News

Wildfire emergency triggers price-gouging law

By Bill Moss, Published: November 7, 2023

North Carolina’s price gouging law is in effect in Henderson County after the county declared a state of emergency Saturday related to the Poplar Drive fire, Attorney General Josh Stein announced on Monday.

“I am thinking of our western North Carolina communities as they face devastating wildfires and appreciate our first responders for all they are doing to control the situation,” Stein said. “During this time, if you see price gouging, please report it to my office so we can ensure that people aren’t paying too much for the items they need to recover.”

To report potential price gouging call 1-877-5-NO-SCAM or go to https://ncdoj.gov/pricegouging.

In North Carolina, the price gouging statute goes into effect when the governor, the legislature, a county or a municipality declares a state of emergency. Sometimes, businesses and industries that are heavily affected by the incident that caused the state of emergency have a reasonable need to increase prices in order to resupply, but they should disclose these increases so people can make informed purchasing decisions. Businesses cannot unreasonably raise the price of goods or services to profit from an emergency.