Examples of Businesses Taking Advantage of COVID-19 to Gouge Consumers

modsec802 on 09/02/2021 - 19:46
Last edited 10/02/2021 - 07:03 by 2 other users

I was thinking of many examples where businesses have used COVID-19 to gouge consumers:

  • restaurants takeaway stores charging 50c+ for small sachets of sauce when they’d offer a free shared bottle before
  • restaurants not offering tap water as it’s not COVID safe and only selling bottled water instead
  • cafes not allowing use of keep cups and charging extra for disposable cups
  • increased demand for local beach hotels meaning accommodation at all time high prices and booked out months in advance
  • new car dealers being able to sell any car in stock for RRP or above RRP on selected models
  • employers offering no index based pay rises insisting employees should feel lucky to have a job at all
  • Brisbane city council cancelling kerbside collection for over two years forcing people to transport and pay to dispose of their own bulky goods

Any other good examples you can think of?

Financial

Comments

        • meong on 11/02/2021 - 15:32

          okay, i was mainly at disbelief of that 600% stats… but that sounds more reasonable now…

  • gromit on 11/02/2021 - 10:47
    +2

    What you are calling gouging is what they call trying to stay alive. The reality is costs have gone up while business for many has decreased across a great deal of areas. I think more interesting question is how often you see entitled individuals that think they have a right to something for nothing or cheap just because pre covid they were getting it cheap or free.

  • ATangk on 11/02/2021 - 11:08
    +1

    Central Coast Council increasing rates by 10-15%

    • PixelPaul on 11/02/2021 - 11:20
      -1

      they need to get back all that money they spent when they were not allowed somehow. And we are still lower rates then a lot of other nearby areas.

  • dirtybigbjelke on 11/02/2021 - 11:08
    +1

    Increased demand for local beach hotels meaning accommodation at all time high prices and booked out months in advance

    How is the Hotel able to decrease demand?

  • Brianqpr on 11/02/2021 - 13:22

    Servos still sometimes charging close to $1.50 a litre when the oil price is low and the Aussie dollar strong. Just because people have seen that price and higher before.

    • [Deactivated] on 11/02/2021 - 16:32

      ye since like, forever

  • benderz on 11/02/2021 - 13:33
    +3

    Wifes gym tried charging her when they closed for the lockdown in Melbourne.

    Not gouging but poor customer service. I cancelled a holiday and budget car rentals took 3 months to refund me. Within 24hrs of contacting my bank to do a chargeback they had me refunded and were calling me back to make sure i was happy.

    On a positive note, my gym pre-emptively put a hold on my membership during lockdown and were offering free classes before they were able to fully reopen. Businesses that did the wrong thing during COVID should definitely be called out, but businesses that did the right thing should be recognised as well.

    • Heaps for Cheaps on 12/02/2021 - 13:02
      +1

      One of my friends was paying $200 a week direct debit for private training even though all sessions were cancelled. You think the trainer would have the dignity to at least catch up with people and spend time over the phone with them making sure they are eating/training well by themselves, but not at all. He cancelled after 2 months of the trainer saying he was 'investigating options'.

      • GG57 on 12/02/2021 - 14:51

        Why didn't your friend cancel the direct debit?

        • Heaps for Cheaps on 12/02/2021 - 16:35

          Because he is a little too nice and the trainer was telling him that he would organise park training but it never happened… My friend sees his PT as a friend (It doesn't go the other way round), and sometimes he would do 4 sessions in a row, …just to buy friendship and social interaction.

  • nickj on 11/02/2021 - 14:55
    +2

    Airlines not refunding their customers for flights the airline cancelled, but offering "travel credit" instead. Scam. No flight = give me my money back —> solution: don't fly.

    Airlines offering "free cancellation with full refund or free change of dates on all bookings until <<date>>", but then taking weeks and weeks to refund you (I'm looking at you, Qantas).

    "Change of mind" policies revoked at Coles and Woolworths early the pandemic and never reinstated —> solution: shop at Aldi, they still do it.

    • FW190 on 11/02/2021 - 20:50

      Airlines not refunding their customers for flights the airline cancelled, but offering "travel credit" instead. Scam. No flight = give me my money back —> solution: don't fly.

      if you are a Star Trek fan, you probably would've heard of the Ferengi's rules of aquisition - No 1. Once you have their money, never give it back :)

  • 2BsQzrbgkL on 11/02/2021 - 15:38

    NSW National parks.

    Free campgrounds now require mandatory booking online which costs $6 for the privilege of booking online. That $6 for an entirely admin free automated booking system with the booking system costs already covered by the payed campsites.

    Wouldn't be so bad if they removed the "free" bit and say camping spots are now a minimum of $6 which goes towards the upkeep. It's the $6 booking fee/surcharge that makes you feel cheated.

    • dizzle on 12/02/2021 - 20:20
      +1

      Do they not have to pay for the online booking system (or have subscription style costs) or do they just get that free?

      While I don't like online booking fees, I think it's a bit far to say that because it's automated the system costs them nothing. I agree that it should be built into the normal costs in many cases (although for a free site I think this surcharge may be the right way to do it).

  • striker5950 on 11/02/2021 - 15:43
    +1

    my local butcher/bakery

  • RocketSwitch on 11/02/2021 - 18:50
    +2

    My company has been using all sorts of excuses for years not to give pay rises. I'm the sucker that stays.

  • Nuffy on 11/02/2021 - 20:49
    -1

    Yeah this isn't taking advantage at all tbh

  • Herbse on 11/02/2021 - 20:59
    -1

    Boo hoo

  • SlavOz on 12/02/2021 - 12:15
    -1

    Best example - government telling everyone to "please panic and pretend the end of the world is coming" so they all swarm to Woolworths and throw as much money as possible to the corporate megalords.

    Totally for health reasons.

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