A growing number of plumbing and cleaning companies in South Korea advertise a 50,000-won repair fee, then demand hundreds of thousands of won more after dismantling a toilet. Because the work is already under way, customers find it hard to refuse — and complaints are climbing fast.
The Korea Consumer Agency said on the 3rd that it received 1,204 complaints involving cleaning and sewer-sanitation services between 2023 and the first quarter of this year. Of those, 292 cases, or 24.3%, involved demands for extra payment. In the first quarter alone, such cases totaled 60, a 3.3-fold jump from a year earlier.
Total complaints also rose, to 450 in 2025 from 255 in 2023. The agency logged 192 in the first quarter of this year, up 128.6% from 84 in the same period last year.
'We Need Special Equipment' — After the Toilet Comes Apart
Sewer-service complaints have risen especially quickly. Cases jumped to 56 in 2025 from 19 in 2023, and 49 were filed in the first quarter of this year alone — seven times the seven cases recorded in the same period last year.
The pattern is consistent. Companies post a low base price online, such as 50,000 won to unclog a toilet, then bill hundreds of thousands of won at the site, citing toilet removal or the use of special equipment. In many cases, the agency found, operators demanded the extra money only after taking the toilet apart or opening a sewer line, leaving the customer with little room to object.
One customer called a company after seeing an advertisement for a 50,000-won toilet unclogging, then received an additional bill of 300,000 won once the job was done, with the company citing the removal of the toilet.
Cleaning services show a similar pattern. Among 1,066 cleaning complaints, poor service quality was the most common problem at 510 cases, or 42.8%, followed by demands for extra payment at 244 cases, or 20.5%.
One customer contracted a move-in cleaning for a newly built apartment at a total of 410,000 won, only to have the company demand 300,000 won more on the day of the job, citing the level of grime. When the customer refused, the company left the site and declined to refund the deposit.
Avoiding such disputes starts with the contract. The Korea Consumer Agency recommends arranging an on-site estimate before signing, rather than agreeing to terms by phone or online.
Contracts should spell out the scope of work, areas excluded, the number of workers assigned, charges for removing heavy soiling and the conditions under which extra fees apply. After the job, customers should inspect the site before paying the balance and keep evidence such as before-and-after photographs, the surest safeguard in a dispute. Those who have already been harmed can file for redress through the Korea Consumer Agency or the Consumer24 website.
