TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum said yesterday that his Economic Crimes Division has reached a settlement with convenience retailer Flash Foods Inc., resolving allegations of gasoline price gouging during Hurricane Ike. Waycross, Ga.-based Flash Foods operates a chain of 180 convenience stores in Georgia, 16 of which are in northeastern Florida.
Under the terms of the settlement, Flash Foods will reimburse consumers who were overcharged for gasoline at a Florida Flash Foods store between September 12 and September 20, 2008, and will also pay $40,000 [image-nocss] to the American Red Cross National Disaster Relief Fund. The total amount of the settlement will be approximately $82,000.
The company fully cooperated with the state's investigation.
"As people are fleeing in Florida from storms, drastic price hikes are unacceptable, especially for something as essential as gasoline," said McCollum. "These cases are important not only to protect our citizens, but also to remind every member of the business community that Florida simply will not tolerate these violations of the price gouging law."
The state of emergency for Hurricane Ike was issued by Governor Charles Crist on September 5, 2008, and according to Florida law, price gouging on essential commodities, including gasoline, is prohibited during a declared state of emergency. The Attorney General's Office still has five open investigations into gasoline price gouging from last year's hurricane season and is working on an additional 16 investigations jointly with the Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services.
Click here for a copy of the agreement with Flash Foods.
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