Tourism council to decide how to hit retail cheats
Stiffer penalties and tougher measures to expose shops that cheat tourists will top the agenda at a board meeting of the Travel Industry Council today.
Concern has been growing recently about the impact of shopping scams on the tourism trade. At the centre of the latest shopping scandal is a CCTV report earlier this month that exposed the risks of mainland tourists being conned in Hong Kong.
Up for discussion will be how best to strengthen the council's demerit system to punish offending retailers, a source familiar with the situation said. Shops are usually subject to 10 demerit points out of a maximum of 30 if they do not comply with a 14-day refund policy.
'The system might be strengthened from 10 demerits to 15 or 20 or even suspension of the shop's registration, depending on the severity of the offence,' the source said.
'We'll also discuss whether demerits apply when complaints are received against a shop even though a refund has been made.'
It is also proposed that Customs be notified of any shops subject to demerits.
Other measures include legislation preventing company directors of offending shops from immediately changing the name of their business, as well as naming and shaming mainland tour companies involved in scams on the websites of the council and the China National Tourism Association, the source said.
'Publicly identifying the mainland company that brought the tour group to Hong Kong will put pressure on it to act more responsibly,' the source said.
The council has 25 board members. A simple majority is needed to approve the measures, except for the legislation about changing company names, which must go before the Legislative Council.
The council now publicises offenders on its website once they accumulate 20 demerit points.
So far, the most demerits the council has meted out is 15.
The council now updates the association every two months with any complaints it receives about local travel agents, tour guides and shops, although this information was previously not publicised.
The association will decide what details it will include on its website.
Watches bought from Majestic Watch & Jewellery in To Kwa Wan have generated the most complaints in this month's scandal. The retailer has agreed to full refunds.
