Consumer watchdog sees up to 1,500 complaints against restaurants since last year
Hong Kong’s consumer watchdog said they have received 1,160 and 330 complaint cases about restaurants in 2022 and the first quarter of 2023 respectively, with about 30 percent involving charge disputes.
The Consumer Council said on Monday that the complaints involving charge disputes were commonly related to customers being charged service fees without alignment in understanding, and actual charges differing from the price displayed on the menu.
The council reminded that all traders, including restaurants, must inform customers clearly of all prices before transaction, and should not impose any previously undisclosed fees on consumers only at the point of sale.
It added that restaurants should ensure that the menu, ordering system, in-store signage, and promotional material are clear and consistent, that includes ensuring the prices are correct and whether a service charge is indicated to avoid unnecessary disputes.
The watchdog said one case had seen the complainant ordering through a QR code system at a restaurant, with the “service charge” field showing a fee of HK$0.
However, the restaurant insisted on a “+10% service charge” at payment, leaving the complainant no choice but to pay and later filed a complaint with the council.
During mediation by the council, the restaurant noted that their ordering system was recently launched with some settings still needed improvement and the “service charge” was mistakenly not displayed on the order form.
The restaurant eventually refunded the charge to the customer and had notified their system
supplier to rectify the issue.