Bill Heard Closes All Of Its Dealerships - cites fuel prices, suvs, banking crisis (2700 employees)

[The Straight Story]

Bill Heard Closes All Of Its Dealerships
2,700 Employees Affected By Decision

COLUMBUS, Ga. -- Bill Heard Enterprises, one of the leading sellers of Chevrolet vehicles in the country, has closed all of its dealerships.

According to a company statement released Wednesday through Atlanta public relations professional Alan Ulman, the closures will affect about 2,700 employees.

The statement said the company did not have the resources to continue operating. It cites factors including rising fuel prices, an inventory dominated by trucks and SUVs, economic issues, unfavorable market conditions and the current banking and financial crises.


The Columbus-based company had dealerships in Florida, Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, Tennessee and Texas. The Arizona dealership closed two weeks ago.

http://www.local6.com/money/17549698/detail.html

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. And so it begins... the business failures that is

[dipsydoodle]

2. This is mentioned elsewhere on DU.

They have been under investigation for 3 years and the manufacturer had withdrawn credit.

[musette_sf]

3. see also

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3509426

[fishnfla]

4. flags fly the highest where the people buy their cars

[onetiredmom]

5. Heard has been reported on for years.

I do feel bad for the people losing their jobs, but Bill Heard has been synonymous with crooked car dealers for years.

The TV stations here in Houston have done stories on Bill Heard for years. They do things like add a bunch of fees that ups the payment after the buyer signs and won't let the buy return the vehicle when they figure it out. Or, people think they are buying the car outright, then find out they signed a lease. Here are links to news stories done in the past:

http://www.click2houston.com/news/14585531/detail.html

http://www.click2houston.com/news/15980885/detail.html

http://www.click2houston.com/news/15980885/detail.html

http://www.click2houston.com/news/14669879/detail.html



And here is a quote from the Houston Better Business Bureau::

Dan Parsons with the Houston Better Business Bureau calls it like he sees it.

"People are getting screwed," said Parsons about the Sugar Land Chevy dealer he said has earned its self-proclaimed title, "Mr. Big Volume."

"It's the volume of complaints, the nature of complaints," said Parsons, rattling off a long list of reasons the Houston BBB would not allow Bill Heard to be a member.

Bill Heard Chevrolet and Landmark Chevrolet, both owned by Bill Heard, have racked up a total of 189 consumer complaints in three years. That's more than any other car group in the Houston area.

"If there's a selling practice to do wrong in the car industry, they have figured how to do it and embellish upon it," said Parsons.