商品（服務）禮券規範與管理之研究
摘要
Use of the product (service) gift certificate dates back to many years ago. To businesses, the gift certificate has advantages in compiling detailed information about customers, obtaining cash for operations in advance, stimulating consumer demands, etc. To consumers, the gift certificate benefits them by sometimes offering certain discount when they obtain advance booked product certificates, so as to increase their willingness to buy; the certificate may further be transferred to others or used later on, so as to reduce the inconvenience of carrying cash and dealing. In a successful performance of this type of transaction, the certificate issuer and the consumer are going to reach a win-win situation as projected. However, the ability of related businesses to pay and the protection of consumer rights completely depend on self-discipline of businesses and lack legal protection, while there are bad as well as good issuers, and disputes in transactions are frequently reported, such as the bankruptcy scandals of Spa World Health Club, Kaomart, Twin’s Brothers Bakery, and Alexander Health Club. In those cases, consumers, not knowing enough about the companies, tend to only focus on the sales discount without paying attention to risks involved in prepaid transactions, and thus finally sustain huge loss in their rights and interests. To control the situation of inflation, prevent credit expansion of businesses, and restrain companies’ raising funds by sale of product gift certificates, in 1973 the Executive Yuan promulgated the Regulations on Sale of Product Gift Certificates based on Article 18 of the National Total Mobilization Act. Through strict regulation of the competent authority, Ministry of Finance, protection to certificate holders was complete and perfect, and consumer disputes thus decreased significantly. In 1988, the government declared lifting of martial law, when the Ministry of Finance considered it unnecessary to regulate issuance of product gift certif