Online duty free shops slapped with fines

By Lee Hyo-sik

The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) has fined the operators of 10 online duty free shops a combined 33 million won ($30,000) for deceiving consumers with false advertisements and refusing to provide refunds, the watchdog said Sunday.

The anti-trust agency also ordered the companies to end these malpractices.

Those fined include CyberSky, Korean Air’s online duty free shop, Dongwha Duty Free, Lotte Duty Free, Busan Lotte Duty Free, Shilla Duty Free, Shinsegae Duty Free, Walkerhill Duty Free, Asiana Duty Free, Air Busan Duty Free and Jeju Duty Free. Each company was fined between 1 million won and 5 million won.

“We believe our latest action will help improve consumer rights by encouraging online duty free shops to provide shoppers with accurate information,” an official said. “Retailers will also become more willing to give a refund. We will continue to monitor online duty free retailers to ensure that they abide by laws and respect consumer rights.”

Dongwha Duty Free and five other duty free websites were found to have carried a notice suggesting that consumers cannot demand a refund for duty free goods bought online. However, according to the law governing cyber transactions, shoppers can ask online retailers to provide refunds for any merchandise within seven days after they receive a delivery.

FTC fined CyberSky, Asiana Duty Free and Air Busan Duty Free for not notifying consumers of all the details concerning online transactions, which the agency said hurt consumer rights.

Lotte, Shilla, Walkerhill and Dongwha were found to have forced shoppers to visit offline retail shops or make a phone call when they cancel online purchases.

Shilla was also fined for falsely advertizing that it was the only online duty free shop offering a discount on certain products when its rivals were doing the same.