Originally Posted by michael:
I think the catch word would be to "conspire" to set prices. That would need to be the intent.
Exactly! I looked through the website that Tom Copeland posted. It only mentioned "agreement".
"Price fixing occurs when two or more sellers
agree that they will increase prices a certain amount, or that they won't sell below a certain price."
If 2 or more providers sit down and make an "agreement" to set their prices at a certain level, then it's price fixing. However, the question that the OP posted had nothing to do with making any agreements. The OP was just inquiring so she could have a better understanding of the "going rate" or "fair market value" of this type of service.
That is NOT price fixing. It's called "market research". Whenever anyone starts a business, but is unaware of the current market value for those goods or services, the owner needs to do research to find out what is considered "fair" in that area. For example, my research told me that home daycare providers in my area charge $105-$150 per week for full time care for 1 child. Since I was considering charging $130 a week, I knew that I was on the right track and was not outside the "fair market value".
I just love how people twist the law and take it out of context. So I posted my rates. Anyone want to take me to court over it? I am very confident that I would prevail.
However, I will apologize to Tom Copeland. I did make a comment that was not fair to him. Someone (not him) posted that Mr. Copeland claims that any discussion of pricing between providers is illegal. Without questioning him myself, I claimed that he didn't know what he was talking about. I think his opinion or thoughts may have been misquoted or misunderstood. Then I jumped on that. Tom, I am sorry for assuming that you were under the belief that "market research" such as this is illegal. However, if you do interpret the law as saying that this is illegal (when someone is just inquiring but not making any agreements), then I would have to respectfully disagree. Next time, I will try to make sure I do not develop an opinion of one person based on the hearsay of another.