Lee Yeon-woo is a financial journalist at The Korea Times. Her wide range of reporting includes policies, macroeconomics, stock market, companies and even crypto. She is passionate about connecting the dots in Korean finance and making it easier for foreign nationals to understand. Based on her previous experience as a national reporter, she also has a keen interest in social issues within the sector, including gender equality and ESG. Your tips and insights are always appreciated. You can send them to yanu@koreatimes.co.kr.
Agoda, Trip.com lead in consumer complaints for international transactions
Terminal 1 at Incheon International Airport is crowded with outbound travelers, August 5. Yonhap
By Lee Yeon-woo
Agoda and Trip.com saw a higher frequency of consumer complaints related to international transactions filed with the Korea Consumer Agency (KCA) in the second quarter of this year, compared to those of Chinese e-commerce platforms.
According to the KCA, Friday, a total of 4,458 consumer complaints concerning international transactions were received during the April to June period. This represents a 0.4 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
Among the registered complaints, airline tickets and services led with 1,158 cases (26 percent), followed by clothing and footwear with 866 cases (19.4 percent) and lodgings with 742 cases (16.6 percent). The primary reasons for these complaints were delays and refusals regarding cancellations, refunds and exchanges.
By country of business origin, Singapore ranked first with 967 cases (38 percent), followed by China and Hong Kong with 522 cases (20.5 percent), and the United States with 303 cases (11.9 percent). Singapore's top ranking is attributed to its status as the headquarters for major online travel booking platforms such as Agoda and Trip.com.
In the second quarter of this year, Agoda received 610 complaints and Trip.com received 327, far surpassing the complaints against Chinese e-commerce platforms like AliExpress and Temu, which had 222 and 92 complaints, respectively.
Notably, the number of complaints against AliExpress dropped by more than half — from 524 cases in the first quarter to 222 cases in the second quarter. This decline is partly due to the voluntary safety agreement that AliExpress signed with the Fair Trade Commission this May.
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As part of this agreement, the KCA set up a hotline to swiftly block and remove hazardous products from platforms like AliExpress and Temu, enhancing their monitoring and enforcement efforts.