Coronavirus – Inflated Prices – 209/2020

As part of its consumer protection responsibilities the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) is monitoring the prices of certain goods for which there has been an elevated demand since the beginning of the Coronavirus crisis.

While the OFT notes the positive response from many businesses working hard within our community to ameliorate the current situation, the office has received numerous complaints and gathered intelligence about significant price rises for everyday goods such as hand sanitiser, medicines and vitamins and toilet paper etc. It is concerned that certain traders in Gibraltar may be profiteering from the lack of supply to meet the increased demands to the detriment of consumers who may be vulnerable, and therefore willing, to pay unreasonably inflated prices.