Automobile groups are crying foul over the government's
proposed new window sticker, in particular the version that would assign letter grades for fuel economy and greenhouse gas emissions. The sticker "falls short because it is imbued with schoolyard memories of passing and failing," Dave McCurdy, chief executive of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, told the
New York Times.
Welcome to our world, say appliance leaders, who have debated the merits of grade-based product labeling for years. The controversy stems from the fact that the U.S. is one of the few countries that doesn't use a categorical scale to indicate appliance efficiency on its yellow
EnergyGuide label. The
European Union label features an A-to-G scale, with A being the most efficient and G being the least, while the
Australian label features 1 to 6 stars, the more the better.
In the U.S., the
EnergyGuide label uses a continuous scale, which shows consumers how a model compares with similar models. Critics argue that the scale isn't punitive enough. "There's no way to shine the light on products that are truly the least efficient," says Noah Horowitz, senior scientist with the
National Resource Defense Council. "Why the rest of the world understands this and we don't is mind-boggling."
Maybe not, responds the
Federal Trade Commission, which administers consumer product labels, including EnergyGuide. James Kohm, associate director of the enforcement division in the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, told
Consumer Reports that categorical labels have at least two problems. "First they have a tendency to convey quality. Consumers might think an A or 5-star product is of higher overall quality, even if it's inferior in terms of performance or durability." Then there's the matter of grade inflation. "We've seen less enthusiasm for categorical labels in Europe since pressure from grade inflation has started to cause confusion for consumers," says Kohn.
It's true that the European Union's recent addition of A+ and A++ to certain product categories is a little confusing. On the other hand, seeing a big fat F on an appliance sold here in the U.S. would definitely hammer home its inefficiency.
Maybe a fresh take from the car industry will help settle the debate.
—Daniel DiClerico
