Apart from the Unicorn Ride deal we’ve seen on Groupon Malaysia which we all know was just for giggles, but there’s also a possibility that an internet deal that’s just too good to be true.
According to the National Consumer Complaints Centre (NCCC), about 400 complaints over deal sites in only four months.
NCCC’s deputy director, K. Ravin, about 61% of the complaints, filed between September and December last year, were about product quality, while other complaints included misleading information and problems with delivery or refunds.
“Many have found the products they bought to be not of the quality advertised. Some have also complained that the products turned out to be counterfeit,” expanded Ravin.
A lot of complaints with regards to misleading information of prices were common, especially for beauty and spa packages.
“For example, a facial package originally priced at RM2,000 is being offered at RM150. It sounds really good but when you get there, there are other things you need to pay for before you can get the package at RM150. In the end, the customer may still have to form out close to RM2,000,” he added.
Lawyer, Sankara Nair says that people need to aware of their rights under the Consumer Protection Act 1999, as the popularity of e-shopping and deal sites are steadily growing. And whether the transaction takes place over the Internet or face-to-face, the effect is still the same.
Section 10(1)(a) of the Consumer Protection Act states: “No person shall make a false or misleading representation that the goods are of a particular kind, standard, quality, grade, quantity, composition, style or model”.
“The sites are in the best position to know if they are getting their goods from a supplier of original products,” said Sankara. (Source)
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