Gyeonggi Province, Mediating Success in 138 out of 157 Wedding Venue Consumer Disputes (87.9%)

[Suwon Ilbo=Park No-hun Reporter] Wedding Venue A (located in Anyang) saw 24 mediation applications filed within one week of Gyeonggi Province's wedding venue dispute mediation intake beginning, as consumer complaints surged due to strengthened social distancing in the capital region caused by COVID-19. Gyeonggi Province established mediation standards that coordinated the differing positions of consumers and wedding venues, including conditions such as a 30% reduction in guaranteed attendees during wedding proceedings, wedding schedule postponement without interim payments, and a 30% reduction in penalty fees for contract cancellation. As a result, 19 cases reached agreement, excluding 5 cases where consumers withdrew their mediation applications.

Consumer B (Ansan) who had a wedding scheduled for September 12 requested adjustment from the wedding venue regarding 250 guaranteed attendees due to gathering restrictions, but was notified that only 50 people could be accommodated. Consumer B, who subsequently applied for wedding dispute mediation with Gyeonggi Province, reached an agreement on September 8 to reduce the guaranteed attendees to 125 people (50%) and receive commemorative gifts (wine) instead of meals, proceeding with the wedding as originally planned.

As complaints of damage from engaged couples regarding wedding venues escalated due to strengthened social distancing at levels 2 to 2.5, Gyeonggi Province resolved 138 consumer disputes through wedding venue dispute mediation procedures established to facilitate smooth dispute resolution.

According to Gyeonggi Province on the 11th, the province received a total of 196 dispute mediation applications from residents from August 24, when it began accepting wedding venue dispute mediation applications, through October 5. Excluding 39 cases where consumers withdrew their applications, 138 out of 157 cases reached mediation. This represents a success rate of approximately 87.9%.

Gyeonggi Province began one-stop support system operations through the Gyeonggi Consumer Information Center starting August 24 after complaints from engaged couples experiencing difficulties due to wedding venue disputes resulting from strengthened social distancing were received via social media on August 19 by Gyeonggi Governor Lee Jae-myung. The province had previously operated such a system in March to resolve consumer disputes related to wedding venues.

Mediation results showed that adjustment of wedding contract guaranteed attendees accounted for the most cases at 46, followed by 40 cases of wedding schedule postponement, 37 cases of contract cancellation, and 15 cases of individual settlement.

Of the 19 cases where mediation was not established, 12 involved business operators refusing mediation and 7 involved consumers refusing mediation. For 3 of these cases involving business operators demanding excessive penalty fees or improperly conducting weddings, applications for adjustment have been submitted to the Consumer Dispute Mediation Committee. These 3 cases are scheduled to be addressed within one month as agenda items at the Gyeonggi Mediation Division meeting of the Consumer Dispute Mediation Committee.

Regarding why Gyeonggi Province's consumer dispute mediation achieved such a high success rate, the province cited systematic preparation and proactive response as reasons. The province analyzed that its tiered response system—primary damage handling through the dedicated support organization of the Gyeonggi Consumer Information Center, secondary mediation through designation of responsible personnel by business operator, and tertiary adjustment application through the Consumer Dispute Mediation Committee—is proving effective.

Any Gyeonggi Province resident who has signed a contract with a wedding venue during the continuation of social distancing level 2 can apply for wedding venue dispute mediation through the Gyeonggi Consumer Information Center (031-251-9898).

Gyeonggi Governor Lee Jae-myung stated, “Listening carefully to residents' messages and responding swiftly to ultimately solve problems is a consistent goal of Gyeonggi Province's administration” and added, “Going forward, I will focus on the role of public servants to actually improve residents' lives. Beyond wedding venue issues, we will play a comprehensive role in protecting consumer rights.”