Landlords gouging victims with high rents

Many complaints were filed to the Internal Trade Department during the past week that landlords and building owners had jacked up their rental fees by as much as 100 per cent during this critical period.
A flood victim in Nonthaburi province said a condominium owner in Rattanathibeth Road had doubled the rent from the normal Bt3,500-Bt4,000 to Bt7,000 per month. The owner also asked for a guarantee payment of Bt2,000 excluding electricity costs. An apartment building in the Sanambinnam area of Nonthaburi has increased the monthly rent from Bt2,000-Bt2,500 to Bt3,000-Bt3,500.

Although renters know they are being overcharged, they say they have to bear the cost as they still need to work and watch over their assets. They called for relevant government agencies to deal with this unfair practice urgently, which is adding to flood victims’ suffering.
The Commerce Ministry has been informed about the problem but says it has no direct authorisation to control rents.
Rent gouging is not the only complaint heard by the ministry’s Internal Trade Department about unfair trade practices through its hotline 1569 during the flooding.

A total of 1,208 calls to the hotline were received from October 1-26. Of those, 428 were complaints about high prices of foods and beverages, mainly pork, egg, cooked food, and drinking water; construction materials such as brick and cement; and essential goods used for flood relief such as lifejackets and boots.

Another 780 callers asked for the department’s advice on where to buy sand, bricks, cement, and other goods needed to deal with the flooding.
So far, the department has punished 19 unscrupulous traders with fines totalling Bt43,400.
Since January, the department has fielded 5,640 calls to its hotline.