Price gouging accusations probed by attorney general
By From staff reports
Published in News on October 25, 2016 9:57 AM
RALEIGH -- State Attorney General Roy Cooper wants answers from a rental car business that allegedly price gouged consumers in the wake of Hurricane Matthew.
"Communities across North Carolina are working to recover from this devastating storm and we need businesses to pull together to help, not try to make a fast buck," Cooper warned. "If you spot possible price gouging, report it to my office immediately."
Cooper's Consumer Protection Division issued a subpoena to the rental car company after getting eight complaints of possible price gouging on rental cars from consumers across North Carolina this month.
Consumers reported to Cooper's office that the company's rental car locations in Boone, Elizabeth City, Fayetteville, Lumberton and Raleigh doubled their prices from about $30 per day to about $60 per day after storms and flooding came through North Carolina. After one consumer returned a car that she had rented for $175 for approximately a week, she attempted to rent the car again for the following week. She says the company told her that her rate would leap to approximately $345 per week after the storm.
Approximately 180 consumers have alerted the Attorney General's Office to potential price gouging related to Hurricane Matthew. Consumers can report gouging by calling 1-877-5-NO-SCAM (toll-free within North Carolina) or filing a price gouging complaint online at ncdoj.gov.
Cooper's office is currently investigating three other businesses for possible price gouging following Hurricane Matthew:
* A Mount Olive motel for reportedly charging as much as $150 a night for rooms that typically go for less than $90.
* A Gastonia motel for reportedly charging storm evacuees as much as $300 a night.
* A Fayetteville business for reportedly charging $29 for a 24-pack of bottled water.
North Carolina's price gouging law was triggered on October 3 by the declaration of a state of emergency due to Hurricane Matthew. The storm dumped inches of rain on the central and eastern parts of the state, causing severe flood damage to homes, businesses, crops, and cars.
Price gouging --or charging too much in times of crisis -- is against North Carolina law when a disaster, an emergency or an abnormal market disruption for critical goods and services is declared or proclaimed by the Governor. The law applies to all levels of the supply chain from the manufacturer to the distributor to the retailer.
Cooper has also recently warned consumers about other storm related scams, including towing, auto repair scams and flood cars, charity scams, impostor scams, and home repair frauds.