Hyundai dogged by resident rights row

Attorney Bui Quang Hung, representing the residents, sent a document to the Vietnam Competition Authority (VCA) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade asserting that the draft purchasing contracts Hyundai RNC Hatay proposed to sign with its customers were not registered to the local authorities as regulated.

“The conditions of the draft contracts have not only been untruthful and unfair to our clients but also contravened laws and regulations on land and housing of Vietnam,” the lawyer added in his letter of demands to Hyundai.

In addition, a range of procedures which help to process housing ownership right certificates for customers were also not mentioned in draft purchasing contracts. As a result, the buyers at Hyundai Hillstate project, Hung claimed, would be facing difficulty in applying for housing-ownership certificates.

Moreover, pressed by the downturn of the current domestic real estate market, in order to attract new buyers for the project, the investor has offered much more privileged incentives, resulting in conflicts between the old and the new customers.

Hyundai RNC Hatay’s in-house lawyer told VIR when contacted for comments last week that it would take some more days for the company to respond to VIR’s questions.

Hung wrote in the letter of demands to Hyundai RNC Hatay that in the event of the claim being received and judged by the court the investor would be aware that all evidence presented to the hearing would inevitably enter the public domain with possible negative consequences for the company’s reputation. 

“Further, our clients’ claims for the violation of the laws of Vietnam shall also be lodged to VCA. We hope that the matter may be amicably settled in the near future with a view to avoiding the pursuit of action against Hyundai RNC Hatay in the People’s Court of Vietnam,” the letter said. 

Meanwhile, Hung said that after sending the petition to VCA, he would start to take Hyundai RNC Hatay to the court if his clients did not receive an indication of goodwill from the investor.

Located in To Hieu street in Hanoi’s Ha Dong district, some 16 kilometres from Hoan Kiem Lake, Hyundai Hillstate is a high-end apartment and villa complex which was got off the ground in 2009. It covers 4.67 hectares and has the total investment capital of $200 million. Hyundai Hillstate comprises two main components with 928 apartments in five buildings and 100 villas, all of which have already been sold.

Hyundai Hillstate is the first real estate project of South Korea’s Hyundai Group in Vietnam and also its first project overseas.

The project lies near the Cat Linh-Ha Dong metroline scheduled for completion in 2015.