The Consumer Council received more than 2,700 complaints from elderly consumers last year, highlighting growing risks faced by seniors as Hong Kong promotes its “silver economy,” including cases involving complex technology products and high-value prepaid service contracts.
One of the most serious cases involved a woman in her 70s who was persuaded to buy beauty treatments totaling more than HK$300,000, despite already having a large number of unused sessions.
The complainant said she had difficulty reading contracts because of poor eyesight and relied on verbal explanations provided by staff at a beauty parlor she had patronized since 2022. She said she felt pressured to make repeated purchases after staff made it difficult for her to book appointments when she declined new packages.
Between 2022 and 2023, she spent more than HK$300,000 on treatments. Although she still had many unused sessions, she was later sold additional packages worth HK$105,000 and paid HK$79,000 upfront, without being informed of how many sessions remained or that the services were subject to a two-year expiration period.
It was only after she requested an account statement that she learned she had more than 550 unused treatments, which would take more than 20 years to use up if she attended appointments every two weeks — far beyond the validity of the contracts.
The woman sought the Consumer Council’s help to cancel the transaction and recover the HK$79,000 she had paid. The beauty parlor, however, said its staff had clearly explained the content, prices, and terms of the treatments during the sales process, including the non-refundable clause, and that the complainant had signed a receipt setting out those terms.
After conciliation by the Consumer Council, the parlor agreed only to cancel the outstanding balance of HK$26,000. The council advised the complainant to seek legal advice or apply for assistance under the Consumer Legal Action Fund.
In another case, an 80-year-old man bought a 48-inch OLED television for HK$12,500 after sales staff promised that a technician would provide installation and a demonstration of basic operations. While the television was installed, the technician left without explaining how to use it, leaving error messages that the man could not resolve.
After the retailer failed to provide follow-up assistance for more than a week, the man turned to the Consumer Council for help in arranging an exchange. The case was resolved when the retailer agreed to send a representative to provide a free in-home tutorial.
A third complaint involved a customer who planned to use elderly health care vouchers to buy progressive lenses with a budget of HK$1,500. At an optical shop, staff initially recommended two package options within the budget, but after a HK$200 eye exam, the customer was told to select frames and lenses separately.
The customer was quoted HK$4,000 for frames and HK$1,600 for lenses, only to later discover that the lens price was quoted per piece rather than per pair. He eventually paid HK$3,100, using HK$1,000 in vouchers, and later sought a refund through the Consumer Council.
After acknowledging the miscommunication, the shop offered to upgrade the lenses free of charge to photochromic progressive lenses.
The Consumer Council has urged elderly consumers to carefully assess their actual needs before making purchases, especially when faced with aggressive or attractive sales promotions.
For smart products, it advised consumers to inform sellers in advance of any after-sales support they require and to request demonstrations of common functions during installation.
The council also reminded seniors to pay attention to charges that may apply after free trial periods for streaming platforms and to avoid rushing into payments without fully understanding the terms. It warned against over-purchasing and urged consumers not to feel pressured into buying products simply to avoid offending acquaintances.
Family members were encouraged to help elderly relatives review bills and bank statements and to assist in explaining complex contracts where possible.
