It's a point that disappears...Expiration date extension

[Anchor]
Various retailers and restaurant companies are securing regular customers by accumulating points.

It was investigated that the expiration date was too short and did not properly inform the customer when it expired.

Lee Seung-eun reports.

[Reporter]
Accrual points are bonds generated from commercial activities and are the property of consumers.

However, the hard-won points have disappeared without being used, leading to a series of disputes.

The number of consumer damage relief cases related to points by the Korea Consumer Agency has increased by 20-30% every year to nearly 200 cases a year.

According to a survey by the Fair Trade Commission and the Korea Consumer Agency on the operation of 50 accumulated points by companies that are widely used by the public, the validity period of 31 points, or 62%, was shorter than three years.

Lotte Mart Snow Plan, Top Ten Membership, and CalliMembers, these 3 were just 6 months old.

There is no law that sets the extinctive prescription for accumulated points, but the extinctive prescription for bonds under the Commercial Act is five years.

There were only 19 points that applied this, 38%.

In addition, there was a lack of procedures to inform in advance that 46 points, or 92%, would expire after the expiration date.

There were many places that informed them with only 15 or 20 days left of extinction or only one e-mail, and even 11 of them, or 22%, did not have prior notice regulations themselves.

In consultation with companies, the FTC decided to increase the validity period of accumulated points to three to five years.

In addition, the method of notification of extinction and the period of notification will be extended.

[Lee Kang-soo / Director of Consumer Transaction Policy Division, Fair Trade Commission: We plan to apply the extension of the expiration date in stages depending on the circumstances of individual companies, and we will start applying the points accumulated and accrued as early as this year or as late as 2026]

The Fair Trade Commission said that the number of points disappearing per year is estimated to be more than 13 billion won in the distribution sector alone, and urged them to check the expiration date in advance and use it.

I'm YTN's Lee Seung Eun.

Video editing Lee Jung-wook

Design Jeon Hwilin