BBB: Price gouging is illegal and should be reported
JACKSON, Tenn. — Price gouging is a term that has been used more and more recently. But what does it really mean? How can we be on the lookout for it? And what do you need to do if you believe you are witnessing a form of price gouging?
“So ‘price gouging’ is a term referring to when a seller spikes the prices of goods, services, or commodities to a level much higher than is considered reasonable or fair,” said Toddnetta Trice, Public Relations Communications Specialist with the Better Business Bureau of the Mid-South.
So when might you see price gouging? Well, during massive weather events like the recent hurricanes, or possibly snow storms, or even the recent dock workers strike can cause price gouging to start to occur.
“That’s typically when we start seeing the price gouging,” Trice said. “Where everything in the stores are pretty much sold out, so you will start seeing those smaller stores or maybe gas stations, or people online that are selling those products you desperately need for a higher price.”
If you do end up running into a situation where you believe price gouging is going on, there is a way that you can help prevent it from continuing.
“Absolutely report it, because, in the State of Tennessee, it is illegal to do any type of price gouging,” said Trice. “So you definitely want to report it. You can always report it to the Federal Trade Commission or the Department of Justice. They will pretty much investigate. Whoever has been selling these items for triple or quadruple the price, they’re gonna be investigated.”
If you are unsure, you should always do your research. There is a difference between a price being a little higher for the seller to earn a profit and price gouging.
And you can also post concerns on social media to warn others of potentially falling for this scenario.
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