The colorful photos of family reunion dinners shown on some hotels' flyers are only for "reference," but nearly one-third of Taipei hotels surveyed by the Consumers' Foundation (消基會) were found to have evaded their responsibilities by adding this information to their catalogues.
Three out of the 11 hotels the foundation examined in Taipei said that they retained the right to change the composition or size of products and that the samples shown on their flyers were "only for reference."
"The use of such statements seems to be in violation of the Fair Trade Act (
The Westin Taipei, Hai Pa Wang and Hotel Royal Taipei could be fined from NT$50,000 (US$1,515) to NT$25 million according to Article 41 of the Fair Trade Act for using the "only for reference" statement, he said.
As pre-paid purchases of Lunar New Year feasts from hotels, convenience stores and hypermarkets has become a modern trend, the foundation this year examined brochures printed by hotels to check whether they adhered to legal requirements, Cheng said.
While all the hotels that were surveyed claim that consumers can pick up freshly cooked meals themselves, some also offer home delivery services, which would necessitate reheating. However, none of the flyers detail heating and preservation methods, the foundation said.
In addition, none of the hotels provided nutrition facts and unit weights for the dishes, it said.
A set of regulations demanding that nutritional information be provided on all packaged food has been in effect since September 2002.
Although the Lunar New Year dishes prepared at hotels are not considered to be packaged food, the hotels should still be able to offer the information for consumers' reference, Cheng said.
The lack of unit weights could give rise to misunderstandings, which hotel operators should avoid, the foundation said.
The non-profit organization reminded consumers that such pre-paid purchases are protected by regulations governing mail orders, which allow shoppers a seven-day reconsideration period.
Article 19 of the Consumer Protection Law states that "consumers of a mail order or door-to-door sale, if unwilling to purchase the goods received by them, may return the goods or notify in writing the business operators to rescind the purchase contract within seven days upon receipt of such goods without stating reasons or paying any expenses or the purchase price."
"Buyers can demand a refund within a week without giving any reasons, even if it's expensive shark's fin," foundation vice chairman Hsieh Tien-jen (謝天仁) said.
The 11 hotels examined were the Ambassador Hotel Taipei, Hotel Royal Taipei, Taipei Fortuna Hotel, Formosa Regent Taipei, the Westin Taipei, Hai Pa Wang, Agora Garden, Gloria Prince Hotel, Howard Plaza Hotel Taipei, Brother Hotel and Crowne Plaza Taipei.
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