The asterisks are back.
This time it’s not just consumers complaining, but car dealers–griping that members of their own fraternity are violating the Illinois Advertising Regulations implemented in 1992 to eliminate confusion and deception in auto ads.
Dealers want the ads cleaned up.
Those pre-1992 days were filled with media ads that led the consumer to believe he or she was going to get a new car for, say, $8,000, when the fine print behind the asterisk explained that the price was only after you put $5,000 down, or the $8,000* price that seemed to good to be true was a 24-month lease rate once you found the * explanation hidden in the ad.
Consumers were deceived on prices and terms and loan rates and vehicle availability unless they could find and decipher the *.
What may be surprising to some is that the move to eliminate confusing, misleading or deceptive ads is being made by the group–the Chicago Automobile Trade Association, which represents more than 750 Chicagoland new-car dealers–that asked the attorney general’s office to crack down on violators.
The CATA, in its weekly bulletin to dealers, has encouraged members who spot ads that violate the state code to contact the attorney general’s office to complain.
“This really shouldn’t come as a surprise because we’ve been emphasizing customer satisfaction,” said Jerry Cizek, president of the CATA. “We can’t change the image people have of car dealers unless we let the people know that we are against ads that confuse the consumer.
“We don’t want people to think that all dealers act this way. Our concern is that if one dealer sees another doing this and getting away with it without any enforcement from the AG’s office then they’ll think they can get away with it, too, and it will breed more confusing or deceptive ads. We’re seeing too many asterisks in ads again.
“If one of our dealers sees or hears a deceptive ad or one in violation of the regulations, we are asking our dealers to notify the AG’s consumer fraud division. We want the AG’s office to step up enforcement because basically there has been no enforcement. Some dealers have been sent warnings, but after three or four warnings nothing has been done and it’s time for the AG to step up and bring ads into compliance with the regulations,” Cizek said.
Some observers say that since a new attorney general, Jim Ryan, took office this year, it has taken some time for the agency to set its priorities and refocus on auto dealerships.
Former Atty. Gen. Neil Hartigan worked with the CATA to initiate ad regulations and his successor Roland Burris got them passed and even filed a few suits against dealers to stem the practice. But Burris was criticized for only a token show of force against those who violated the ad regulations.
“He filed some minor suits, but it was mostly for publicity purposes,” Cizek said.
Since Burris left office, some dealers have returned to questionable ads, expecting Ryan not to continue the crusade.
“We don’t think Ryan is going to be as political as Burris,” said Cizek in encouraging a crackdown.
Gil Fergus, chief of the attorney general’s consumer fraud division, said the agency has conducted a “silent” campaign against misleading ads, but he says the office is going to become more vocal.
“We tried to get the message across in a silent way,” said Fergus. “We’d send letters to dealers that had an improper ad or one in violation of the regulations. But we found that in dealer meetings, none of them would get up and say, `I got a letter, did you?’ “
Fergus said his office has other ways to force compliance. One is to send the offending dealer a notice of violation, basically a “just between you and me type warning.” If that doesn’t work, the agency can send a letter seeking assurance of compliance, a notice that the agency wants the violation stopped.
“The next remedy would be a lawsuit filed on behalf of the people of Illinois. That is public and the suit would seek not only injunctive relief to force the dealer to stop the practice, but civil penalties of up to $50,000 for each violation,” Fergus said.
“We’re going to look at those dealers who are persistent in walking the fence and stepping over it more than they should,” he added.
“The vast majority of dealers want honest ads, and they want enforcement. When someone steps over the line, the next one says, `Why can’t I,’ or worse yet, `I’ve got to in order to stay competitive,’ ” he said.
Cizek said dealers tired of competing with deceptive ads welcome stepped up efforts to enforce the regulations.
“We’ve been assured in meetings with the AG’s office that it will start to enforce the regulations,” Cizek said.
“If, after duly warning a dealer that he is in violation, the AG’s office then files suit against that dealer, then that’s the risk the dealer takes,” Cizek said.
