A team of government agencies will monitor for exorbitant accommodation prices during the EXPO 2012 Yeosu Korea, which kicks off its three-month run on Saturday.

Eight governmental organizations, including the Fair Trade Commission, Yeosu City and the National Tax Service, formed an inspection team which checked on Wednesday and Friday accommodation throughout Yeosu City, announced The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affaires on Tuesday.

The team examined the sanitary conditions of 50 lodgings and confirmed whether the business licenses and room rates were properly posted. It also posted the phone number (1899-2012) of the call center where guests can report inflated rates, price collusion or refusal to issue cash receipts or accept credit cards.

Yeosu City and the 2012 Yeosu Expo Organizing Committee indentified 20 offenders since it started the examination in February. They took administrative measures such as suspending business or sending an enforcement notice for 13 lodgings and called for a tax investigation for seven.
The inspection team aims to counter exorbitant prices by operating throughout the period.

By Park Min-young (claire@heraldcorp.com)