Busan City Consumer Counseling, Most Complaints About Mobile Phone Service

‘Clothes Dryers’ and ‘Investment Advisory?Consulting’ Show Significant Increase in Consultations Compared to Previous Year
Total Consultations Decrease by 9.1%, Mobile Trading Consultations Increase by 40.1%

Status of Top Frequent Consultation Items / Provided by Busan City

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Jonghyo] According to the '2019 Busan Region Consumer Consultation Information Analysis' jointly announced by Busan Metropolitan City, the Busan branch of the Korea Consumer Agency, and the Busan Consumer Organizations Council, among the consumer consultations received by the 1372 Consumer Counseling Center in Busan during 2019, mobile phone services accounted for the highest number of cases.

The top five consultation categories were mobile phone services (1,938 cases), gyms and fitness centers (1,393 cases), smartphones (1,151 cases), other clothing textiles (954 cases), and water purifier rentals (896 cases). Both mobile phone services and smartphones are related to mobile phones, revealing that many consumer damages occurred during the process of subscribing to mobile communication services and concluding mobile phone purchase contracts.

The top five categories with the highest year-on-year increase rates in consultation cases were electric clothes dryers (770%), investment advisory (consulting) (68.8%), various performance viewings (68.1%), one-piece dresses (56.8%), and watches (28.4%). The electric clothes dryer saw many consultations nationwide due to issues such as malfunctioning automatic cleaning functions in products from specific companies.

In 2019, the total number of consumer consultations submitted by Busan citizens was 47,117, a 9.1% (4,712 cases) decrease compared to the previous year. Analyzing 45,074 consultations where age was identifiable, those in their 30s submitted the most cases at 12,480, followed by those in their 40s (11,392 cases), 50s (8,835 cases), 60 and above (6,670 cases), 20s (5,551 cases), and under 10s (146 cases). Compared to other cities, the proportion of consumer consultations from those in their 50s and 60s and above was relatively higher in Busan.

By sales method, excluding general sales (26,475 cases), consultations were frequent for domestic online transactions (9,725 cases), door-to-door sales (1,671 cases), telemarketing sales (1,524 cases), and mobile transactions (1,118 cases). The year-on-year growth rate was highest for mobile transactions at 40.1%, indicating that as purchases using smartphones and similar devices increase, related damages are also rising.

A Busan city official warned that among consumer consultation types related to mobile phones, there are frequent cases where elderly customers visiting agencies to inquire about fees or usage are impulsively encouraged to re-contract for the latest mobile phones with claims that fees will be lower despite existing contract periods remaining. The official urged caution. They also pointed out that since canceling a mobile phone contract after activation is very difficult, consumers should carefully read the contract regarding penalty fees, installment principal, and mandatory usage periods for plans, and develop a habit of purchasing cautiously.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.