By Hollie Younger / Staff writer, with CNA
Online games prompted the most consumer complaints last year for the fourth consecutive time, although there were fewer total complaints about the sector than the year before, the Executive Yuan’s Consumer Protection Committee said today.
The agency said in a news release that it received a total of 77,293 complaints and mediation cases last year, a reduction of 1,389 from the previous year’s total of 78,682.
Eighty percent of all cases last year were first-time complaints, it said.
Photo: CNA
The top five industries that received complaints were the same as the previous year: online games, transportation, food products, housing and “clothing, leatherware and shoes,” it said.
These five industries totaled 17,485 cases, 29 percent of all first-time complaints, it said.
Transportation-related complaints saw an increase of 9.36 percent, the committee said.
However, food products, accessories and online games saw a decrease, with the most marked reduction being in online games, which fell by 36.7 percent last year to 4,463 complaints, it added.
The agency said it coordinated response measures to complaints against online games with the Ministry of Digital Affairs.
It further strengthened oversight, warning operators to abide by mandatory provisions for standard contracts, it said.
Management regulations were clarified, including disclosing loot box odds, game rules and key contractual information, it said, adding that consumers were also advised to avoid using unauthorized plug-ins and choose online games developed or distributed by companies registered in Taiwan.
Consumers can launch complaints on the online complaint system or call the nationwide customer service hotline at 1950, the committee said.