324 complaints in first five months
From the light boxes in MTR stations to lamp posts and building walls, the city is plastered with advertisements and posters put up by beauty parlours promoting their programmes.
They highlight management by doctors and 'success cases' of celebrities and movie stars who act as their public faces.
The treatments include Botox injections, laser treatment and many different beauty programmes packaged with specialty terms such as Juvederm and N-Pro.
But not all the customers are as happy as the beaming celebrities in the posters appear to be.
The Consumer Council received 324 complaints about beauty services in the first five months of this year and 1,480 in the whole of last year - a 9 per cent rise on 1,353 in 2008.
Among recent complaints was one from a woman who visited a beauty parlour that highlighted management of its programmes by doctors.
She wanted to have her eye bags removed and initially paid HK$4,000 for a non-medical treatment. But she changed her mind and decided she wanted to go to a doctor, whereupon she was persuaded to pay HK$3,000 for a referral.
But after the consultation, the doctor warned the woman of the possible risk and complications of surgery. The woman eventually decided not to have the operation and asked for a refund of a total of HK$7,000. Although she had not used any of its services, the beauty parlour refused to pay.
Despite repeated inquiries to two chains, Dr Reborn and MD Laser Skin Centre, about their claims of 'management by doctors', neither returned calls.
