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A total of 37 complaints about fashion retailer MDS Collections were filed between Jun. 1, 2019 and Dec. 31, 2020, the Consumer Association of Singapore (CASE) said on Feb. 9.

Majority of the complaints pertained to consumers failing to receive their orders.

MDS Collections did not resolve the complaints that were received by CASE, hence, a warning letter was issued to MDS Collections.

Complaints

Consumers had complained that they either did not receive their orders or received incomplete orders on the scheduled delivery date.

Some also reported that though they had waited over six months after the scheduled delivery date, they still had not received their items.

Further, some consumers who were notified by MDS Collections to collect their orders at the retail outlets found that the stores were closed when they arrived.

Other consumers complained that they faced problems with their subscriptions such as:

• Not receiving any credits after signing up for the monthly subscriptions.
• Unauthorised charges: MDS Collections continued to charge them monthly fees although they had already terminated their subscriptions.

In addition, some consumers complained that despite waiting for several months, MDS Collections did not issue refunds for incomplete deliveries and for items they had returned to the company.

This is despite the company's refund policy that states that the maximum refund processing time is 45 days.

No response from MDS Collections

According to consumer feedback to CASE, those who contacted MDS Collections to resolve the issues either received no response or non-committal response.

To date, MDS Collections has failed to resolve most of the complaints received by CASE, while still continuing with their online sales.

Under the Consumer Protection Fair Trading Act (CPFTA), it is an unfair practice for a supplier to make false claims that goods are available or available in particular quantities if the supplier knows or can reasonably be expected to know it is not so.

CASE said that they would monitor MDS Collections closely, and will not hesitate to take the necessary action provided for under the CPFTA.

This includes referring the matter to the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) to take action to protect the interests of consumers.

In the meantime, consumers with complaints that have yet to be resolved by MDS Collections can seek advice from CASE.

Background

MDS Collections is a clothing and fashion retailer where consumers can purchase via their online store, Facebook Live sales and physical retail stores.

For the online store, consumers can purchase items at listed prices or opt for a monthly subscription priced at S$29.90, S$49.90 or S$99.90.

They will then receive credits to redeem items and buy them at discounted prices.

The subscription is automatically renewed each month and has a minimum duration of three months.

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Top photos via MDS Collections