Published: 10:01pm, 5 Feb 2025Updated: 10:04pm, 5 Feb 2025
The closure of Hong Kong gym chain Physical has been voted the top consumer news story in 2024, followed by football star Lionel Messi’s absence in a key match and the suspension of the waste charging scheme, according to the city’s consumer watchdog.
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The Consumer Council revealed on Wednesday the results of its survey about the biggest news stories of the year, which attracted a record-high 14,429 voters, triple last year’s 4,620.
The campaign, conducted in partnership with major local media organisations from January 2 to 22 this year, aimed to raise public awareness and attention about consumer rights.
“The closure of a local large-scale gym and beauty chain reminds consumers to think twice before committing to a prepayment,” said council chairman Clement Chan Kam-wing. “The subpar arrangements of certain mega-events also caused consumer dissatisfaction, which serves as a reminder for organisers to learn a lesson.”
More than half of the voters picked the closure of Physical Fitness as the top consumer news story in the Year of the Dragon, a business shock that drew more than 5,600 consumer complaint cases amounting to close to HK$200 million.
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The chain shut down in September last year after 38 years in business, citing a need to restructure its business and blaming high rents for its financial troubles.
The incident triggered discussions about establishing a mandatory cooling-off period and a limit on the duration of prepaid contracts, as well as strengthening regulations for businesses that operated on a prepayment model.