Samsung’s mobile phone production line in Thai Nguyen Province. Samsung Electro-Mechanics Viet Nam Co Ltd will not lay off workers after the Galaxy Note 7 incident. — VNA/VNS Photo Hoang Hung

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam Competition Authority (VCA) is actively supervising the recall, renew and exchange programme of all Galaxy Note 7 models from Samsung Electro-Mechanics Việt Nam Co Ltd (SEMV).

The move comes following the company’s decision on October 12, 2016.

For customers to benefit from the recall programme, their purchase must be an official and operational Samsung Galaxy Note 7 model, assembled and distributed in the Vietnamese market. Accordingly, customers must bring their Samsung Galaxy Note 7 or a promissory note for those who are already waiting for a renewed product, together with a national identity card or a valid passport to the nearest Samsung customer service centre at their earliest convenience.

The programme is set to start on October 18 and end on November 18, 2016.

The VCA, under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, advises customers to turn off their products and contact Samsung at the hotline 1800 58889 to return the products and participate in the programme.

Out of the 12,633 Galaxy Note 7 models sold in the Vietnamese market, over 8,000 had been recalled up till October 17, as stated in VCA’s official press release.

According to the VCA, related products will be recalled and each customer will receive a refund of VNĐ18.9 million (US$846). Additionally, customers who bring their products to Samsung customer centres are entitled to receive a VNĐ1.5 million ($67) voucher and another Samsung smartphone to use while they wait for their refund.

So far, the flaw in the product and the reason behind the recall is determined to be the phone’s internal battery, which causes overheating during use and is potentially harmful to the user.

However, the VCA also warns customers that there have been many reported combustions of the Galaxy Note 7 in many countries concerning products which may or may not have undergone the exchange programme.

Representatives from SEMV stated that the company will not reduce the number of workers following the Galaxy Note 7 incident. The reason is that in addition to the Galaxy Note 7, SEMV also produces a variety of other Samsung products for the global market, so the discontinuation of the Note 7 does not severely affect the company’s business.

Regarding the Galaxy Note 7’s potential danger, Vietnam Airlines has officially declined transportation of the product under any method, including carry-on, consignments or personal belongings, as of October 17. Other airlines across the world have also declined the same, such as Singapore Airlines, Air Berlin, Virgin Australia, Qantas and Jetstar. — VNS