GREENSBORO, NC -- Whoa!!! Someone posted $3.99 gas in the Triad. That sounds like gouging to me. Someone should do something about it.
Yeah, and that someone should be me or you! Really. It's not enough to complain to your friends about it. The only way price gouging can be proven is if the attorney general gets involved. And the only way he can get involved is if you make a formal complaint.
“If a person complains to us about potential price gouging, we take that complaint and give it to the company that's been complained about and ask them to explain what their price situation has been,” says NC AG Josh Stein. “Are they charging a different price than what they did before the emergency was declared? If they are, can they justify through increase in costs to them.”
We have a look at the formal complaint form. You'll need to know the name of the gas station, at least the street or intersection as well as the price of the gas and the date.
And then at the bottom of the complaint, you can attach a picture of the price sign or your receipt.
Here's the thing about price gouging, there's no set percentage or price that makes it gouging. Instead, gouging is defined as unreasonable price during a time of crisis.
And while you make think it's all gouging. The AG will look at what the price is from the supplier and what the station is charging to determine if it's gouging.