Malls, Big Box Stores Fined for Building Code Violations|北市進行賣場安檢 4違規業者遭罰12萬
With Chinese New Year approaching, the Taipei City Government has been holding spot safety inspections at department stores and hypermarkets. Of 45 stores inspected, four were found to be in violation of the Building Act. Fines of NT$120,000 were issued for violations including roll-up doors that don't work and using fire escapes for storage. Taipei City consumer protection officials also remind everyone that many businesses have been promoting zero-interest purchases to students and these often lead to consumer disputes. The Taipei City Government recently completed spot safety inspections of 45 department stores, hypermarkets and restaurants. High-end mall Bellavita was fined for keeping refrigerators on its fire escape. They put a large refrigerator there, which partially blocks the fire door. Sogo's Dunhua store, meanwhile, was also found to be using its fire escape as storage. Carrefour's Neihu store and Miranew Square were fined for non-working roll-up doors. The four stores were fined NT$120,000 total and have all made necessary changes. The Taipei City Department of Legal Affairs has issued an alert calling on younger consumers to beware of zero-interest purchases. It targets younger consumers, offering them zero-interest payments even if they don't have credit cards. If the consumer can't make payments on time down the line, they get hassled by debt collectors. The department says the Happyfan7 shopping website, which is popular with students, is selling the iPhone 11 Pro Max for NT$56,000, which is much higher than the NT$45,000 price tag at Apple stores. Websites like Happyfan7 charge high processing fees, require payment in advance, don't offer deductions and sometimes even require personal checks for payment. Consumer disputes are common with these websites. 台北市信義區的百貨公司，以各種裝飾，迎接即將到來的年節，為了確保民眾過年到百貨公司、大賣場與餐廳消費的安全，北市府針對45家場所進行公安檢查，結果貴婦百貨Bellavita，被查到安全梯間放冰箱、影響逃生。 台北市建管處正工程司 李秋林表示：「你看它放了一個大的冰箱，造成這個防火門沒辦法往外開，它只能夠開一半左右而已。」 另外，太平洋崇光百貨敦化分公司，也出現逃生梯堆置雜物，家樂福內湖店與美麗新廣場，則因防火鐵捲門無法順利升降，共四家被裁罰12萬，並已完成改善。 年節是消費旺季，法務局發布消費警訊，呼籲年輕族群，小心以「無卡分期」購買高價商品的風險。 台北市法務局主任消保官 楊麗萍表示：「主打說年輕族群，即使你沒有信用卡，也可以用分期的方式，先享受後付款，萬一沒有辦法按期繳款的時候，會遭受到資融公司催繳的這些困擾。」 法務局舉例，大受學生歡迎的「樂分期」網站，販售iPhone11Pro Max手機，要5萬6千多元，高於蘋果直營店的4萬5千多，此種消費模式，手續費高，提前清償也沒有減免，甚至部分交易要消費者簽本票，易發生消費爭議。
