Hong Kong Customs today (March 21) arrested a salesman of a medicine shop suspected to have engaged in unfair trade practices involving a misleading omission in the course of selling Chinese medicines, in contravention of the Trade Descriptions Ordinance (TDO).
Customs earlier received information alleging that a salesperson of a medicine shop in Central was suspected of engaging in unfair trade practices when selling Chinese medicines. An investigation found that, during the course of selling three types of Chinese medicines, the salesperson provided material information in an untimely manner about the total price of the Chinese medicines. He only revealed that one of the medicines was priced per mace and disclosed the actual total price of the medicine after it was ground. The charged price was 10 times higher than what was expected.
After an in-depth investigation, Customs officers today arrested the salesman, aged 31, of the medicine shop concerned.
An investigation is ongoing and the arrested man was held for inquiry.
Customs has all along been concerned about visitors being misled to make purchases by unfair trade practices and has established a Quick Response Team to handle urgent complaints lodged by short-haul visitors. The complaints will be promptly referred to investigators to handle with priority.
Customs reminded traders to comply with the requirements of the TDO and consumers to purchase products from reputable shops. Consumers should also be cautious about the unit price and ask for more information, including the total price of the goods selected, before making a purchase decision.
Under the TDO, any person who engages in a commercial practice that omits or hides material information or provides material information in a manner that is unclear, unintelligible, ambiguous or untimely, and as a result causes, or is likely to cause, an average consumer to make a transactional decision, commits an offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $500,000 and imprisonment for five years.
Members of the public may report any suspected violations of the TDO to Customs' 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002/).
Ends/Thursday, March 21, 2024