The head of the problem department of a courier company said that he could sell the problematic express mail, and he could also "cooperate" with reporters on behalf of the company for a long time, and even sign a contract. "If you sell it, you can say that this is the blind box of the courier company, but you can't say which courier company it is. If it is found out, it is definitely a violation."
"Unclaimed'Express Blind Box', 10 yuan a piece, you can draw out MP3, mobile phone, watch, come and choose!"
The netizen "Longzi the Lost" released a video showing the time of April 10, 2020, and the location was Linyi, Shandong: on a stall, a middle-aged man with glasses shouted loudly. Behind him hung a red banner that read, "Crazy dumping of online shopping backlogs, including mobile phones, watches, power banks... and millions of items, all of which are worth the money!"
A man squatted on the ground and picked an express delivery and gave him 10 yuan. Probably because the contents of the box were worthless, he shook his head after unpacking the box and left.
A video posted by the netizen "Ryoko the Lost" shows a man selling blind delivery boxes. Picture/video screenshot
Blind box refers to a box containing unknown items. Buyers can only see what is inside after opening the box. "Express Blind Box" refers to sellers selling unclaimed express shipments as blind boxes. In recent years, this kind of business has quietly emerged offline and online.
A reporter from the Beijing News found that the "blind express delivery boxes" on the market are mainly divided into two categories. The first type is for merchants to buy and pack themselves, and sell them as "express blind boxes". The other is that the express site will process the claims that have been settled or have been unclaimed for a long time, and sell them.
In Beijing and Dongguan, Guangdong, reporters visited a number of express delivery companies unannounced, and some staff members expressed their willingness to "long-term cooperation" with reporters on the issue of whether the problematic express mails could be sold. "The company doesn't deal with it here, you can sell it (sell) it to you if you want it." said a person in charge of a courier site.
Offline and online "express blind box" business
19-year-old Liu Zhen (pseudonym) bought the so-called "express blind box".
In May 2019, a van was parked in front of the booth of a temple fair in a township in Baoding, Hebei. The car was filled with courier boxes sealed with tape. There is a small table in front of the car. In addition to the express box, there are also three Apple mobile phones.
The stall owner was a middle-aged man. He said that the boxes were all unowned express. They might take out mobile phones, watches, power banks, etc. The three mobile phones on the table came out of the blind box. Liu Zhen felt very fresh, and spent 10 yuan to pick a heavier box, and after opening it, he found it was a cheap ashtray.
In July 2020, Wang Mingming (a pseudonym) from Yantai, Shandong also saw a stall selling unowned express mail downstairs in the community. There were probably dozens of express boxes on the stall, each for 10 yuan. She saw a young girl take out a sample of Chanel perfume and bought two of them herself. After opening them, she found a tube of toothpaste and a pen holder.
According to Wang Mingming's observation, this kind of stalls selling unowned express mails began to appear in Shandong around 2017, and they are most common in counties, towns, and urban-rural areas. Most stall owners are middle-aged men. They sell it in the same place for a few days and then move the venue, "because everyone is fooled once and not buy a second time."
In addition to offline, many online trading platforms also sell "express blind boxes."
On July 19, a reporter from the Beijing News searched for keywords such as "no master blessing bag" and "blind blessing box" on Xianyu, Zhuanzhuan, Taobao, and Pinduoduo. About 50 sellers appeared in Xianyu, Zhuanzhuan, Taobao There are also a small number of sellers on Pinduoduo. Most of the merchandise pictures in the store are express items scattered on the ground, express racks, and snakeskin bags, and a few pictures are cartoon lucky bags, emoticons, and photos made by the seller.
On July 19, the product homepage of a Taobao store read "Express Blind Boxes" for sale. Picture/Webpage Screenshot
The price of these blind boxes ranges from RMB 0.05 to RMB 670. Under normal circumstances, buyers below RMB 3 pay the postage, and sellers above RMB 3 receive free shipping. Many sellers put up slogans such as "good value for money". A seller said, “The value of the items in the lucky bag may reach several hundred yuan or even several thousand yuan. Someone drew a Huawei mobile phone a few days ago, and someone drew an Apple 11pro this morning.”
