Legislators urge broader cooling-off law after abrupt Hotstone Yoga closure
Lawmakers warn current proposal is too narrowly focused and should encompass emerging health trends or consumers will be left vulnerable
Hong Kong lawmakers have urged the government to widen the scope of a proposed statutory cooling-off law to cover more types of wellness market trends after the abrupt shutdown of the Hotstone Yoga chain, as claimed financial losses by customers rose to HK$3.9 million (US$497,030).
Their calls followed the government’s commitment to introduce a bill in the Legislative Council in the first half of next year that would establish a statutory cooling-off period for prepaid fitness and beauty contracts.
However, lawmakers said on Friday that the current proposals were too narrowly focused on fitness centres and beauty parlours, leaving consumers unprotected against evolving wellness trends.
Lawmaker Jeff Yiu Ming said the legislation needed to keep pace with shifting market trends, pointing out that fitness offerings now included kickboxing, Pilates and yoga.
