Singapore beauty industry sees 76.2% rise in complaints, over $2.1m lost in 2025: CASE

The industry accounted for over $2.1 million lost through prepayments, most of which were due to the abrupt closure of Wan Yang Health Product and Foot Reflexology Centre.SINGAPORE – There were a total of 2,113 consumer complaints against the beauty industry here in 2025, a 76.2 per cent rise from 1,199 such complaints in 2024.The industry accounted for over $2.1 million lost through prepayments, most of which were due to the abrupt closure of Wan Yang Health Product and Foot Reflexology Centre in November 2025.Of the 2,113 complaints against the beauty industry, prepayment losses due to sudden business closures accounted for about two in five complaints, the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) said in a statement on Feb 9.The beauty industry accounted for 78.6 per cent of prepayment losses logged across different sectors, while Wan Yang’s closure alone accounted for around $1.25 million in losses.Other than the beauty industry, the travel industry also saw a 47.4 per cent surge in complaints from 420 in 2024 to 619 in 2025.Of the 619 complaints, 50.7 per cent were related to cancellations, changes to travel plans or refund disputes.Some 91.6 per cent of the complaints received involved online travel agents, complaints against which almost doubled by 49.2 per cent from 380 in 2024 to 567 in 2025.CASE said the increase in complaints against travel industry is in line with higher travel volumes, with Singapore seeing an all-time high passenger movement of 69.98 million in 2025.Including the beauty and travel industries, CASE received a total of 13,786 consumer complaints in 2025.Other industries that accounted for the highest complaints were electrical and electronics, motorcars, renovation contractors and telecommunications.The electrical and electronics sector saw a 3.4 per cent drop in complaints in 2025, with 41.9 per cent being related to defective goods and goods that do not conform to contract.The motorcar industry saw a 16.5 per cent decrease in complaints, around one third of which were related to defective motorcars and 15.7 per cent were related to failure to honour agreed terms and conditions after payments have been made.Complaints against renovation contractors decreased from 962 to 787 complaints in 2025, with prepayment losses in the sector decreasing from close to $730,000 to slightly above $190,000.The consumer rights watchdog also received 3,588 complaints against the e-commerce sector, a decrease of 22.7 per cent compared to 4,641 complaints in 2024.Source: The Straits Times © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproductionDiscover how to enjoy other premium articles here