On May 31, the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation issued the “Announcement” showing that the vehicle purchase tax will be halved for some passenger cars. Some netizens posted that some 4S stores quietly raised the unit price of cars and charged discounts in disguise. In this regard, a staff member of the Consumers Association said that pricing cars is a market behavior of enterprises, and it is difficult to define whether the pricing is reasonable. (Beijing News, June 2)
In this regard, some netizens believe that the consumer association’s statement is inappropriate, and it is endorsing 4S stores, and the state’s subsidies to consumers are equivalent to making 4S stores earn money. The author believes that there is nothing wrong with the consumer association’s argument. This time, some 4S stores raised the unit price of the car, which did not exceed the national guide price, but the preferential margin on the basis of the original guide price became smaller. That is to say, the original discount for consumers may be 10,000 yuan. After the vehicle purchase tax is halved, some 4S stores only give a discount of 5,000 yuan.
Recently, the State Administration for Market Regulation announced the “Regulations on Clearly Marking Prices and Prohibiting Price Gouging”. The “Regulations” make a reasonable distinction between price fraud and non-price fraud, and it is clear that there is sufficient evidence to prove that there is no subjective intention, and the actual transaction price can enable consumers or other operators who trade with them to obtain greater price concessions. Fraud. These 4S stores did not increase the guide price, but reduced the discount. This is the operational autonomy of 4S stores and should be respected.
In fact, after the policy of halving the vehicle purchase tax was released, many car companies have further subsidized the policy of halving the purchase tax, giving consumers more discounts, including many luxury brands. Those 4S stores that reduce their discounts either want to make more money, or think they have a more competitive advantage, and give less discounts, and consumers also come to buy.
The wind should be long-term. Those car companies who want to take the opportunity to make more money may be a little short-sighted. On the one hand, other car companies offer more discounts to compete, and it is still a question whether they can hold on to less discounts.
Further, the halving of vehicle purchase tax is only an economic stimulus. Whether consumers buy a car, it also includes factors such as whether the after-sales service is good. For example, the chaos of 4S stores reported by the media: Deliberately smashing intact auto parts to increase maintenance costs, fooling car owners into purchasing unnecessary maintenance items with “speaking skills”, false maintenance, selling excess oil and then intercepting and recycling it, etc. Such a store, even if it gives consumers more discounts, consumers do not necessarily patronize. For another example, the charging of new energy vehicles is a headache for many car owners. In Changzhou, the government encourages new energy vehicle sellers, property management companies, and power departments to strengthen cooperation and place charging piles in the car-purchasing process before they are installed. When purchasing a car, citizens only need to present an ID card and submit an application through the online platform, and then they can enjoy the one-stop full-process service of “car purchase – pile installation – meter installation – power connection”, which solves the problem of “not enough private piles”. question. If car companies take into account the worries of buying a car for consumers in this way, it will boost consumers’ confidence in buying a car.
Therefore, government departments must provide corresponding services for car companies, such as parking lot construction and temporary parking policies, etc., to make car owners feel more convenient, and ordinary people are more willing to buy cars, and the policy of halving the vehicle purchase tax can be more effective. play out.
(Editor in charge: Zang Mengya)