said Bob Kaplan, vice president of Dominion Car Co. in Roanoke. The event, which typically draws vehicles from 75 percent to 80 percent of the area's dealers, gives consumers easy access to more models than they would get by driving from dealer to dealer.
"And we think that it gives us an opportunity to meet people who would not normally see our brands," he said.
Jim Johnson, sales manager at University Motors in Blacksburg, agreed. His dealership participates in an annual tent sale at New River Valley Mall that draws dealers and shoppers from around that region. Consumers often will wait to buy a vehicle if they know a tent sale is coming up, he said, because they know they'll have a better selection.
The Virginia Credit Union League also is opposing the bill. Perkins said he will attend the reading today.
"We don't want to see it stopped if we can help it," he said. The seven credit unions that sponsored last year's two-day sale wrote $2.6million in loans, he said. Of that, GE accounted for $536,000.
And the head of the Virginia Citizens Consumer Council, a volunteer organization, calls the legislation "anti-competitive."
"It's reducing the options consumers have," said VCCC President Irene Leech. If some parts of the state are having problems with tent sales, she said, they should solve the issue locally. VCCC representatives will speak against the bill today.
But Williams insists the measure isn't anti-consumer. He said he's seen no evidence to show that shoppers save money when they buy at off-site sales. And at some sales, they're restricted to financing through credit unions.
"If something's a bad choice, it's not a bad thing to eliminate it," he said.
LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines KEYWORDS: GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1997by CNB