Jollibee Under Fire: Woman Charged S$7.99 After Scanning a QR Code for "Free" Ice Cream or Fries!

SINGAPORE: A couple's visit to Jollibee at Waterway Point turned into a shocking billing issue after the wife unintentionally racked up a S$7.99 charge on her SingTel bill simply by participating in what was supposed to be a promotional offer.

In a Facebook post dated November 8, Andy Quek shared a striking image of a standee featuring a QR code at the restaurant that advertised a chance to receive either a free serving of regular fries or a Vanilla Twirl cup in exchange for completing a brief survey about their experience.

However, things took a troubling turn when, on November 1, after scanning the code, Mr. Quek’s wife was prompted to enter her phone number. Shortly afterward, she received an SMS notification stating that she had subscribed to a service called "Next Battle" with charges set to go through her SingTel account.

Quick to act, she canceled the subscription, but to their dismay, the couple discovered a S$7.99 charge on their SingTel bill on November 7. Frustrated, Mr. Quek publicly questioned Jollibee's integrity, asking, “Is this your way of scamming people?”.

Following the unfolding incident, Mr. Quek reached out to Jollibee’s management through their social media channels and threatened to file a police report. He later updated his post stating that Jollibee promised a thorough investigation and would respond to him by November 11.

In further developments, SingTel offered a one-time waiver for the charge, but Mr. Quek voiced his concern that this would mean the charges would essentially be absorbed by SingTel while Jollibee would still profit from what he termed a “scam.” He insisted that he would pursue action against Jollibee instead of accepting the waiver.

In a recent follow-up, Mr. Quek confirmed that Jollibee agreed to refund the S$7.99 charge after he escalated the issue. He also revealed that the police had contacted Jollibee to initiate an investigation.

Mr. Quek filed a police report, noting the QR code appeared legitimate, as it was located within a reputable fast-food chain, and remarked that it bore no disclosures about potential additional charges for scanning.

Some social media commenters speculated that another QR code might have been maliciously pasted over the promotional code at the restaurant, a tactic that has been reported in similar scams elsewhere.

This incident shines a light on the rising concern of QR code scams, where unsuspecting consumers can fall victim to hidden charges without knowing they have signed up for services. As the Jollibee investigation continues, customers are urged to exercise caution when interacting with promotional content that requires them to scan QR codes.