A Xianyu seller selling "unowned blessing bags" told the Beijing News that he was selling unowned express, supplied by a friend who runs a rookie station in Shijiazhuang, Hebei. Because you can only get 5-20 pieces a month, you cannot ship them in batches. As for the price of 30 yuan free shipping, the seller said that 10 yuan is the shipping fee, and the other 20 yuan is divided equally between the supplier's friend and himself, each taking 10 yuan.
On July 17, a reporter from the Beijing News bought two "express blind boxes" at Xianyu for 10 yuan and 25 yuan. Both sellers stated that the blind boxes were purchased from the courier station or shipped by the courier station.
After receiving the goods, the reporter found that the outer packaging of the two blind boxes was brand new, and there was only one face sheet outside the box. Among them, the blind box of 10 yuan was sent from Yiwu, Zhejiang, and the box contained a smiley face bracelet and a fishtail necklace; the blind box of 25 yuan was sent from Yangzhou, Jiangsu, and it was an oversized men's suit made of chemical fiber. The price is not shown on the tag. .
The smiley face bracelet and fishtail necklace removed from the 10 yuan "express blind box" by a reporter from the Beijing News. Photo by intern Wu Xiaoxuan
Problems that are difficult to store for a long time
From July 18 to 22, reporters from the Beijing News visited a number of express companies and express sites and found that there were indeed problematic express shipments in the warehouse. They are roughly divided into two categories: either the sender’s phone cannot be reached or no one has come to pick up the express for a long time; or the express package is damaged or the waybill is damaged, the sender cannot be contacted, or the sender is damaged. Refuse to sign.
"If the buyer cannot be contacted and the seller is unwilling to bear the return shipping cost, it is likely to build up and become a problem express." A Zhongtong express staff in Dongguan City, Guangdong Province said that the number of such problem expresses is very large.
On July 18, a reporter from the Beijing News came to a site of an express company in Tongzhou District, Beijing. In a tin warehouse, there is an office of several square meters with the words "Problem Department" pasted on the windows. Large and small express boxes are scattered on the desks and floors in the office, extending to the warehouse shelves outside the door. The reporter roughly estimated that there are about several hundred.
On July 18, problematic express mails were stacked outside Xiao Shi's office. Photo by intern Du Jiabing
Xiao Shi (a pseudonym), the person in charge of the Problem Department, said that these express parcels are "problem items", and the items include food, daily necessities, clothing, digital products, etc. "Anything that can be delivered is available here." A mobile phone was placed on Xiao Shi's desk. He said it had just been removed from a problem express. A broken box was placed at the reporter's feet, and four stomped plums were exposed from the cracks.
According to the experience of Marco (a pseudonym), the person in charge of the problematic item at a certain site of YTO Express in Beijing, the problematic express item occasionally contains digital products, home appliances, etc., but mainly low-value clothing, food, toiletries, daily necessities, etc., "no more than Ten and twenty yuan". Because if it is a valuable item, the receiver or sender will check the logistics information in time, and will follow up in time if there is a problem, so it is less lost.
As for the handling process of the problematic express mail, Xiao Shi said that the problem department will unpack, take pictures, register, and archive and manage it in the computer system. “If a recipient loses the shipment, you can search here and return it to others if you find it; if you can’t find it, the company will compensate you at the price.” Xiao Shi said that after someone accepted the claim, the lost shipment was found again. In this case, most people will no longer ask for the original express and can only stack it in the problem department.
A number of courier practitioners said that, among the problematic express mails, there are more cases in which the express company or the dispatcher personally settle the claims, and the cases of truly unclaimed ones are rare. "We here cost more than ten thousand yuan to settle the problem every month." Marco said.
