After collecting ang baos over the Chinese New Year weekend, it's nice to spend some of it on something useful, like say, a screen protector.

But how much would you spend on a screen protector for your mobile phone?

S$145 for screen protector and one-year warranty

On Feb. 18, Denise Han posted on Facebook on how her domestic helper was charged an exorbitant price for a mobile phone screen protector.

According to Han's post, her helper had asked for a screen protector from EZ Advance Trading Enterprise Pte Ltd, a telecommunication equipment and systems shop in Lucky Plaza, thinking it will only cost her up to S$20.

However, after the screen protector was applied on her phone, she was given an invoice that charged her S$145 for the screen protector, inclusive of a one-year warranty:

While the terms and conditions were not stated on the invoice, it is written that the helper has "agreed to term and conditions (sic) of shop".

Pressured to pay

Han's helper, however, didn't pay for the screen protector willingly.

The salesperson had allegedly pressured the helper into paying for the screen protector by threatening her, saying that the transaction was recorded on the shop's closed circuit camera.

Good quality tempered glass

Han's relative had called the shop owner on her behalf to ask about the S$145 screen protector, and this was what the shop owner apparently said:

“This is a good quality tempered glass too. Our tempered glass comes with free replacement, there’s a one year warranty.”

In a photo Han had attached on Feb. 19, however, the screen protector that is said to be made out of "good quality tempered glass" has chipped off.

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Poor reviews

This incident doesn't seem to be a one-off case as customers have left bad reviews about being severely overcharged for items, such as game consoles, mobile accessories and mobile phones.

Most of these reviews found on Tripadvisor and Google were left by foreigners and tourists, since Lucky Plaza is a tourist attraction and a hotspot for foreign workers.

"Get ripped off at EZ Advance Trading Enterprise, Lucky Plz Blok B1-70

I wish I had looked at this website to understand more about doggy (sic) shops in Lucky Plaza. We also got cheated by one of the shops there. The price of one XBOX games is 3-4x more than the normal price. My husband who was clueless about the price of the games, came back to the shop after I told him about the price, and nearly fought with the employee there. But hasn't Singapore Tourism Board done anything about this? So many reports about the SCAM at Lucky Plaza, and is still happening now. Couldn't they do anything to stop this? HOPELESS perhaps?? DON'T BUY ANY ELECTRONIC/GAMES IN LUCKY PLAZA. THE PEOPLE THERE ARE CHEATERS...................TRUST ME"

"These guys are criminals. They sold me a cheap quality China made glass screen protector for double the price. The guy was in such a hurry to con me and put the screen on my phone so that I could not go back on payment. By the time I reached home which is exactly 45 mins later, the screen protector came off. I want my money back else I will go to the police as these guys are thugs."

"The guys who run this store are a pair of criminals. I bought a cheap phone which cost me twice (than) what it would have done elsewhere. ASUS phones are cheap copies of HTC. The speaker volume is terrible and the camera suffers from light overlap. If the guys from the store are reading this - I look forward to returning to Singapore soon and 'visiting' your store again........ Good luck with your criminal ventures but continue looking over your shoulders. I'll see you soon."

"Do not buy anything from these guys. They tried to charge my wife 5 times the amount for a video game, luckily she knew they didn't cost that much so walked away."

Mothership has reached out to Denise Han for comment.

Top image via Denise Han's Facebook page

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