Samsung Phone Users Suffer Dearth of Service Centers
16 October, 2018
There are not enough Samsung smartphone service centers in Korea for the country's 35 million users, and they are mostly concentrated in the capital region.
While there are 43 service centers in Seoul, there are none in 76 cities and counties.
According to Liberty Korea Party lawmaker Kim Sung-tae on Monday, there are 185 service centers across the country, or one for every 187,000 users. Samsung smartphones have a 65.3 percent market share here and are used by 34.61 million subscribers.
The farther away from Seoul, the worse the situation. Only 55 of the country's 131 cities and counties outside Seoul have one. Of the 22 cities and counties in South Jeolla Province, only six have one, and in Gangwon Province only six out of 18.
Incheon was the worst served with one service center per 328,698 users. Even in Seoul, one service center handles on average 176,759 users.
Many users therefore have no choice but to use private repair shops, but once they do they are no longer entitled to any warranty claims.
Despite the shortcomings, Samsung and other Korean electronics firms provide better after-service than their overseas rivals here.