Authorities urged to clarify if all water purifiers are safe to use

A water purifier marketed by Coway in Korea was found to be leaching nickel in the water tank and, hence, the Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) calls upon the Malaysian authorities to urgently look into the matter and issue a statement.

The Seoul High Court recently ruled that the company had failed to notify its customers that the nickel plating in the water tank can potentially contaminate the water. Consequently, the contamination had caused the users “immaterial damage”.

In Malaysia, the company is offering seven table-top models and two floor standing models and we need to know if any of these are affected by the nickel contamination problem soonest possible as the metal is known to be a health hazard.

The maximum amount of nickel compounds found in the water dispensed from the affected water purifier was 0.386 mg/l as compared to the World Health Organization (WHO)’s average limit of less than 0.02 mg/l. Nickel is a known carcinogen and it is also able to impair kidney function.

We, therefore, urge the authorities – particularly the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs (KPDNHEP), and the Health Ministry (MoH) – to urgently clarify if water purifiers of Coway and other brands available in Malaysia are safe to use.