The steep upward spiral in consumer complaints in 2008 - reaching an all-time high of 42,050 cases - has relented.
The year 2009 saw a dramatic double-digit drop of 19%, or a reduction of 7,936 cases, in the level of consumer complaints with a total of 34,114 cases.
The bulk of the complaints (18,266 cases) was received in the first half of 2009 as Lehman-related complaints (3,720 cases) continued into the year.
But the number began to ease off in the latter half of 2009 (15,848 cases) as Lehman complaints were reduced to a trickle (161 cases).
If all Lehman cases for both 2008 (8,111 cases) and 2009 (3,881 cases) were to be excluded in the statistics, the drop in the number of complaints for 2009 would have been 11%.
The yearly statistics of the Consumer Council, however, showed that the problem with undesirable sale practices involving unfair, misleading and deceptive tactics, remained a matter of grave concern.
Sale practice complaints rise by 33%
Without taking into account complaints relating to structured financial products induced largely by Lehman cases, sale practice complaints arising from other sectors rose by 33% to 4,195 cases in 2009, compared with 3,144 cases in 2008.
Commenting on the trend of consumer complaints in 2009 at a year-ender press conference today (February 4), the Council Chairman, Prof. Anthony CHEUNG Bing-leung, said:
"While we are delighted that the overall level of consumer dissatisfaction has come down in the year, we are equally concerned that the problem with undesirable sale practices has actually worsened over the year.
"Clearly, in the way forward, we need to address the problem in close collaboration with the Government, and to press for the necessary legislative measures as a matter of priority and urgency," he stressed.
The Chairman added that the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau plans to consult the public on a legislative proposal to tackle unfair trade practices around the first quarter of this year.
Services-related complaints accounted for 66% or 22,537 cases of the total complaints last year. The present Trade Descriptions Ordinance covers only the goods sector.
Top 10 consumer complaints
The top 10 services/products under complaint totalled 24,847 cases or 73% of all complaints in 2009.
Though on a downward trend, telecom service (9,165 cases), financial services (4,968 cases), and electrical appliances (2,260) remained the 3 top categories with complaints totaling 16,393 cases or nearly half of all complaints.
3 other categories - telecom equipment (1,344 cases), furniture and fixtures (1,273 cases), and foods and drinks (779 cases) - also dropped by 17%, 24% and 14% respectively.
The remainder 4 categories - broadcasting services (1,516 cases), beauty salons (1,335 cases), computers (1,225 cases) and clothing and apparels (982 cases) - were increased by 1%, 16%, 11% and 2% respectively.
A notable reduction of significance concerned complaints in relation to tours and travel agents with a drop of 72% to 697 cases in 2009, compared with 2,485 cases in 2008 (including some 1,400 cases of the defunct Oasis Airline).
Overall tourist complaints which accounted for 5.5% of total complaints, also recorded a fall of 9% to 1,876 cases. Complaints from Mainland tourists edged up slightly by 1% to 1,304 cases.
Swift response and cooling-off period
Prof. Cheung cited two recent cases as examples in which the Government responded swiftly after the Council alerted the public to the malpractices of unsolicited SMS messages, and illicit sales activities of digital set-top boxes.
In the former, OFTA has since developed a code of practice with the industry and measures to block out unsolicited SMS messages. In the latter, publicity has been stepped up to advise consumers to beware and to switch to digital terrestrial television (DTT) at their own pace.
The Council is presently in dialogue with some sectors, notably the beauty and slimming service sector, to strive for the voluntary introduction of "cooling-off period" in sales contracts. This will help minimize unnecessary disputes, allowing consumers to back out of the transactions within a stipulated period.
Improvement called for residential properties
In the year under review, there was widespread public concern over issues of sales information and tactics related to residential properties, and in particular, such perennial issue as:
- Saleable area that has come under recent criticism for including unnecessary thick outer walls. The issue could be satisfactorily resolved if usable floor area or carpeted area is adopted instead.
- Show flats that are not set up with partition walls or doors and furnished with miniscule furniture that bear little resemblance to the actual units and usage.
- In the long term, the issue of in what capacity estate agents who are appointed by the developers in the first place, are acting in a transaction. It is not often clear whether the agents act for the vendor or the purchaser.
The Council Chairman said that the Council's Working Group on Consumer Issues relating to Residential Property would actively examine such issues, and recommend measures for enhanced protection of purchasers.
The recommendations of the Working Group, if endorsed by the Council, will be put forward for consideration of the Government, the Real Estate Developers Association (REDA), and other relevant stakeholders.
"Clearly, improvement is called for in transactions related to residential properties which often represent the life long savings or the single most expensive purchase of any consumers," he added.
Strategic review of CLAF
The Chairman also referred to the strategic review currently being undertaken on the Consumer Legal Action Fund (CLAF) with the objective of identifying areas for improvement.
The strategic review of CLAF came at a crucial juncture of time after having been in operation for 16 years since 1994, and in light of the recent civil justice reform, namely, encouraging and facilitating mediation, and the proposed introduction of class actions in Hong Kong.
Specifically, the review seeks to examine the Fund's positioning amidst the changing environment, and to enhance its efficacy in handling applications for legal financial assistance.
Up to the end of last year, CLAF had considered 126 groups of applications comprising about 800 cases of different categories relating to complaints about real estate, travel services, telecom services, financial services, medical services, beauty services, sale of goods, etc.
Assistance was granted to 34 groups representing 683 cases involving significant implications on consumer interest, with causes of action for misrepresentation, breach of contract, and unfair trade tactics, etc.
On the progress of legal proceedings in relation to a Lehman case, Prof. Cheung noted that the case is now in the "case management process" with lawyers on both sides exploring the possibility of mediation prior to arrangements in respect of such matters as exchange of witness statements, discovery and interlocutory applications.