Firms amend misleading ads as new Hong Kong law kicks in
Beauty parlours, tour agencies withdraw misleading ads and restaurants state extra charges clearly in accordance with ordinance
From beauty parlours to restaurants to tour agencies, firms in the services sector are revising their practices as new consumer protection laws kick in today.
The amended Trade Descriptions Ordinance bans all forms of false descriptions of goods and services. Omitting important charges and adopting aggressive sales tactics are also illegal under the new law.
In the past, an advert may have claimed 'de-wrinkling all in one go'. Now, it has to change to something like 'reduce wrinkles by 20 per cent
Maggie Leung Mei-ying, vice-chairman of the Hair and Beauty Merchants Association, said adverts had to be changed in accordance with the ordinance.
"In the past, an advert may have claimed 'de-wrinkling all in one go'. Now, it has to change to something like 'reduce wrinkles by 20 per cent'," she said.
Salespeople in the beauty business had also been reminded not to exaggerate treatment effects, and were advised to make it clear to customers that the levels of effectiveness might vary for different people, she said.
Leung said companies would still use celebrities as spokespeople, but they had to be users of the products if the adverts included claims of how effective they were on the celebrities.
Nelson Ip Sai-hung, founding chairman of the Federation of Beauty Industry, said some beauty chains had pulled their adverts from magazines amid concerns of breaching the new law.
