Following Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma, price gouging has become a hot topic of conversation. The prices of water, gasoline and hotel reservations in places affected by the hurricanes have skyrocketed.
Airlines are also facing criticism for their heightened prices, many people claiming that airlines are taking advantage of customers. In a new article published on News-Press in Fort Myers, Florida, Victor Claar, associate professor of economics at Florida Gulf Coast University, suggests that rise of airline ticket prices may not be wholly due to price gouging. “Airlines always charge high prices for last-minute tickets. According to one recent study, anyone trying to buy a ticket within 21 days of travel is likely to be charged the highest possible price”.
Fortunately, there is a ceiling to the prices airlines can charge and some airlines are even choosing to reign in ticket prices in the face of hurricane Irma.
Also in response to the controversy surrounding price gouging, Senior Editor at the Acton Institute, Joe Carter, was quoted in a New York Times article by Andrew Ross Sorkin, as Joe aptly explained the ethics of price gouging in an article published last week. You can read Joe Carter’s full article here and Victor Claar’s full article here.
