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Bill Heard Chevy Files Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

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By RICHARD MULLINS

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 30, 2008

TAMPA - With losses reaching $5 million a month, Bill Heard Chevrolet filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection early Monday in a federal court in Alabama.

The filing comes five days after the nation's largest chain of Chevrolet dealerships shut operations at 14 U.S. locations, including one in Plant City.

Founded as a single dealership in Columbus, Ga., in 1919, 11 years after Henry Ford produced the first Model T, the Bill Heard chain generated $2.5 billion in yearly revenue at its peak, a filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Alabama says.

Things took a turn for the worse this year, the dealership wrote in court filings. Monthly losses ranged from $2 million to $5 million. Debts rose to between $500 million and $1 billion, the company said.

The dealership owes employees about $816,000 in wages and benefits, according to a filing in the case.

Customers owed deposits or other money get "priority" payment. Those creditors need to hire a lawyer and present a case in bankruptcy court.

More than 95 percent of the company is owned by William T. Heard Jr., with another 2.6 owned by his sons, William and Edward.

Reporter Richard Mullins can be reached at rmullins@tampatrib.com or (813) 259-7919.

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