In regard to the September 5th, 2016 media report of incidents of the Taiwan Samsung Electronics Galaxy Note7 mobile phone exploding, the Executive Yuan's Department of Consumer Protection (hereafter referred to as the DCP) has requested that competent authorities in the National Communications Commission (the NCC) ascertain the domestic safety and quality of the phone as soon as possible. Meanwhile, Taipei City government consumer protection officials immediately have started to handle the significant standard operating procedures for consumer disputes by asking Taiwan Samsung to propose a product exchange program so as to protect the rights and interests of consumers.

Upon the beginning of this case, Taiwan Samsung announced on its official website that it is initiating a recall of the Galaxy Note7. However, the company was only willing to offer replacement phones, which triggered consumer dissatisfaction. The DCP immediately contacted Samsung Taiwan and requested that the company include a refund plan as one of its solutions, and on September 11th the firm announced that it agrees to a product replacement program for consumers. In addition to the immediate initiating of refund transactions as of September 13th, and opening online reservation booking on September 19th for the replacement of Galaxy Note7 mobile phones, Taiwan Samsung began to carry out the replacement of the phone for consumers on September 23rd.

Surprisingly, it was further reported on October 6th that the Galaxy Note7 mobile phone had spontaneously exploded, whereupon, on October 11th, Samsung announced on its official website that sales of the Note7 would be stopped worldwide (Taiwan no longer sold the phone as of September 2nd), and that they would be replaced with new phones. At the same time, the new Note7 version could also be returned, and a relevant redemption program was provided. In regard to Taiwan Samsung's proposed product replacement program and the subsequent processing circumstances, following the results of a consultation meeting held with the NCC on October 13th, the NCC was respectfully asked to proactively monitor the recovery progress and follow-up procedures of business operators. Moreover, consumers have been asked to first file an appeal with Taiwan Samsung in the even that they encounter replacement difficulties, and that they only file appeals to local consumer protection officials if a case is not handled appropriately by Taiwan Samsung. If necessary, the DCP will invite the NCC and Taiwan Samsung to hold joint consultation meetings so that cases can be appropriately handled.

The DCP has stated that as of October 14th, 2016, more than 36,000 Note 7 mobile phones (both the new and older versions) were about to be recalled. However, the DCP will pay close attention to the status of the product recall because there are so many sales channels in the market (including both large and small distributors and business communication lines) with such a wide variety of marketing plans. Moreover, the refund mechanism has only recently been launched.

Finally, the DCP suggests that consumers protect themselves by returning Note7 phones as soon as possible, and that Taiwan Samsung be contacted in the event of a dispute. (1. Hotline number for investigations: 02-7708-1466; 2. Taiwan Samsung customer service center hotline: 0800-329-999; 3. Customer service email address: samsug@itts.com.tw; 4. Service hours: Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm.) For consumers who encounter any disputes regarding product return that have not yet been appropriately addressed, file an appeal with the local government consumer services center or go to the Executive Yuan's Consumer Protection Committee's website (http://cpc.ey.gov.tw) to make an appeal online.