Photo courtesy of Taipei City Department of Health
Taipei, March 13 (CNA) Skincare products under brand names owned by L'Oréal Taiwan Co. were slapped by the Taipei City government in 2016 with the highest accumulated fines for overstated commercials, compared with other cosmetics, food products and medicines/healthcare products marketed in Taipei.
L'Oréal Taiwan received fines totaling NT$2.67 million (US$86,300) last year, according to a statement released by the Taipei Department of Health on Monday.
Of its cosmetics, the most heavily fined products were the "Absolue Precious Cells Silky Cream" under the brand name Lancôme, and the "Tsuya" skincare series under the Shu Uemura brand name, said Wang Ming-li (王明理), head of the department's Food and Drug Division.
The Absolue Precious Cells Silky Cream was fined for claims that it has been certified by the British Ministry of Defense as a product able to repair damaged skin swiftly and has helped millions of people on battlefields, Wang explained.
As for the Shu Uemura Tsuya series, it is claimed to be able to "vitalize cells, resist inflammation, repair damaged skin, protect skin from air pollution and help heal wounds," which Wang said are all false or exaggerated advertising and violate the Statute for Control of Cosmetic Hygiene.
Under the statute, each violation is subject to a fine of up to NT$50,000.
L'Oréal Taiwan, Estée Lauder and Amorepacific were the top three companies on the list of those fined for irregular advertising during the city government's inspections of cosmetics, food products, and medicines/healthcare products last year.
The city Department of Health wrote a total of 841 tickets during the inspections, with the amount of fines reaching NT$55.18 million, the statement said.
Among the tickets, 529 (62.9 percent) were slapped on cosmetics, with fines totaling NT$25.92 million. They were followed by 278 (33.06 percent) on food products at NT$20.5 million, and 34 (4.04 percent) on medicines/healthcare products at NT$8.76 million.
(By Liang Pei-chi and Elizabeth Hsu)
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