"Home Appliances Suffer the Most Damage" Apartment Options Also Rank First in Monetary Scale

Korea Consumer Agency, Analysis Results of Damage Relief Applications

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] Recently, as construction companies have increasingly adopted brand premiumization strategies by introducing options in apartments, related damages have continued to occur. In particular, there have been many damages related to home appliances among the option items, and the amount of damage is not insignificant, requiring consumers to exercise caution.

On the 16th, the Korea Consumer Agency announced that an analysis of 52 damage relief applications related to apartment options received over the past four years (2018 to October 2021) showed that cases related to home appliances such as system air conditioners and refrigerators accounted for the largest portion at 42.3%. This was followed by complaints related to middle doors at 25%, built-in furniture such as wardrobes at 13.5%, and window frames at 11.5%.

By type of damage, breach of contract was the most common at 55.8%, with the majority of cases involving demands for compensation due to option types or construction conditions differing from the contract. Next were cases where contract cancellations before option installation were refused or excessive penalties were demanded, accounting for 23.1%, and quality complaints at 13.5%. Among the damage relief applications, 84.6% sought compensation from construction companies, while 15.4% sought compensation from option suppliers.

Among the option products, an analysis of 38 cases where the contract amount could be confirmed showed an average contract amount of 2,692,000 KRW. Contracts ranging from 1 million KRW to less than 4 million KRW accounted for half of the cases, and there was one high-priced contract exceeding 10 million KRW.

The Korea Consumer Agency advised that to prevent damages related to options, consumers should specify the specifications clearly in the contract and carefully review contract details such as the party responsible for defect repairs.

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