Online retailers need to crack down on coronavirus price gouging, according to consumer watchdogs
Sue Davies, Head of Consumer Protection at Which?, said: ‘Online marketplaces have taken some action against coronavirus price gouging, but our investigation shows unscrupulous sellers are still cashing in on people’s fears by selling essential items at extortionate prices on eBay and Amazon.
‘These companies must make good on their pledges to stamp out coronavirus profiteering, and if they fall short the CMA must be ready to take strong enforcement action.‘The government should consider how it will work with the retail sector as a whole to keep the price of essential items reasonable as the fallout from the coronavirus outbreak continues.’
eBay said the items flagged during the probe ‘have been removed and enforcement action has been taken against the sellers’ An eBay spokesperson said: ‘All the items flagged by Which? have been removed and enforcement action has been taken against the sellers. ‘We announced on Friday additional measures to tackle coronavirus-related price gouging. This is a continuation of the aggressive action against price gouging, which has included suspending hundreds of accounts, removing hundreds of thousands of listings, and suspending scores of bad seller accounts. Specifically in the face masks and hand sanitiser categories, only pre-approved whitelisted vendors will be allowed to sell these items.
‘We are continually monitoring the situation and will consider widening the ban to include other categories if appropriate.’
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