COMPLAINTS against retailers in Sim Lim Square are on the rise again, five years after the launch of a well-publicised effort to get store owners to clean up their act.

According to the Consumers' Association of Singapore (Case), shopper complaints have risen steadily, from 119 in 2006, to 188 in 2007, to 133 so far this year. The Funan IT Mall, by comparison, usually receives between 20 and 30 complaints a year.

The increase comes amid a push by Sim Lim to shed its image as a haven for pirated software, pushy salesmen and shady shop owners.

Five years ago, management tried to clean up the tarnished image of the Rochor Roat IT mall by launching a programme that highlights honest merchants. Those shops were allowed to paste sticker on their shopfronts certifying them as a 'STARetailer'. Before the clean-up, police also raided shops that sold pirated software.

But the statistics from Case suggest many stores have slipped back to their old habits.

Shoppers commonly complained about being over charged and sold defective goods. Others grumbled about unsavoury sales tactics, misleading claims about products and a failure to honour refunds.

Read the full story in Thursday's edition of The Straits Times.