"Do Not Use Coupang's 50,000 Won Coupons"... Legal Community Raises Concerns

Using Coupons May Be Considered "Agreement"
Possible Restrictions on Legal Rights, Concerns Over Disadvantage in Lawsuit

As Coupang proposed compensation in the form of coupons worth 50,000 won in response to the massive personal information leak, concerns have been raised that using these coupons could disadvantage participants in the class action lawsuit for damages against Coupang when exercising their future legal rights.

A massive personal information leak involving over 30 million cases occurred at Coupang. This scale surpasses the economically active population of 29.69 million, making it the worst leak in history. Photo by Yoon Dongju at Coupang headquarters on the 1st.

Illo, the law firm currently pursuing a damages lawsuit against Coupang, recently posted an official notice on its online community, stating, "If you use the compensation coupons provided by Coupang, you may unknowingly suffer disadvantages," and urged, "Please refrain from using the coupons."

On December 29, Coupang announced a compensation plan totaling 1.685 trillion won for 33.7 million customers. Specifically, each customer will receive four types of vouchers worth a total of 50,000 won, each usable once: 5,000 won for all Coupang products, 5,000 won for Coupang Eats, 20,000 won for Coupang Travel products, and 20,000 won for Alux products. Coupang Travel is Coupang's travel product platform, and Alux is its luxury goods platform.

Illo pointed out, "Coupang's compensation plan is not a cash payment for direct damage recovery, but rather a discount for purchasing its own products," adding, "Instead of contributing its own assets, Coupang is attempting to minimize its costs by encouraging additional customer spending, which amounts to an evasion of responsibility."

In particular, Illo expressed concern that using the coupons could limit customers' legal rights. The firm stated, "The most important point to note is the possibility that the terms and conditions may include a 'no further claims' clause, which deems all compensation to be settled by this offer and prohibits any future civil or criminal claims," and added, "Because Coupang has an 'automatic coupon application' system, coupons may be used regardless of the consumer's intent, potentially limiting their rights or reducing the amount of damages they can claim in the future."

A 'no further claims' agreement means that, after a dispute, the parties agree not to raise any further civil or criminal objections regarding the matter.

Illo added, "Although such agreements are strictly interpreted and may be deemed invalid, Coupang could still use this as grounds to argue that some lawsuit participants are not eligible or that those who used the coupons should receive reduced compensation." The firm emphasized, "In other words, this could be used as a strategy to delay the lawsuit, so we strongly advise you to refrain from using the coupons."