NC Price Gouging Law: Rules, Penalties, and Reporting

The North Carolina price gouging law, codified at N.C. Gen. Stat. § 75-38, makes it illegal to sell or rent essential goods and services at unreasonably excessive prices once a state of emergency has been declared. Violations carry civil penalties of up to $5,000 each, and consumers who were overcharged can sue for three times their actual damages. The prohibition switches on automatically with the emergency declaration and is enforced by the North Carolina Attorney General’s office.¹²

When the Law Is in Effect

The prohibition is not always active. It turns on with a “triggering event,” which the statute defines as a state of emergency declared under Article 1A of Chapter 166A, or a finding by the Governor of an “abnormal market disruption.” The Department of Justice notes that a declaration from the Legislature or a municipality can also trigger it.³²

The abnormal market disruption trigger reaches events that happen elsewhere but cause significant supply disruptions inside North Carolina, such as refinery shutdowns that spike gasoline prices. For this trigger, there must also be a federal emergency or disaster declaration by the President or a “Code Red/Severe Risk of Attack” issuance from the Department of Homeland Security.⁴

Once activated, the prohibition runs for 45 days from the triggering event or until the emergency declaration is terminated, whichever comes first. The Governor can extend it beyond 45 days if conditions warrant.³

The law applies only in the area where the emergency has been declared or the market disruption has been found. When a hurricane produces county-by-county declarations, protection exists in the declared counties, not statewide.⁵

What Sellers Can’t Do

During a triggering event, it is a violation of North Carolina’s Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act for any person to sell, rent, or offer to sell or rent goods or services at a price that is “unreasonably excessive under the circumstances.” The covered items are those consumed or used as a direct result of the emergency, or used to preserve, protect, or sustain life, health, safety, or economic well-being.¹³

The statute doesn’t list specific products. In past emergencies, complaints have involved fuel, food, water, lodging, building materials, generators, medical supplies, and repair services. The prohibition reaches the entire chain of distribution — manufacturers, suppliers, wholesalers, distributors, and retailers all count.³

How “Unreasonably Excessive” Is Measured

North Carolina does not use a fixed percentage threshold. Instead, the statute directs courts and investigators to weigh several factors:¹

Whether additional costs were imposed on the seller by its own supplier, or incurred in providing the good or service during the emergency.
How the charged price compares to the seller’s average price during the 60 days before the triggering event. If the seller wasn’t previously offering the item in the area, the benchmark is the prevailing price in the general trade area.
Whether regional, national, or international commodity market trends or other legitimate market forces explain the change.
Reasonable expenses and charges tied to the business risks of procuring or selling goods during an emergency.

Raising prices during an emergency is not automatically illegal. Sellers can pass along genuine cost increases: higher wholesale costs from disrupted supply chains, overtime wages, and expenses like running generators. A business that had been running a temporary sale can revert to its regular pre-sale price without violating the law.⁶

Online sellers are not exempt. The statute reaches “any person” in the chain of distribution whose goods or services are consumed in the affected area, and the Attorney General has treated that language as covering online marketplaces. During the COVID-19 emergency in 2020, the office investigated nine sellers operating on Amazon who had raised prices by more than 40% on items including N95 masks and hand sanitizer.³⁷

Penalties and What Consumers Can Recover

A violation carries several layers of consequence:

Civil penalties of up to $5,000 per violation.²
Restitution: the Attorney General can seek refunds for overcharged consumers.⁵
Injunctive relief: courts can order businesses to stop the offending practices, cancel contracts, and cease operations in certain areas.⁸
Treble damages in private lawsuits. Because § 75-38 violations count as violations of the broader Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act (§ 75-1.1), an individual consumer can sue and recover three times actual damages under § 75-16, plus potentially attorney fees under § 75-16.1.⁴

How to Report Price Gouging

If you believe you were price gouged during an active emergency declaration, report it to the North Carolina Attorney General’s office:²

Online through the consumer complaint form at ncdoj.gov.
By phone at 1-877-5-NO-SCAM (1-877-566-7226).

Before filing, gather what you can: the name and address of the business, the price charged, the date and time of the transaction, and photos if you have them. In the aftermath of a federally declared disaster, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has also pointed residents to the National Center for Disaster Fraud at 1-866-720-5721.⁹

How Enforcement Has Played Out

The Attorney General’s office has actively pursued gouging cases. As of August 2024, it had brought 12 lawsuits against 29 defendants since 2018, obtaining 14 judgments or settlements totaling $1,080,000 against 25 defendants, with the largest single settlement at $274,000.¹⁰¹¹

Hurricane Helene in late September 2024 produced one of the largest waves of complaints in state history. By October 11, 2024, the Department of Justice had received 308 complaints, concentrated in Buncombe, Henderson, and Cleveland counties, involving groceries, hotel costs, and fuel. Reports included gasoline at $10 per gallon, hotel rooms at $1,500, and grocery items sold at triple the normal price.¹²⁵

One Helene-era case involved Lorenzo Huggins Sr., his son Lorenzo Huggins Jr., and their businesses, Huggins & Sons Yard Service and Lorenzo & Son Landscaping. The state alleged the defendants charged a Hendersonville couple $25,500 upfront for tree removal, then failed to complete the work and caused additional property damage. A court entered judgment for unfair and deceptive trade practices and price gouging violations, ordering the defendants to cancel all contracts, reimburse affected customers, and stop advertising or performing contracting and landscaping work.⁸

The law’s most recent activations show how routinely it comes into play. Attorney General Jeff Jackson announced in February 2025 that the price gouging law was in effect after the Governor declared an emergency for winter weather.¹³ If a declaration is active in your area and a price feels wrong, document it and file — the enforcement record shows the office does act on what consumers send in.

1
FindLaw. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 75-38
2
North Carolina Department of Justice. Price Gouging
3
North Carolina General Assembly. G.S. 75-38
4
North Carolina General Assembly. Chapter 75 – Monopolies, Trusts, and Consumer Protection
5
NC Newsline. Josh Stein Price Gouging Hurricane Helene
6
NCRMA. How to Comply With NC Price Gouging Law
7
iHeart. North Carolina Investigating Nine Online Sellers for Price Gouging
8
Biltmore Beacon. Couple Scammed by Tree Removal Service After Helene Gets Pay Back
9
U.S. Department of Justice. U.S. Attorney Dena J. King Urges Public to Beware Scams and Price Gouging in the Aftermath
10
North Carolina Department of Justice. Attorney General Josh Stein: North Carolina’s Price Gouging Law Is in Effect
11
North Carolina Department of Justice. Price Gouging Law in Effect in North Carolina
12
North Carolina Department of Justice. Attorney General Josh Stein Provides Update on Hurricane Helene-Related Price Gouging
13
State Impact Center. North Carolina AG Announced Price Gouging Law in Effect Following Winter Weather