Price Gouging Hotline Hits One Year of Activation Following COVID-19 SOE Declaration

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—One year ago today, Attorney General Ashley Moody activated Florida’s Price Gouging Hotline in response to the state of emergency declared due to COVID-19. Governor Ron DeSantis instituted the state of emergency due to the increase in positive test results of coronavirus-infected patients in Florida. Since the activation of the Price Gouging Hotline, Attorney General Moody’s Consumer Protection Division’s Rapid Response Team has assisted in obtaining more than $2.5 million in recoveries for consumers regarding cancellations, purchases and scams related to COVID-19.

Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “I am proud of the work that my Consumer Protection Rapid Response Team is doing to protect Floridians from price gouging, scams and other unfair acts associated with the COVID-19 state of emergency. This past year has been a difficult one and shouldn’t be made harder by scammers trying to exploit the crisis to make a dishonest dollar.

“While we recognize one year since the activation of Florida’s Price Gouging Hotline, please know our work is not over and my Consumer Protection investigators continue to track down leads and follow up on complaints submitted to our office. I encourage everyone to remain vigilant and report price gouging and other scams to my office, as well as follow all recommended guidelines regarding your health.”

During this past year, Attorney General Moody’s Consumer Protection Division:

• Received more than 14,700 consumer contacts;
• Made more than 11,400 referrals and contacts to merchants about allegations of price gouging, refunds and scams;
• Worked with online platforms to deactivate 290 posts offering items for outrageous prices; and
• Assisted in obtaining more than $2.5 million in recoveries for consumers regarding cancellations, purchases and scams related to COVID-19.

For a list of the commodities covered under the state’s price gouging laws during the COVID-19 state of emergency, click here.

For more information about how to prevent the spread of COVID-19, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention webpage by clicking here.

For the latest about COVID-19 in Florida, visit the Florida Department of Health’s webpage linked here.

Violators of the price gouging statute are subject to civil penalties of $1,000 per violation and up to a total of $25,000 for multiple violations committed in a single 24-hour period. For more information on price gouging, please click here.

Price gouging can be reported by calling 1(866) 9NO-SCAM or by visiting MyFloridaLegal.com. For tips on reporting price gouging, click here.