The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) has directed 13 major online shopping platforms to stop imposing additional shipping fees on customers living on connected islands (known as yeonryuk-doseo). The decision follows a six-month investigation into unfair delivery practices between January and June 2025.
Connected islands refer to islands linked to the mainland by bridges, causeways, or underwater tunnels. Although such areas are accessible by land, several online retailers had been automatically charging residents an “island and remote area surcharge” (doseo-sangan chuga baesongbi), despite delivery companies not applying any extra costs.
The review covered 18 leading e-commerce businesses and six major courier services. Thirteen retailers—including Coupang, Lotte Shopping, Kakao, SSG.com, GS Retail, CJ ENM, Hyundai Home Shopping, Woori Home Shopping, Baemin (Woowa Brothers), Musinsa, NS Shopping, Bucketplace, and CJ Olive Young—were found to have overcharged customers in some connected islands due to outdated postal code data.
The KFTC explained that the issue arose because many retailers used postal codes provided by couriers to classify “island and remote area” zones automatically. In several regions, connected islands shared the same postal codes as nearby remote islands, causing the system to wrongly categorize them as remote and apply extra fees.
As a result, consumers living on 37 connected islands across 10 local governments in South Chungcheong, South and North Jeolla, South Gyeongsang, and Incheon were affected.
Twelve of the companies have since corrected their systems by removing affected postal codes or adopting address-based verification methods using road names or building management numbers. Coupang, the remaining company, is expected to complete similar system improvements by the end of the year.
The KFTC said the move helps reduce unfair delivery costs and ensures fairer treatment for consumers in connected island areas, marking a step forward in improving everyday logistics services.
Comments