W. Va. Code R. § 142-22-3 - Formula or Method for Ascertaining Retail Value

3.1. General. -- Retail value does not include any applicable sale, use, privilege, excise or documentary stamp taxes payable upon the transfer of the goods.

3.2. "Retail value" may be established by any of the following methods; provided, however, the sale, the manufacturer's charge, the publication of the catalogue, the publication of values, the advertisement or the other evidence of value relied upon must not have occurred more than one year prior to the first use of the retail value for a particular good.

3.2.1. New and Used Goods; Actual Sales -- The retail value of new and used goods may be established as the price at which goods of substantially similar quality and quantity and substantially similar features changed hands in a bona fide retail sale between one or more willing retailers and willing buyers in the normal course of business of the seller. The proof may come from only one retailer, but the goods must be sold to more than one buyer. The seller or sellers, and the buyer or buyers, must not be a person related to a dealer or to an individual who is related to a person related to a dealer. The transaction must take place in the same market area in which goods to which the retail value is assigned are marketed. The buyer must have paid with cash, check, other legal tender or a credit card of a firm which is not a person related to the retailer and which is not an individual who is a person related to the retailer: Provided, that sales made by a buyer who used a credit card of a firm that is related to the retailer may be used if the seller is one approved by the attorney general as a seller who makes substantial sales for cash, check or other legal tender or who makes substantial sales in which the purchaser uses a credit card of a firm which is not a person related to the retailer and which is not an individual who is a person related to the retailer.

a. Any dealer may apply to the attorney general for approval of the use of sales by a retailer using a credit card of a person or firm related to the retailer. The attorney general may require reasonable data from the applicant with regard to a request for approval. The attorney general must act upon the request within a reasonable time in light of the data supplied by the applicant, the availability and difficulty in obtaining data, and the requested applicability of the use of the sales. An applicant may request a hearing on the attorney general's initial denial of the application. The request for hearing shall be a contested case for the purposes of chapter 29A of the West Virginia Code.

3.2.2. New Goods; Mark Up -- The retail value of new goods may be established by multiplying the supplier's charge, including freight, to the dealer by the following percentages and adding that amount to the supplier's charge:

For kitchen and major appliances:	56%
For electronics:	56%
For furniture:	67%
For jewelry:	82%
For other household goods:	67%

a. In order to use this method rebates, discounts, incentives, or other value received from the manufacturer by the dealer must be deducted from the supplier's charge.

b. The dealer's supplier's cost must be determined using the cost from the supplier of the goods which is not a person related to a dealer or an individual who is related to a person related to a dealer, as the term "person related to" is defined in the West Virginia Consumer Goods Rental Protection Act.

3.2.3. New Goods; Catalogues -- The retail value of goods may be established by the use of a catalogue of a retailer who is not a person related to a dealer or an individual who is a person related to a dealer, as the term "person related to" is defined by the West Virginia Consumer Goods Rental Protection Act, W. Va. Code '46B-1-5(13) retailer. However, the catalogue may only be used if the seller's catalogues are approved by the attorney general as a seller who makes substantial sales for case, check, or other legal tender or who makes substantial sales in which the purchaser uses a credit card of a firm which is not a person related to a dealer and which is not an individual who is a person related to a dealer.

a. Any dealer may apply to the attorney general for approval of a catalogue for use by that dealer. The attorney general may require reasonable data from the applicant with regard to a request for approval. The attorney general must act upon request within a reasonable time in light of the data supplied by the applicant, the availability and difficulty in obtaining data, and the requested applicability of use of the seller catalogue. An applicant may request a hearing on the attorney general's initial denial of the application. The request for hearing shall be a contested case for the purposes of chapter 29A of the West Virginia Code.

3.2.4. New or Used Goods; Advertised Price. The retail value of new or used goods may be established by the posted or advertised price of a retailer in the same market area for the same goods or goods of like type, features, quality and quantity.

3.2.5. Used Goods; Book Value -- The retail value of used goods may be established by the use of publications which are generally distributed and used and generally relied upon by persons and organizations other than rent-to-own dealers as stating fair market value.

3.2.6. Used Goods; Depreciation -- The retail value of used goods may be established by using straight line depreciation of the goods over eighteen months of actual rental based on a new retail value established as allowed by this rule or the West Virginia Consumer Goods Rental Protection Act, W. Va. Code '46B-1- 1 et seq.

3.3. Limitations --

3.3.1. Used goods shall not have a retail value greater than the retail value assigned to that item which the item was offered as new.

3.3.2. "List Price" or "Manufacturer's Suggested Retail" may not be used to determine retail value.

3.4. Record Retention -- A dealer shall keep sufficient records to document the retail value of any good. If the actual sales method is used, records kept shall be the records of sales gathered by the dealer and any surveys or summaries made by the dealer. If the mark up method is used, the dealer shall maintain the supplier's invoice or other supplier's records of the price to the dealer of the goods including rebates, discounts, incentives, or other value received by the supplier from the dealer. If the catalogue method is used, the catalogues shall be kept. If the book value valuation method is used, the publication used must be kept. If the depreciation valuation method is used, the valuation calculation must be kept together with the records used for the valuation of the new retail value. If the advertising method is used, then the retailer's actual advertisement must be kept. If another method is used, then the dealer must keep records made at the time the valuation was made, and if the dealer relied upon records which were not the dealer's, those records must be kept. All records shall be retained for the period of time any good is owned by the dealer whether or not the good is the subject of a rental agreement. In addition to any other powers of the attorney general and any other duties of dealers provided by law, the attorney general may make reasonable requests for retail value records of a dealer or dealers to survey or investigate retail value pricing by dealers and any dealer shall respond to such a request within thirty days.

3.5. Disapproval of Methods. The methods set out in 3.2 may be used until the attorney general, after a contested case pursuant to Chapter 29A of the West Virginia Code or other appropriate judicial determination, disapproves this method because of disparity of the results of one of the aforesaid methods for determining retail value as compared to retail value as established by the actual sales method in 3.2.1.

Notes

W. Va. Code R. § 142-22-3