Chinanews Client Beijing March 15th (Xie Yiguan) Affected by the epidemic, travel and tourism plans were disrupted, and merchants who want to cancel their bookings do not refund money or charge high fees; after resumption of work, masks and other epidemic prevention supplies are indispensable Less, but encountered high-price compulsory tying, and the merchant unilaterally "cut the order"; accidentally bought fake and shoddy products and fell into the WeChat trap ...

On March 15th, Consumer Rights Day, which infringements of consumption in these epidemic periods, which ones did you win?

Data Map: A "No masks in our shop" notice was posted in front of a drug store in Fuzhou. Photo by Lu Ming, China News Agency

While the epidemic is robbery, tying with masks and other high prices is mandatory

On the 15th, data released by the China Consumers Association showed that there were 180,972 complaints about consumer outbreaks from January 20 to February 29. According to the nature of the complaint, the price problem accounted for 45.08%; according to the category of goods and services, there were 79368 complaints involving masks, accounting for 43.86%.

According to the China Consumers Association, due to the epidemic situation, the cost of logistics, raw materials, and labor has risen due to the Spring Festival holiday. At the same time, some merchants have taken advantage of the "epidemic" price hike to make huge profits, disrupt market order, and damage consumption. People's rights. Complaints about the price of anti-epidemic supplies such as masks, alcohol, disinfectant and consumer goods such as vegetables, grains and oils have become hot spots.

The main problems of price complaints are: first, some illegal businesses purchase low prices and sell at high prices, soaring prices, and even the same batch of products, the price continues to rise in the short term; second, some operators use masks, alcohol, disinfectant and other protective supplies at high prices Compulsory tying of other items to restrict consumer choices. Third, some operators do not implement clear-listed prices, and sell vegetables and meat in pairs. They only list the total price, without detailed product names, unit prices, quantities, weights, etc.

For example, on January 26, 2020, the Consumer Association of Yuqing County, Zunyi City, Guizhou Province received a complaint that a local pharmacy sold the masks for 2.5 yuan a pack to 40 yuan a pack, and the quality was not guaranteed. Make money with conscience. After receiving the complaint, the local consumer association informed the market supervision and management department of the situation in time and participated in the investigation of the working group. After that, the pharmacy refunded 40 yuan to the consumer and paid an apology.

Airline companies and ticketing platforms push each other, air travel complaints top

During the epidemic, consumer travel was greatly affected. Due to the timely and reasonable refund policies of the railway department, there are relatively few disputes over railway refunds, and complaints about travel services are mainly concentrated on air ticket refunds.

Data Map: On Jan. 30, at the T3 terminal of Shenyang Taoxian International Airport, passengers wore masks to travel. Photo by China News Agency reporter Yu Haiyang

During the outbreak control period, the civil aviation department required passengers to enjoy the refund and change policy for free, but in the implementation of the implementation, consumers encountered a long refund review cycle, a long refund time, the airline and the ticketing platform pushed each other, and customer service was difficult to connect. 2. The application for withdrawal and modification encountered problems such as being unable to process.

In addition, the air ticket refund policy is not clear, and the air ticket refund policy for consumers during the interval between the refund and change of charges has also caused consumer complaints.

For example, Mr. Song, a customer, booked an air ticket from Urumqi to Xi'an to Shenzhen on the online booking platform on January 30, and applied for a refund on January 28 due to the delay in returning to work. The full ticket is 5,200 yuan, with a deduction of more than 2,000 yuan. Consumer complaints demand a full refund.

Hotel refuses to refund deposit

During the Spring Festival, it is also the peak season for consumer travel. Affected by the epidemic, consumers changed their travel plans and had to cancel hotel reservations.

In terms of cancellations, a series of related consumer disputes have emerged. First, there is a time lag between the epidemic prevention and control measures in different regions. Consumers in the areas that have initiated the epidemic control measures cannot travel. Or prepayment; second, under the state's introduction of control measures, some homestay platforms or homestay operators still refuse to refund deposits or prepayments; third, consumers have already stayed at the hotel, the hotel prices rose during the epidemic, or disguised at expensive prices Refuse consumers to stay.

