— Nintendo Life (@nintendolife) October 18, 2022 When a customer acts abusively toward the company’s repair staff, the company reserves the right to refuse to fix or replace the product. As there is currently no legislation in Japan against this type of harassment by customers, Nintendo has instituted this new policy to help protect its staff. This means that even though there aren’t any laws about it, companies in the services industry, where workers spend a lot of time with customers, have taken steps to stop harassment from customers. The website outlines the kinds of behavior that could result in Nintendo refusing to repair a product. This includes:
intimidation or threatsinsulting or denigrating remarksinvasion of privacyexcessive demands, such as for a free repair when the warranty has expireddemanding an apology from Nintendo or its staff without reasonable causeexcessively repeating the same request or complaineddefamatory comments on social networks or websites
According to consumer psychology expert and Kansai University professor Hiromi Ikeuchi, Nintendo’s decision couldn’t have come at a better time, as social media posts have made visible the harassment to which different industries are bound to act on. Also, the consumer attitudes towards these situations are also changing. In addition to this, a representative from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare praised Nintendo’s initiative, saying that it is encouraging to see corporations taking a firm stance against the problem.
