Chatham Store to Pay $20K for Sandy Price-Gouging

Village Hardware of Chatham will pay a total of $20,000 to the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs (DCA) for price-gouging during the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy in October and November.

The store is one of eight businesses that will pay a total of $282,844.72, including reimbursement to 185 affected customers, according to a settlement the various businesses reached with the DCA.

According to a press statement released by the DCA, Village Hardware allegedly sold five-gallon gas cans at supposedly “excessive” prices. The settlement fee of $20,000 includes $17,123.24 in civil penalties; $2,092.50 in attorneys’ fees; and $784.26 in investigative costs. It will be paid by Berwick International, Inc., which does business as Village Hardware.

As part of the settlement, Village Hardware made no admission of guilt but agreed not to advertise or sell gas cans during a declared state of emergency.

Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman said of the settlements with Village Hardware and seven other businesses, "We are here to protect the most vulnerable. We simply will not allow businesses to victimize vulnerable residents, who already are suffering hardships during a declared state of emergency."

Eric. T. Kanefsky, Director of the State Division of Consumer Affairs, said, "There is no excuse or justification for gouging consumers during a declared State of Emergency."

The settlement was also notable as the first one made in the state against hotels for price-gouging. Four hotels “allegedly excessively and unjustifiably raised room prices” after Superstorm Sandy, according to the DCA. Those hotels were:

• Barclay Hospitality Suites, Inc., doing business as Homewood Suites by Hilton along Route 1 in Princeton, which will pay $92,000 and reimbursement of $3,532.74 to 63 customers;
• ESA P Portfolio doing business as Extended Stay America Princeton along Brunswick Pike in Princeton, which will pay $61,879.77 and reimbursement of $2,006.20 to 53 customers;
• Infant King Management, LLC, doing business as Howard Johnson Inn along Black Horse Pike in Pleasantville, which will pay $28,816.83 plus reimbursement of $1,183.17 to 59 customers;
• A Classic Corp., doing business as A-1 Motel along West White Horse Pike in Cologne, which will pay $282.94 in reimbursements to 10 customers and a settlement payment of $9,717.06.

The other three businesses included in the agreement are with gas stations who allegedly gouged their prices for gasoline. Those gas stations involved in the settlement include the Exxon along Riverside Avenue in Lyndhurst, the Sunoco along Wilson Avenue in Newark and the Lukoil along McBride Avenue in Paterson.

All these businesses made no admission of liability as part of their settlement.