Your recent report ("Hair salon shuts, leaving customers high and dry";Dec 30) again highlighted the plight of customers who purchased prepaid services from dubious companies.

Prepaid purchase cards are sold in exchange for the future supply of goods and services to consumers.

Many come with a mountain of hidden fees and few consumer protections, compared to bank accounts or debit and credit cards.

Such prepaid cards are dangerous financial traps.

Other countries have proposed legislation to make such card issuers disclose all fees clearly before customers buy a card, and to protect customers' money if the card is lost or the card company goes bankrupt, among other financial protections.

I hope the authorities here will introduce similar statutes to protect unwary customers, lest these companies continue to operate with impunity.

Heng Cho Choon