According to Liu Junhai, a professor at Renmin University of China and vice president of the China Consumers Association, the claims settled by the courier company or dispatcher belong to the claim adjuster. As long as the privacy of the original recipient and sender is protected, the claim adjuster can handle it by himself. In contrast, if an undeliverable and unreturnable express has no claims, it is an unowned express in the legal sense.
According to the 2014 "Regulations on the Management of Undeliverable and Unreturnable Express Mails" (hereinafter referred to as the "Administrative Regulations on Ownerless Express") issued by the State Post Bureau, express companies should arrange dedicated storage for unowned express mails. The storage period is quite long from the date of registration. In one year.
Many express sites visited by reporters from the Beijing News stated that when handling problematic express shipments, they would not specifically distinguish whether claims have been settled; and due to limited space and difficult storage of items, most sites would only keep the problematic express shipments for one or two months.
On July 22, the shelves of a certain express site were piled up with rejected shipments and problem shipments. Photo by intern Du Jiabing
For example, the site where Xiao Shi is located has only a few square meters in the problem department, but the problematic express mails are accumulating, especially after the "6.18" and "Double Eleven" promotions. The company is not responsible for handling "more than a few hundred" problematic shipments in the warehouse.
For this reason, Xiao Shi had to deal with some express shipments by himself: fresh food, throw it away if it is broken; daily necessities, use some that can be used, and throw away those that are really useless. "Last month, a large speaker was removed from a shipment, and the manager was called over to take a look. He said that the workshop just lacked a speaker, so he used it to play music."
The site where Marco is located is the only site that states that unclaimed unclaimed shipments will be stored for one year. "The prosecution period set by our headquarters is one year. If the problem occurs within one year of express delivery, compensation is required, so we have to wait for the expiration of the prosecution period to deal with it." Marco said, one year later, "the above will not be requested again, and they will all be thrown away. ."
Many express companies sell problem express
According to the “Regulations on the Management of Unowned Express Mail”, after the one-year storage period for unowned express mails expires, express mails other than letters can be opened and processed by the express company; the items that can be sold can be purchased and sold by the relevant department, after deducting the processing cost of the express company, The income shall be turned over to the national treasury.
Among the many courier practitioners interviewed by the Beijing News reporter, two members of the public relations department stated that they were aware of the above regulations; most of the other interviewees did not mention this regulation and did not know which department the "relevant department" was. However, many courier practitioners said that they would sell the problematic express and give the company the proceeds from the sale. No one mentioned turning over to the national treasury.
For this reason, since August 4, reporters from the Beijing News have called the Policy and Regulations Department of the State Post Administration several times, hoping to learn about the specific conditions related to this regulation. A staff member of the department said that the response needs to be discussed with the market supervision department, and no response has been made as of press time.
On July 18, a reporter from the Beijing News asked Xiao Shi to recover some of the problematic express mails for blind box business. Xiao Shi said that he could "cooperate" with the reporter for a long time on behalf of the company and sign a contract. "If you sell it, you can say that this is the blind box of the courier company, but you can't say which courier company it is. If it is found out, it is definitely a violation." Xiao Shi said that the specific cooperation matters need to consult the leadership, but "it should not be Whatever the problem, it's just a process."
On July 22, the person in charge of a Beijing branch of Best Express told a reporter from the Beijing News that it is possible to sell in bulk shipments that have been claimed and unowned shipments that no one can find within a month, but only the items in the express box are sold. Sold in original packaging. The person in charge said that every month, there will be less than 100 problematic express mails on the site. "If there are more, I can write them down. If there are more, I will let you know."
Regarding the recovery price of the express mail in question, Xiao Shi said that because it has been registered for unpacking, it will be sold at 50% of the price of the goods on the e-commerce platform.
On July 18, the problem express on Xiao Shi's desk. Photo by intern Du Jiabing
However, at Xianyu, several sellers who claim to be cooperating with courier companies stated that they will sell unowned express shipments at a unified price regardless of the value of the goods in the box.
