Some hotels have boosted room rates in the Mid-Atlantic states after strong wind storms that struck the region starting late last week caused widespread power outages across the region, several news outlets reported.
The Maryland Attorney's General Office received complaints of price-gouging by hotels and gas stations, reported AOL’s Patch outlet covering the Odenteon-Severn area near Annapolis.
The owner of a hotel in Riva, about 10 miles southwest of Annapolis, set room rates over the weekend at $600 a night, though the owner said that was done specifically to stop people from calling the sold-out hotel, Annapolis Patch reported.
Meanwhile, the number of families in southern New Jersey who booked hotel rooms after their homes lost power reported room rates as much as double what was being quoted before the storms, reported Fox’s Philadelphia affiliate.
One of the local hoteliers accused of price-gouging told the news station that the rate increases reflected higher demand.
In Ohio, ABC’s Columbus affiliate reported that a number of families complained about price-gouging at a motel in Licking County, about 20 miles east of Columbus, and said that the families were evicted from the hotel after complaining about higher room rates.
As of Tuesday, about 1.4 million homes and businesses in seven states and Washington, D.C., were still without power, the Associated Press reported.
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