The distributor of a controversial Korea King frying pan has been ordered to suspend its TV commercials with immediate effect and revise any exaggerated claims about the pan, which it said is coated in marble.
Korea King frying pan under fire.
The Consumer Protection Board issued the order at a meeting yesterday led by the office's secretary-general Pol Maj Gen Prasit Chaloemwutthisak and representatives from Wizard Solutions Co, the importer and distributor of the pans.
The regulator stepped in after questions were raised about the claims made by Korea King.
The company hired popular talk show host Vuthithorn "Woody" Milintachinda as a brand ambassador. According to the company, more than one million Thai households have purchased the frying pan.
But criticism that the pan is grossly overpriced in Thailand arose after one consumer posted on Facebook that a Korea King pan sells for just 600 baht in Singapore. He posted a photo of the pan with the accompanying price tag.
One Korea King TV commercial says the Diamond Series cooking pan retails for 18,000 baht but TV audiences can get it for 3,800 baht via a home shopping channel, plus one free pan.
Weerapong Boonyopas, who heads the consumer panel on direct marketing, said a decision was made to suspend the TV adverts due to the "fake" retail price claimed and the "unfair" use of promotions that may mislead the public about the value they are getting.
There is also no proof that the pan comes coated in eight layers of marble as advertised, Mr Weerapong said, adding that test results are pending but a preliminary investigation suggests the number has been exaggerated.
He said the documents supplied by the distributor provide a general description of the product but the office requires more details about the materials used.
The company has cited intellectual property rights as a reason for its inability to hand over the requested information, he said, adding that its representatives are legal specialists, not product specialists.
The consumer board has decided to suspend the advertisements and ordered the changes to avoid further damage, he said, adding that the pans have not been pulled off the shelves.
Mr Weerapong said buyers may lodge a complaint with a court or with the office if the official test results show the product does not live up to the claims made about it in the ads.
"Buyers are likely to be stimulated by the claim of an eight-layer coating, and they only have five minutes to decide to purchase," he said.
Vipak Chusak, an adviser to Wizard Solutions, said the company is prepared to file a lawsuit against the person who claimed the product quality does not match its ads.
He said the company will ask the manufacturer in South Korea to take responsibility if the test results show the cookware fails to live up to expectations.
Chaiyut Khamkhun, deputy director-general of the Customs Department, confirmed yesterday that hundreds of thousands of the pans have been imported from South Korea.
He said the cookware is exempt from taxes under the FTA between Asean and South Korea, but it is subject to 7% value-added tax.