[Suspicious Marriage Brokerage]② "Refunding causes company loss"... Hundreds of thousands won 'tricky contracts'

Visited consultations at 4 marriage information companies
Refunds applied based on half the sessions instead of actual visits
Some companies have their own refund policies outside terms
Potential personal data law violation in 'property disclosure' during consultation

Editor's NoteIn an era of low birth rates, last year's marriage rate hit a record low, yet the number of consumers seeking matchmaking agencies is increasing. This reflects the trend among the 20s and 30s generations who want to find their desired spouse without unnecessary emotional exhaustion if they are going to marry. However, as the matchmaking industry has rapidly expanded over the past decade, related laws have been found inadequate in properly protecting consumers. Cases have occurred where consumers pay anywhere from several million to tens of millions of won but do not receive proper services or fail to get refunds.

"Refunds are difficult after just one meeting."

The CEO of a domestic ㄱNoblesse (Seonghon) specialized matchmaking agency responded this way when asked about the refund policy for 'unlimited' contracts during a consultation. Even after paying several million to tens of millions of won, refunds are not possible after more than one or two meetings. The CEO explained, "The Fair Trade Commission said companies without meeting limits should set a contract meeting limit, but if a member meets 86 times and asks for a refund, isn't that a loss?" adding, "So we set a minimum number of meetings after which refunds are not allowed."

Last month, the reporter visited two general matchmaking agencies and two Noblesse specialized agencies in Korea to directly compare contracts and contract terms. The contract methods of the four companies differed. Although all companies explicitly based their contracts on the Fair Trade Commission's standard terms, tricks were widespread, such as setting the contract meeting count, which determines refund eligibility, lower than the actual service meetings. Some companies even set refund policies based on their own standards rather than legally stipulated criteria.

2 out of 4 companies apply refunds to only half the meetings

The three marriage brokerage agencies visited by the reporter last month showed the refund regulations under the Fair Trade Commission's standard terms and conditions for domestic marriage brokerage. However, some agencies either had separate regulations or did not comply with these rules.
[Photo by Park Joon-yi]

The companies explained during consultations that they basically follow the Fair Trade Commission's 'Domestic Matchmaking Standard Terms.' According to the revised standard terms in 2021, if a contract is terminated without company fault, 80-90% of the membership fee is refunded after deducting a 10-20% penalty. If termination occurs after one meeting, 20% of the membership fee is deducted as a penalty, and the remaining amount is refunded based on the remaining number (or days) of meetings.

However, 2 out of the 4 companies separately set the 'contracted number of meetings,' which is less than the actual total meetings, as the basis for refunds. This method is not stipulated in the terms. The companies explained that for meeting-count contracts, they provide more services, such as '3 meetings (contracted) + 3 meetings (service)' or '4 meetings (contracted) + 4 meetings (service),' but when receiving refunds, only the contracted meeting count, about half of the total, is applied as the standard.

Due to the complexity of refund regulations, many users were not informed or did not understand them at the time of contract. Industry manager E said, "They say it's unlimited for a year, but most meetings are only conducted up to the refundable number," adding, "Members think they can get refunds for the number of meetings, but when they see the actual contract, refunds are not allowed after a certain number of meetings."

Tricks with 'self-imposed refund policies' outside the terms

Some companies even set separate refund criteria not based on the Fair Trade Commission's standard terms. ㄱMatchmaking agency stipulates that refunds apply only up to 1 meeting for a 3-month contract, 2 meetings for 6 months, and 3 meetings for 12 months. This means that if even one meeting occurs during a 3-month contract, a full refund is difficult. A former user, A, said, "The service provided was unsatisfactory, and although only one introduction was made with half the period remaining, refunds were impossible, which felt unfair."

According to the standard terms, if the company is at fault, the membership fee principal plus 10-20% of the membership fee is refunded before the first meeting. If one or more meetings have occurred, the remaining meeting amount is deducted from the principal, and an additional 20% of the membership fee is added as a penalty. However, it is difficult for consumers to prove company fault. Most matchmaking agencies have legal teams to handle consumer disputes.

Because of this, some companies have introduced full refunds and fixed pricing. Kang Bada, CEO of Uriui Inyeon (Uyeon), said, "I don't know why the 20% penalty set by the Fair Trade Commission 25 years ago is still upheld," adding, "Gyms and international matchmaking agencies have a 10% penalty." He explained, "We operate with a system where only the used service is deducted and the rest is fully refunded."

Disclosure of 'customer information' before contract... "Potential violation of Personal Information Protection Act"

Fair Trade Commission 'Standard Terms and Conditions for Domestic Marriage Brokerage' Excerpt

The two Noblesse specialized agencies visited by this paper exposed personal information of their customers during the consultation stage before contracts. This is a kind of customer attraction strategy. Representatives of ㄱ and ㄴ matchmaking agencies disclosed photos of about 10 male customers along with their age, height, occupation, residence, assets, and parents' occupation and income. The representatives showed these so-called 'listings' to the reporter, saying, "If you sign a contract with our company, you can meet people like these," and "We will show you a variety of options."

However, this may violate the Personal Information Protection Act. According to Article 12 (Protection of Personal Information), Paragraph 3 of the standard terms, provided personal information cannot be used for purposes other than the member's consent or provided to third parties. Exceptions exist for company business such as introductions, but these require clear consent or are premised on introductions.

Attorney Cha Yul of Lee Soohee Law Office said, "If prior consent was not obtained from the party regarding exposure or if the notified scope of exposure differs from the actual exposure, it may violate the Personal Information Protection Act," adding, "Such consent is mostly for marriage purposes, and it is difficult to interpret that customer information can be used or provided to others even at the potential customer attraction stage of the business."