Slimming centres are offering so-called "free treatments" to entice customers, but such offers are conditional upon payment of a deposit and customers may have difficulty getting it back, the Consumer Council warned today.

In the first eight months of the year, the council received 1,059 complaints regarding the beauty-service sector, of which 86 were related to slimming services.

The free slimming offer is conditional upon payment of a deposit allegedly to prove the customer's "determination and sincerity". The sum is equivalent to what the purportedly free treatment would normally cost, for example, $20,000. The deposit is not automatically refundable upon completion of the treatment, but only if the customer can successfully reach a designated weight reduction.

Even if customers have successfully reduced weight as stipulated, they still cannot get the deposits back all at once. Instead the money is repaid in 12 monthly instalments, and customers must report back to the centre every month to check if the weight has been maintained, otherwise the instalment for that month will be forfeited.

Customers will also be persuaded to take on and purchase additional therapy such as detoxification products or Chinese acupuncture treatment on the pretext of producing prompt results.

The September issue of the council's Choice magazine reported two such cases. The complainants paid a total of $42,800 which comprised the deposits and additional therapies. Both were unable to fulfil the conditions set out in the contracts of the "free" treatments, and eventually paid a higher fee and failed to get back their deposits.