On July 17, a Xianyu seller told the Beijing News that at some express stations in Dongcheng District, Beijing, he could buy more than 100 unowned express items for 500 yuan, and sometimes even 200. “You can ask the courier to send the courier or cooperate with the courier company when you send the express. If the quantity is large enough, it will cost about 3 yuan to send a courier." The seller said that after the unowned express he bought for 500 yuan was sold all , You can earn about 1,000 yuan.
Another Xianyu seller said that he has been cooperating with the express station for a long time and got the goods at a price of 13 yuan each. The courier station can also help direct delivery. "No need to stock up, no courier fees, and zero cost to make money."
On July 19, a WeChat chat record between a Xianyu seller and a reporter from the Beijing News. Picture/Webpage Screenshot
In addition, a number of courier practitioners reminded that if the ownerless express is purchased for resale, the recipient information on the original express box must be processed. Xiao Shi said that the recipient's name, phone number, and address must be kept secret, and it is best to cover up or obscure them, otherwise they will be fined or even criminally liable.
Two sellers selling unowned express at Xianyu also stated that they would throw away the original express box when selling, repack it and send it out. "The people at the express station will tear off the information on the face sheet before selling it to us." said a seller of idle fish.
According to the Beijing Daily, the reporter once purchased 10 unowned express mails from an online merchant, and each express mail can clearly see the name, address, and telephone number of the original express recipient.
On July 18, a seller of idle fish told a reporter from the Beijing News that he would not process the face orders outside the original express box. "On the original basis, just pack a courier bag directly, it is too troublesome to deal with one by one."
Liu Junhai said that if the original recipient's information is not processed when selling the problematic express, it is an infringement of personal privacy; if it is serious, it may be suspected of infringing on citizens' personal information.
Internal auction of problematic shipments
In addition to selling problematic express items externally, there are also express companies that sell them internally.
On July 21st, Li Ming (pseudonym), an employee of a Beijing transfer center of Zhongtong Express, told the Beijing News that the problematic express mails in Tianjin, Hebei, Shandong and other surrounding areas will be pulled here, "Basically once a month, every time. There are one or two semi-trailers (truck)."
Li Ming said that these problematic express mails are all claimed or unclaimed. After unloading in the staff dormitory area, they will be managed by the company's supervision department and sold inside.
Li Ming sometimes buys a few items for his own use, mostly toilet paper, detergent, laundry detergent and the like. "Good things are picked up by the security guards and unloaders in front." Things are cheaper than outside. Li Ming recently bought more than a dozen bottles of laundry detergent for only seventy or eighty yuan. He said that because they are things that are not very valuable, generally no one will sell them.
Guo He (a pseudonym), an employee of a Beijing transfer center of Shentong Express, has not bought such kind of problem express, but he said that the company will hold an auction of problem express from time to time.
Guo He said that only internal employees can participate in the auction, and the company has dedicated personnel responsible for auction management, item pricing and receipt of payments. The problematic express parcels participating in the auction are divided into two categories. One is that the courier box is damaged, and the package will be opened, and only the contents of the box will be sold; the other is that the courier box is intact and will be sold with the packaging, and employees must rely on the outside of the box. Judge what’s in it. Generally speaking, the items that participate in the auction are clothing, daily necessities, etc., which are “not valuable” and the prices are not high.
On July 22, the person in charge of a Beijing site of SF Express told reporters that in the past few years, the company's headquarters had held an unowned express mail auction. All express mails would be unboxed and sold at a clear price, "I have sold TV sets."
On August 7, a reporter from the Beijing News successively called the public relations departments of Zhongtong Express, Shentong Express, Best Express, and SF Express to inquire about the external and internal sales of the above-mentioned express. As of press time, Best Express and SF Express have stated that they are aware of the relevant regulations of the State Postal Administration, but have not responded to the transaction behavior of the problematic express; Zhongtong Express and Shentong Express have not responded.
