SMU Assistant Professor of Law Gary Low, who sits on the central committee of the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE), said recent news reports highlight an alarming rise in the amount of prepayments reported lost by consumers when businesses close over the past four three years. In particular, at S$3.59 million of losses reported in 2016, that's an increase of more than three times compared to 2014. The problems associated with prepayment have occupied public attention for the past year. This is undoubtedly due to the sudden closure of the likes of Misa Travel or California Fitness, which as a result lost large groups of consumers even larger sums of money.