Same Product Sells for Less Than 50,000 Won Online
Annual Average of 500 Cases of Foreign Tourist Complaints
A Japanese visitor to an underground shopping center at Express Bus Terminal Station reportedly got overcharged by more than ten times at a shoe store.
On the 25th, JTBC's 'Incident Manager' reported on a tip that a small business owner in the underground shopping center seemed to have overcharged a foreigner. The tipster, Mr. A, recently received a call from a Japanese friend. The Japanese friend said, "I thought I bought two pairs of shoes at a shoe store in the Express Bus Terminal underground shopping center for 38,000 won, but the receipt showed a charge of 380,000 won. Isn't this a scam?" expressing suspicion.
A story has emerged about a Japanese visitor who was overcharged more than ten times at a shoe store in an underground shopping mall near Sok Terminal Station. On the 25th, JTBC's Case Manager reported on a tip suggesting that a small business owner in the underground mall may have overcharged a foreigner. JTBC Case Manager
Mr. A and his friend immediately visited the shoe store, thinking the owner had made a mistake in the payment. The owner explained, "It is correct that two pairs of boots priced at 250,000 won and 180,000 won were purchased," and said he had given a discount for buying two pairs of shoes. He also claimed, "I showed the price tags at the time of purchase." However, the Japanese friend repeatedly denied this, saying, "I did not see any price tags at all," and that the amount shown by the owner at the time of purchase was 38,000 won.
The Japanese friend requested a refund for at least one pair of shoes that had not been worn, and after a dispute, the original 380,000 won payment was canceled, and only 258,000 won for one pair of shoes was paid again. Mr. A also pointed out, "The owner sold the shoes at a high price to my Japanese friend, claiming they were 'genuine leather,' but they appear to be synthetic leather."
He added, "After posting the whole story on social networking services (SNS), a netizen said, based on the shoe photos and product number, that it seemed to be synthetic leather," and "Searching the product number online showed the same product being sold for less than 50,000 won." Mr. A stated, "Since my friend has already purchased and worn the shoes, we do not intend to make any demands to the shoe store owner," and "I reported this hoping others will not suffer the same damage."
Mr. A and his friend immediately visited the shoe store, thinking the owner had made a wrong payment. The owner explained, "It is correct that I paid for a pair of boots worth 250,000 won and two pairs of boots worth 180,000 won," and said he purchased two pairs of shoes and even gave a discount. JTBC 'Sageon Banjang'
In response to Mr. A's tip, lawyer Park Ji-hoon raised his voice, saying, "This is not just overcharging; it is fraud." Meanwhile, statistics released by the Korea Consumer Agency show that consultations regarding foreign tourists' damages have exceeded an average of 500 cases annually over the past three years. Experts point out, "Eradicating overcharging is urgent to secure competitiveness in the tourism industry."
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