For example, Ms. Tian, ​​a consumer in Jiangsu Province, booked a room in a hotel in Fuzhou, Fujian Province from January 25th to 29th, 2020 through a network platform. Due to the new crown epidemic, Ms. Tian negotiated with the network platform to check out. The hotel was informed that it had refused to cancel the booking. After repeated negotiations, Ms. Tian asked the Fuzhou Consumer Council for help.

During the epidemic, consumers advocated cancellation of itinerary and termination of hotel accommodation contracts was reasonable and justified. After coordinating with the staff of the Consumer Council, the operator finally agreed to handle the cancellation procedures for the guest rooms.

Data Map: On February 10, passengers waited for boarding in the waiting hall of Sanya Phoenix Airport, Hainan. In addition to masks, masks, raincoats, shower caps, sunglasses, swimming goggles, etc. have become epidemic prevention supplies for travellers. Photo by Du Yang, China News Agency

Travel agencies use vouchers instead of refunds, and some even refuse refunds

During the epidemic, consumer travel arrangements were adjusted significantly.

The main problems of consumer complaints are: first, due to the epidemic situation, the cancellation of the subscription is concentrated, and the after-sales services of travel agencies and platforms cannot keep up; Consumption disputes; the third is that tourism operators refuse to refund or deduct high fees, etc., which consumers cannot accept; the fourth is that consumers do not recognize solutions to extend the performance period of travel agencies; the fifth is that some attractions are temporarily closed, etc., resulting in consumer itineraries Complaints that cannot be completed or dissatisfied; Sixth, overseas countries and regions have successively filed complaints against Chinese tourists after entry and stay restrictions.

For example, on January 23, 2020, Ms. Guo, a consumer, reported to the Consumer Council of Foshan City, Guangdong Province that due to the severe epidemic situation, she decided to cancel the travel plan for the "January 6th Beijing 6th People 6th Group" involving 23294 yuan. However, a travel agency in Foshan insisted on returning only 9,000 yuan to consumers in accordance with the contract. If the consumer does not agree to the refund and continues to travel, if an epidemic problem occurs during the travel, the travel agency will not bear responsibility. After repeated negotiations, Ms. Guo complained to the Municipal Consumers' Committee and requested a refund. After receiving the complaint, the Foshan Consumer Council communicated with the travel agency many times, and eventually the travel agency agreed to return the full amount to the consumer.

Weak merchants, circle of friends sales, inducements, QR code fraud, etc. are serious

Affected by the epidemic, many consumers choose to purchase daily necessities, fresh food and epidemic prevention products through the Internet, and related complaints are increasing.

The main problems of consumer complaints are: there is a problem with the quality of products purchased online. The pre-ordered fresh food and other foods are not fresh, the packaging is not perfect, and the quality is defective; the propaganda by the merchant is inconsistent with the actual situation and is sold out of stock. For example, multiple consumers reported that an online shopping app was suspected of using a sales mask as a gimmick to obtain consumer downloads and registrations. After the consumer placed an order and paid successfully, he took out of stock as a reason to take a unilateral "cut order." Behavior, suspected of infringing on the legitimate rights and interests of consumers.

In addition, online shopping orders are concentrated, shipments are delayed, and the delivery process of items is not protected due to being crushed. Consumers are unable to return or exchange goods. Some micro-businesses and friends have purchased goods while they are in trouble. Purchase, QR code fraud and other situations are also the focus of complaints.

For example, recently, Ms. Dong, a consumer, reported that she scanned the QR code of a certain online shopping platform in the WeChat group, but it was not actually a link to the online shopping platform, resulting in property damage.

The China Consumers' Association recommends that, for epidemic prevention products and daily necessities, be purchased on demand, not snapped up or hoarded; be vigilant on issues such as unknown QR codes in WeChat circles, high discounts on prepaid cards, etc .; beware of false implementation by some operators Illegal acts such as propaganda, soaring prices, replenishing prices, refusing to perform responsibilities, etc., must actively exercise the right to supervise, and make timely complaints and reports.