Editorial: Sour grapes over state’s lemon law

Monday, March 16, 1998 | 10:19 a.m.

Some used car dealers just don't get it.

During a public hearing Thursday on a new lemon law aimed at protecting consumers, auto dealer Don Hellwinkle of Minden said the new lemon law was ridiculous, according to an article by SUN reporter Cy Ryan. "Tell that lady in Las Vegas she doesn't know what in the hell she's doing," Hellwinkle said, referring to Assemblywoman Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas.

Buckley was the author of a number of pieces of state legislation in 1997 designed to assist consumers, including her bill to require auto dealers to tell potential buyers whether a vehicle they are trying to sell has any defects.

Even Artie Valentine, an auto dealer from Sparks who said the intent of the legislation was good, criticized the law because "it was drawn by people who don't understand the industry." What Valentine, a former legislator, should realize is that the public and the legislators understand all too well their industry, which is what prompted the consumer protection legislation.

All that used car dealers are being asked to do is be honest when they sell a car. As Buckley pointed out, it doesn't mean they can't sell a lemon, it just means that if they sell a lemon, they have to let the buyer know what they're getting. "There are more good businesses than bad and the good ones don't mind complying with the law," Buckley said.

Used car dealers should stop living in the past and give up fighting the battle they lost during the 1997 legislative session. The state has a lemon law, and used car dealers will have to abide by it. Continued complaining certainly isn't going to improve their standing with the public.