In a surprising turn of events, the final decision by the court has vindicated Thai pan importer and distributor, Wizard Solutions Co Ltd, of all deceiving accusations. The company faced a lawsuit from 74 unhappy customers claiming damages worth an astounding 1.65 billion baht. Despite the ruling, the customers, under the guidance of the Foundation of Consumers, have promised to appeal the judgment.
The legal altercation unfolded back in 2017 when the Foundation for Consumers lodged a case against the company on behalf of the disgruntled clientele. Their grouse was rooted in the alleged deceptive quality of the Korea King pans, a product exclusively dealt by Wizard Solutions.
As per the controversial judicial ruling, it was stated that the claims made by Wizard Solutions were not deceptive at all. The company had emphasized on having promised eight-layered coating on the Korea King pans, without any deliberate intention to violate consumer rights or breach sales contract.
Backing its claims, Wizard Solutions clarified during its court testimony that the promised eight layers were, in fact, present but invisible to the naked eye, thus disputing allegations of selling inferior quality products. Manufactured by Kheo Sung World Inc, a seasoned player in the home wares business hailing from South Korea, the Korea King pans’ credibility was never a question.
In the past few years, the brand Korea King, a high-end non-stick pan, gained significant attention. Wizard Solutions’ strategic move of roping in popular celebrity Wutthiphon “Woody” Taworntawat as the brand presenter, further catapulted its popularity.
In his television commercials, ‘Woody’ made grand claims of the pans’ ability to fry eggs without any oil, courtesy of the eight-layered coating, specifically “silver and gold marble” and nanosilver. While the pans were initially priced at 15,000 baht each, Woody made an offer viewers couldn’t refuse: buy two pans for a mere 3,900 baht via the TV shopping channel.
Suspicion arouse when Associate Professor Dr Weerachai Phutdhawong, a Science Lecturer at Kasetsart University undertook a personal investigation, dissecting a Korea King pan to examine the supposed eight-layered coating. Likening his lab findings to those from a crime scene, Weerachai revealed that the pans were merely made of reinforced aluminum and steel with merely a bi-layered polymer coat – no signs of the promised ‘marble.’
74 dissatisfied customers, now feeling betrayed, sought aid from the Foundation for Consumers in May 2017. When initial attempts by the Foundation to negotiate with Wizard Solutions proved futile, they decided to file a civil lawsuit against the firm.
The case took a dramatic twist as the Foundation alleged that the company resorted to intimidation tactics, attempting to silence their critics by counter-suing one of the consumers, Kalayathat Tingwang, for defamation. However, turning the tables, the defamation lawsuit was thrown out by the Criminal Court on September 14th of this year.
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