Consumer Council

• 2025.04.15
• Press Release

Heating and Cooling Energy Efficiency Could Vary by Over 25% Among Grade 1 “2 Horsepower” Split-Type Air Conditioners Advocating for Higher Energy Label Grading Standards To Help Save Energy and Reduce Carbon Emission

To maintain a stable room temperature throughout the seasons, more air conditioners are equipped with both cooling and heating functions. The Consumer Council tested 12 models of “2 horsepower (HP)” inverter split-type air conditioners, 5 of which were reverse cycle air conditioners (RCAC). Although all models had Grade 1 energy labels for both cooling and heating, the test results revealed that the actual energy efficiency varied considerably. Based on the Cooling Seasonal Performance...

• 2025.04.15
• Press Release

5 Models of Bath Bombs with Small Parts Had No User Age Warnings Manufacturers Urged to Improve Labelling Transparency to Ensure a Carefree Soak

A leisurely bath can be both relaxing and invigorating, and bath bombs with delightful scents are popular among children and adults alike. The Consumer Council tested 17 models of bath bombs, including 8 models with small gifts, 7 of which appeared only after it dissolved in water. All gifts contained small parts that could be swallowed by young children, posing choking hazards, yet 5 had no labelling in either Chinese or English on recommended user age and safety warnings. On the other hand, as...

• 2025.04.15
• Press Release

Medical and Accident Coverage of Travel Insurance Vary Significantly Over 90% Plans Lowered Coverage for Seniors and Children Industry Urged to Review

While many consumers may have already planned their travel itineraries for the upcoming Easter holidays, some may make last-minute purchases of travel insurance, without fully grasping the extent of coverage. The Consumer Council surveyed 27 single trip individual travel insurance plans and found that the maximum benefit limits for adults could vary by up to onefold among plans with similar premiums, while the scope of coverage across different plans exhibited considerable disparities....

• 2024.09.19
• Shopping Guide

Consumer Protection Tips for the Closure of Fitness Centres

1. ​​​​​​Should I accept the offer to transfer my membership to another fitness centre as the current centre has been closed? Consumers should understand and consider the following from the fitness centre before deciding : Are there any...

• 2024.09.13
• Shopping Guide

Should Physical’s existing customers sign the consent offered by HEALTHY?

Q: As an existing customer of Physical Fitness, I’m aware that HEALTHY claims to provide existing Physical customers with their remaining services including the gym card, personal training sessions and beauty service. However, staff members have...

• 2024.08.20
• Shopping Guide

4 Major Bread Spreads: A Health and Indulgence Comparison !

Comparison Results Protein Comparison: Peanut Butter and Sesame Paste Win Protein helps build muscles and repair cells and tissues. According to the Nutrient Data Laboratory under the U.S. Department of Agriculture, peanut butter and sesame paste...

• 2025.04.25
• Advocacy

Submission to the Insurance Authority in Response to the Consultation Paper on the Draft Insurance (Public Disclosure) Rules

The Consumer Council (the Council) is pleased to submit its views with respect to the consultation paper issued by the Insurance Authority (IA) on the draft rules to be made under sections 21A and 129 of the Insurance Ordinance (Cap. 41), namely the Insurance (Public Disclosure) Rules. The Council’s Overall Stance The Council is in principle supportive of the IA’s introduction of new rules pertaining to the disclosure of information about the insurer’s state of affairs according to the...

• 2025.03.21
• Advocacy

The Revised “Code of Practice of the Jewellery Retail Industry” Further Enhances Consumer Protection

• 2025.03.06
• Advocacy

Price Transparency in Healthcare: Fostering Consumer Trust and Value

Full Report(English only) Executive Summary(Chinese) Executive Summary(English) Presentation(Chinese) Presentation(English) Overview Over the past decade, the demand for healthcare services in Hong Kong has surged due to population ageing and a rising life expectancy. Meanwhile, to address the imbalance between the public and private sectors and ease the pressure on public healthcare, the Government has encouraged greater adoption of private healthcare services. Yet, the information asymmetry...

• 2025.04.28
• Consumer Alerts

Do not consume a batch of imported sunflower seed product suspected to be contaminated with aflatoxin

Issue Date 28.4.2025 Source of Information Notification from the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) of the European Commission (EU) Food Product Sunflower seeds Product Name and Description Product name: Zonnebloempitten (Sunflower seeds) Brand: Tovano Place of origin: Bulgaria Net weight: 700g Best before date: November 30, 2025 Batch number: 346704-038 Importer: Chef's Garden Limited Retailer: Feather & Bone Reason For Issuing Alert The CFS noted a notification from the RASFF of the...

• 2025.04.08
• Consumer Alerts

Not to consume batch of prepackaged chocolate product suspected to contain metal fragments

Issue Date 8.4.2025 Source of Information Food Standards Agency of the United Kingdom and the Food Safety Authority of Ireland Food Product Prepackaged chocolate product Product Name and Description Product name: Hollow Chocolate Egg (Milk Chocolate) Brand: Tony's Chocolonely Place of origin: Belgium Pack size: 242 grams Batch number: L3234D Importer: The Dairy Farm Company Limited Best-before date: June 2025 Reason For Issuing Alert - The Centre for Food Safety (CFS), through its Food Incident...

• 2025.04.02
• Consumer Alerts

DH requires manufacturer to recall unregistered proprietary Chinese medicine for external use (with photo)

The Department of Health (DH) today (April 2) announced that a licensed manufacturer of proprietary Chinese medicines (pCm), Merika Medicine Factory Ltd (Merika), located on Wong Chuk Yeung Street, Fo Tan, New Territories, had not manufactured a pCm for external use called "Golden Statue Cinnamon Oil & Embrocation" according to the registered particulars and was therefore suspected of illegal sale and possession of unregistered pCm. The DH has immediately requested Merika to recall the batch of...