[Overseas Direct Purchase Warning] Return Fees Larger Than the Item Price... Insufficient Return Information Provided

Increase in Returns of Overseas Direct Purchases... Consumer Inquiries Also 'Jump'

3,456 Consumer Complaints in the Last 3 Years
Most Frequent: Unfair Penalty and Fee Charges
Average Return Fee on Open Markets 61,381 KRW
33.3% Cases More Expensive Than Product Price

[Asia Economy Reporters Lim Chun-han and Jeon Jin-young] Recently, Mr. Kim experienced an absurd situation after purchasing eyeglass frames through a purchasing agency on an open market. After receiving the product, he was dissatisfied and requested a return the next day, but the seller charged him 60,000 won instead of the originally announced 2,500 won on the website. Mr. Kim said, "Is it reasonable for the return fee to be two-thirds of the product price?" and added, "I never want to use that site again."

According to data submitted by the Korea Customs Service to Ryu Seong-geol, a member of the People Power Party, as of the 26th, from 2017 to September this year, the number of officially declared exports and returns related to overseas direct purchases reached 109,000 cases, amounting to 109.5 billion won.

Consultations related to returns of overseas direct purchases have also increased at the Consumer Agency. Over the past three years, 3,456 consumer complaints related to returns have been recorded at the International Trade Consumer Portal and the 1372 Consumer Counseling Center. By year, there were 1,336 cases in 2019, 1,111 in 2020, and 1,009 in 2021. The most common complaints were unfair charges for penalties and fees and price dissatisfaction at 28.2%, followed by product defects, quality, and A/S issues at 28%, and delays or refusals in cancellations, refunds, and exchanges at 25.2%.

When returning overseas direct purchase items, the return process is more complicated and costly compared to domestically purchased goods. If the seller is responsible due to product defects, the seller or purchasing agent bears the cost, but if the consumer is responsible due to a simple change of mind, the buyer must bear the return costs.

Return fees for overseas purchasing agency products through open markets were often higher than the product price or different from the announced fees. The Consumer Agency investigated 219 out of 240 purchasing agency products listed on Naver, 11st, Auction, Interpark, Gmarket, and Coupang where both product price and return cost were clearly confirmed. It found that one in five had return fees exceeding 100,000 won. The average return fee was 61,381 won, and in 33.3% of cases, the return cost was higher than the product price. This means consumers either receive no refund or may have to pay extra upon return, resulting in a loss. There was even a case where the return fee for a 25,600 won Bluetooth earphone was set at 300,000 won.

Information provision related to returns was also insufficient. According to the Electronic Commerce Act, return fees must be clearly displayed for consumers, but 8.8% of cases either did not show the cost on the detailed page or displayed two different fees for a single product. The Consumer Agency purchased and returned 18 products to understand the return process and found discrepancies between actual return information and the announced details. Among 15 products with a return address provided, 10 had different actual return addresses. Among 17 products where return fees were paid, 12 had actual fees charged by sellers that differed from the announced amounts. Specifically, additional charges of up to 78,700 won were added to the announced fees, or amounts decreased by up to 140,000 won, showing significant variation depending on the product.

The Consumer Agency urged overseas purchasing agency operators to reasonably adjust excessive return fees and accurately notify consumers of return costs. It also recommended domestic open market operators improve the display of return fee information on product detail pages. Consumers were advised to review overseas purchasing agency precautions on the International Trade Consumer Portal before using such services and to always check return fees when purchasing products.