The Consumer Council on Monday reported that the city's pharmacies and medicine shops faced 548 complaints regarding undesirable sales practices in the first eight months of 2025 -- a concerning sign of no improvement from last year's 556 cases of complaints.
In addition to using ambiguous pricing units like "catty" to "tael" and "tael" to "mace," the consumer watchdog noted that merchants have promoted imitation products with packaging nearly identical to well-known brands, and provide receipts that do not match the actual quantities sold.
Among the victims, a Singaporean tourist was persuaded by staff at a medicine shop to purchase the herb milk thistle, which was offered under a "buy 80, get 5 free" promotion.
However, the staff failed to clarify the pricing unit, and the complainant was presented with a bill of HK$30,400 for purchasing 80 mace at HK$380 each.
Insisting on receiving a receipt, the complainant suspected that the pricing unit on the receipt did not match the displayed price and filed a complaint with the Customs and Excise Department (C&ED) regarding the misleading tactics of the trader.
Following intervention from the Consumer Council, the shop ultimately agreed to issue a full refund.
The second case involved a mainland tourist who was looking for the proprietary Chinese medicine "Angong Niuhuang Wan".
As the tourist did not specify his preferred brand in mind, he was given an identically packaged product called "Beijing Angong Niuhuang Wan," which the staff claimed originated in Beijing.
Believing it to be his desired brand, the tourist paid about HK$2,640 for three boxes.
However, the tourist soon found that the manufacturer's name differed by one character upon closer inspection, contacting the Council about suspected counterfeit goods.
The Consumer Council then facilitated a full refund after negotiating with the merchant.
In a separate incident, a mainland visitor purchased a 6-vial box of "Huo Hsiang Cheng Chi Shui," a Chinese medicinal formula, only to discover that she had been charged for a 12-vial box priced at HK$170, as stated on the receipt.
Suspecting she had been overcharged, the complainant contacted the shop, which attributed the issue to a point of sale (POS) system error, insisting that the price of HK$170 for a 6-vial box was correct and refusing to issue a refund.
After comparing prices at other stores, the complainant found that the 6-vial box typically ranged from HK$40 to HK$50, prompting her to seek the Council's assistance.
The case was settled through conciliation, with the complainant receiving half of the amount refunded via an electronic payment platform.
Consumer Council's advice
The Council advises consumers to confirm pricing units and total costs when purchasing Chinese herbal medicine or dried seafood.
To protect consumer rights, it is encouraged to thoroughly check receipts to ensure the names, quantities, and prices of purchased items are correct. If there are any doubts, consumers should pause the transaction and clarify before proceeding.
The Council pointed out that 40 percent of pharmacy-related complaints involve sales tactics, with 71 percent coming from tourists.
Alaina Shum Jiu-fai, Chief Executive of the Consumer Council, attributed some complaints to language barriers, encouraging customers to clearly state their preferred brands and verify product authenticity before completing transactions.
