Satisfaction of Consumption Life Declines Compared to 2013; Satisfaction Level Highest in Jeju and Seoul and Lowest in Gyeongnam Province and Chungbuk Province

-"2015 Consumption Life Indicators in Korea"-

  The Korea Consumer Agency (www.kca.go.kr) announced the “2015 Consumption Life Indicators in Korea” that assesses the public’s consumption experience and identifies problems.

□ High level of satisfaction observed in dietary life, medical care, and culture/leisure

  The satisfaction level in overall consumption life over the past year averaged 63.8 points out of 100, lower than 71.6 points in 2013, which implies that the degree of meeting expectations and demands in consumption life declined more compared to two years ago. By sector, satisfaction level was the highest in dietary life (66.5 points), medical care (64.2 points), and culture/leisure (64.0 points) while satisfaction level was the lowest in wedding/funeral service (59.1 points), beauty/health (60.6 points), and finance/insurance (61.2 points). In particular, wedding/funeral service recorded the lowest satisfaction level in 2015 as well as in 2013.

  By region, consumption life satisfaction was high in Jeju and Seoul and low in Gyeongnam Province and Chungbuk Province. In Jeju and Seoul, consumers showed high level of satisfaction in basic life necessities (food, clothing, and shelter) and medical care. In Gyeongnam Province and Chungbuk Province, satisfaction scores were low in most consumption sectors.

□ Consumption life satisfaction varies among the middle class

  Since 1994, the KCA has been tracking consumer groups by dividing them into six groups (upper-upper class, lower-upper class, upper-middle class, lower-middle class, upper-lower class, and lower-lower class). In this year’s survey, 65.2% of consumers said that they fell under the middle class which is 2.7%p higher than 62.5% in 2013. If breaking down the middle class into the upper-middle class and the lower-middle class, consumers who believed they belonged in the former group fell 3.0%p while the latter group rose 5.7%p. The consumption polarization index is calculated based on the lower class/upper class ratio. In 2015, the index reached a historic high of 167 (2007=100) which implies that polarization has deepened.

□ 60 out of 100 consumers experienced problems; 14 out of 60 consumers incurred damages

  On an annual basis, the degree of problems experienced (problem experience rate) in the overall consumption sector averaged59.6%, meaning that 60 out of 100 consumers experienced at least one problem each year.

  Looking at the experience rate by type of consumer problem, “expensive price compared to quality” was the highest at 25.5% followed by “shortage of consumer information” (12.6%), “low quality” (11.9%), and “unfair labeling/advertising” (10.6%).

  The experience rate as to complaints while engaging in transaction with a business operator stood at 39.3%. Of those experiences, 13.6% led to consumer damages caused by product defect. In short, roughly 14 out of 100 consumers experienced damages at least once each year. Of the 14 consumers, 21.0% requested dispute resolution to a consumer agency or organization. In assuming that the population over the age of 20 totals 40,747,639 as of 2014, the number of annual consumer dispute requests in Korea is estimated to surpass 1.2 million cases.

□ Consumers frequently incur damages in basic needs, medical care, and information & communications

  Over the past year, consumers were found to have incurred the most frequent damages in the following consumption sectors: basic needs (food: 5.7%, clothing: 5.4%, shelter: 2.6%); medical care (2.5%); and information & communications (2.3%).

  Developing consumer policies need to be seriously considered as to consumption sectors which recorded the lowest satisfaction level or the most frequent consumer damages. Meanwhile, countermeasures are called for in sectors that showed the highest satisfaction level and the most frequent consumer damages so as to prevent disputes with business operators due to higher consumer expectation level. As for regional consumers who showed relatively low satisfaction level and high damage experience rate, improvement measures are needed such as strengthening regional consumer administration and empowering consumers.