Floridians net more than $200,000 in refunds due to price gouging during pandemic

Floridians price gouged during the pandemic now have more than $200,000 in refunds back in their pockets.

We’ve been keeping tabs on what the Attorney General’s Office is doing to crack down on price gouging.

As the COVID-19 crisis heated up and items flew off the shelves, some looked to take advantage of the situation by raising prices.

“Since the emergency declaration, we’ve been working diligently to review the complaints on price gouging that flood into our office every day,” said Attorney General Ashley Moody.

She says her office has pulled down nearly 200 outrageous, online posts and contacted roughly 4,500 merchants about allegations of price gouging. That’s netted Floridans $240,000 in refunds.

“But our work doesn’t stop there,” Moody said. “We are preserving evidence, issuing subpoenas and taking other legal measures to advance our price gouging investigations.”

Moody’s office sent out 65 investigative subpoenas. They wouldn’t provide those to us but did provide a list of third-party Amazon sellers that got subpoenas.

Two Southwest Florida companies are on that list. We have reached out to both, but have not heard back.

“Our first goal is to stop price gouging in real-time so that Floridians can afford these essential commodities that they need to protect their health,” Moody said,

The Attorney General’s Office says the best defense against price gouging is you. So if you see an inflated price or feel like you’ve been ripped off, contact their hotline at 1-866-NOSCAM or click here to connect to their complaint section.