The seller buys and packs goods, pretending to be "express blind box"
Although some people sell problematic express items, not all "express blind boxes" come from express companies.
Liu Zhen said that the "express blind box" he bought at the temple fair booth was nothing like Owner Express. The box was brand new and there was no face order outside.
Wang Mingming also observed the "Express Blind Box" stalls downstairs in the community. Dozens of brand-new express boxes were affixed with face sheets, "Most of the consignees have the same name, and the delivery address is in Linyi, Shandong." In hindsight, she thought the boss was probably lying.
In this regard, some sellers who sell "express blind boxes" on the Internet say that Ownerless Express is just a marketing method and a gimmick, and the goods in the box are actually purchased, packaged, and shipped by themselves.
On July 19, a product page of a Taobao seller in Qingdao, Shandong Province said "New Express Blind Box Lucky Bag Without Opening". The monthly sales volume of the product was 1,706 pieces, and 516 people collected it. Among the eight pictures on the "Details" page, some are logistics warehouses and some are small express outlets neatly arranged with express boxes. In the picture, the staff on the shelf are wearing work clothes, and the information on the face sheet and the company name on the work clothes are blurred.
When a reporter from the Beijing News contacted the seller, the store popped up an automatic reply "It is self-packaged and purchased through regular channels, not express shipments lost or abandoned by others." After that, the manual customer service reconfirmed that the goods in the store were not unowned express, but some were packed in old express boxes.
On July 19, a chat record between a seller of idle fish and a reporter from the Beijing News. Picture/Webpage Screenshot
On the same day, a Xianyu seller who sold the "No Owner Lucky Bag" stated that the merchandise in the store was bought by himself, only under the banner of Owner Express. In order to ensure the sense of surprise in the blind box, he will buy and package products of different values, "the ones with the same value, the ones with a larger price difference, and the very individual ones with great value."
In the video of selling unowned express mail mentioned at the beginning of the article, the supply contact information is written on the red banner behind the booth. On July 20, a reporter from the Beijing News dialed the phone on the banner and asked if he could shop for unowned express, but the other party stated that he was “not a supplier”.
In the video posted by the netizen "Ryoko the Lost", the delivery phone number is written under the red banner behind the booth selling the "Express Blind Box". Picture/video screenshot
However, when the reporter expressed that he wanted to buy the backlog products and package them into unowned express sales, the other party said they could provide it. "As long as you put the backlog processed products into the courier box, wrap it with tape, you can become an unowned courier without a face order. Everyone does this."
According to the seller, after changing the backlog of products to unowned express, the sales profit is "around 70%." He said that the purchase price of backlog products is about 2 to 7 yuan, and the 7 yuan goods include small home appliances, power banks, MP3s, etc. "This (7 yuan commodity) is packaged into an unowned express, and the selling price can be set a little higher, either 20 or 30 yuan."
The seller also said that if you want to pack it into an unowned express, you can sell it with a courier box. A shoe box-sized express box, you can buy 350 for 30 yuan, and comes with matching tape.
"If you want to sell (unowned express) offline, you can also provide (promotional) recordings and red banners with a market price of 30 yuan for free." The seller quickly sent a recording with the background music of "Little Apple "A male voice said: "The express company’s millions of Taobao Tmall items have been unclaimed. Today, they are all cleared. The original price is 20 yuan, 50 yuan, or even hundreds of yuan. Today the express company only charges 10 yuan for express delivery. ..."
Liu Junhai believes that in accordance with the Consumer Rights Protection Law and the former State Administration for Industry and Commerce's 2015 "Punishment Measures for Violating Consumer Rights and Interests", the practice of sellers purchasing and packaging goods and disguising them as unowned express is suspected of false propaganda and is a fraud. In this regard, consumers can ask the seller to refund the price and demand three times the compensation.
Beijing News reporter Zhao Xiang, intern Du Jiabing and Wu Xiaoxuan