Maryland has begun enforcing a first-in-the-nation consumer-protection law that bars large food retailers and third-party delivery services from using personal data to charge selected shoppers higher prices. The Protection From Predatory Pricing Act took effect October 1.
The law targets “surveillance pricing,” in which an algorithm uses information connected to an identifiable customer to tailor a price. Maryland’s enacted Chapter 154 prohibits covered grocers and food-delivery services from using dynamic pricing or surveillance personal data to set a higher price for tax-exempt food for a specific consumer or group.
Covered food retailers are establishments of at least 15,000 square feet that sell food exempt from Maryland sales tax. Third-party delivery providers that facilitate delivery of those groceries also fall under the restrictions. The law separately bars those businesses from using protected-class data in a way that withholds an accommodation, advantage or privilege offered to others.
The statute does not ban electronic shelf labels or every price change. It permits ordinary promotional discounts, loyalty and membership programs open to voluntary enrollment, subscription prices, error corrections and price resets after system outages. It also allows price differences tied to objective costs, geography, availability or supply, rather than personal characteristics or a shopper-specific data profile.
Maryland’s legislative record shows that House Bill 895 passed the House 100-31 after the chamber accepted Senate amendments; the Senate passed it 41-1. Gov. Wes Moore approved the measure April 28, and the act became Chapter 154 with an October 1 effective date.
The law also establishes a disclosure rule outside the covered grocery sector. Other merchants that use dynamic pricing or personal data to set the price of a consumer good or service must place a clear notice alongside the displayed price stating that an algorithm or the customer’s personal data was used.
Enforcement rests with the Maryland Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division. Before bringing an action, the division must issue a violation notice and give the business 45 days to correct the conduct. The pricing provisions do not create a private right of action, meaning individual consumers cannot sue directly under those sections.
A legal analysis by Skadden said the act applies specifically to personalized prices based on data such as location, browser history, purchasing history or demographics. The firm advised affected retailers and delivery platforms to examine their pricing software and the data used by those systems.
The law reached its effective date amid wider adoption of digital shelf systems. The Washington Post reported that major grocers have installed electronic labels while saying they do not use them to vary prices by shopper or time of day. The distinction matters: Maryland regulates how prices are determined, not the display technology itself.
For shoppers, the immediate protection is narrower than a universal price freeze but broader than a transparency rule. A covered grocer cannot quietly use a customer’s digital profile to increase that person’s grocery price, and other sellers using algorithmic or personal-data pricing must disclose it at the point where the price appears.
