Fair Trade Commission Announces Results of 'Platform Consumer Protection Duty Compliance Inspection Survey'
It has been revealed that some platforms such as AliExpress, Temu, and Interpark have not properly established basic systems to prevent repeated misdeliveries, distribution of hazardous products, and false advertising. The resolution period for consumer issues, satisfaction with consumer issue resolution, and expectations for damage relief on overseas platforms were all found to be inadequate compared to domestic platforms.
On the 29th, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) announced the results of the "Inspection Survey on the Fulfillment of Consumer Protection Obligations by Domestic and Overseas Platform Operators," which contained these findings.
This survey was conducted as part of the consumer protection measures related to overseas online platforms announced in March, targeting 10 domestic and overseas online shopping mall operators. The domestic shopping malls included eight companies: Naver Shopping, Lotte ON, 11st, Gmarket, Auction, Interpark, KakaoTalk Shopping, and Coupang, while the overseas shopping malls included two companies: AliExpress and Temu.
The survey results showed that most platforms had established basic systems for consumer protection, but some shortcomings were revealed in areas such as dispute resolution and consumer protection efforts.
The KFTC stated that issues were identified in AliExpress, Temu, and Interpark regarding manuals to block repeated misdeliveries and redistribution of hazardous products, provision of information related to hazardous products, and business operator training on false advertising, and improvement will be requested.
In the case of AliExpress, some complaints were still being answered by foreign language-speaking counselors using translation tools, and Temu and Interpark were found not to inform or comply with dispute resolution periods.
Regarding information provision by business operators, some platforms such as Gmarket and Auction were found to have issues such as not displaying the hosting service provider's trade name on the initial screen of the cyber mall, failure to report telecommunication sales business, and not notifying that the platform is not a party to the telecommunication sales contract or offer method.
Over the past three years and three months, a total of 15,214 damage relief cases related to the 10 surveyed operators were filed with the Korea Consumer Agency, with a settlement rate of about 60.2%. The settlement rate for damage relief cases has been increasing annually, from 57.9% in 2021 to 58.7% in 2022, and 62.2% last year.
Among the types of damage, 'quality' related cases were the most frequent with 4,939 cases (32.5%), followed by 'withdrawal of subscription' (25.1%) and 'non-fulfillment or incomplete fulfillment of contract' (14.8%). The most common damaged items were 'computer devices, electronic products, and home appliances' with 3,572 cases (23.5%), followed by 'clothing, footwear, sports goods, and accessories' at 20.9%.
In a survey of online shopping mall users, the rate of experiencing consumer problems was similar between domestic (29.4%) and overseas (28.8%) shopping malls.
Although many consumers requested damage relief from shopping malls or tenant companies, the rate of giving up on raising issues was significantly higher for overseas shopping malls (29.2%) compared to domestic shopping malls (13.4%). The KFTC interpreted this as reflecting lower expectations for product reliability and damage relief possibilities for overseas shopping malls compared to domestic ones.
The average notification time for responses to consumer problems experienced by consumers was 1.8 days for domestic shopping malls, about 0.8 days faster than overseas shopping malls. Even when refunds were made, the problem resolution time averaged 4.8 days, about one day shorter than overseas shopping malls.
The overall satisfaction of consumers with the consumer problem resolution process was 3.21 points on a 5-point scale for domestic shopping malls and 2.83 points for overseas shopping malls.
The KFTC stated, "Following this inspection survey on the consumer protection obligations of domestic and overseas platforms, we plan to conduct an in-depth analysis of the structure and competitive status of the e-commerce market through the 'E-commerce Sector Market Survey' at the end of the year."
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