Traveling is pitted, the rights of tourists stop at "Tucao + bad reviews"?
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What should I do if I am pitted for a day trip?
Should I swallow my anger, complain online, or take up legal weapons to protect my rights?
The "Mirror of the Sky" scenic spot in Linwu County, Hunan Province was ordered by the local market supervision bureau to stop publishing false advertisements due to false propaganda, and fined 120,000 yuan.
Punishment of "scam" scenic spots is not only a warning to the tourism industry, but also a response to tourists' rights protection.
The reporter's investigation found that, for a long time, it is not uncommon for tourists to infringe on various forms of tourist rights such as false propaganda of scenic spots and unreasonable low-cost tours.
However, because the loss is not large, many tourists will choose to accept the bad luck, and the litigation involved is very few.
So, how should tourists protect their rights and interests when encountering such situations during tourism?
Recently, the "Mirror of the Sky" attraction in Linwu County, Hunan Province was ordered by the local market supervision bureau to stop publishing false advertisements due to false propaganda, and fined 120,000 yuan.
The onlookers were applauded by the punishment of the "scam" attraction, which is inseparable from the tourists' previous complaints and reports.
The reporter found that, for a long time, it is not uncommon for various forms of infringement of tourists' rights and interests such as false propaganda of scenic spots and unreasonable low-cost tours.
However, because the loss is not large, many tourists will choose to accept the bad luck, and the litigation involved is very few.
Professionals suggest that tourists should retain evidence such as contracts and photos when encountering such situations, and file complaints to relevant management departments to actively protect their legitimate rights and interests.
Take a day trip to be pitted
During the November of this year, Xiao He, a college student from Wuxi, Jiangsu, traveled to Chengdu with his friends.
Because she wanted to see the giant panda but did not buy a ticket, she chose to order a one-day tour group including a visit to the panda base on a tourism platform.
"Before I bought a day trip, I imagined that I might be pitted, but I didn't expect it to be pitted to the end." Xiao He said.
She cites many details: she said that she would come to pick him up, but the tour guide said one day in advance that she would take a taxi and reimburse the fare; she said that the group of 25 people is actually a group of 30. The other party explained that the other 5 are children. Counted in it; the agreed three-and-a-half hour journey, the actual 6-hour car ride, the road is not jammed, the car is too old, and the ride experience is poor; the meal sharing system is agreed, and the other party said that the package A she bought is not included , So 10 people sat at a table for dinner; they said that the trip included visiting Kuanzhai alleys, but the bus finally dropped them off at a subway station.
In addition, in addition to the 269 yuan for the group, the tour guide also charged 70 yuan for the Dujiangyan tour fee.
"If you don't pay, basically you won't be able to play in Dujiangyan, just blame me for not reading the terms."
After the end of the one-day trip on October 6, Xiao He immediately complained on the travel platform.
After the other party refuted her, Xiao He wrote a bad review and posted a complaint on the Internet.
A day later, the platform contacted her and said that she could compensate 20%, and Xiao He replied that she would claim 50%.
A few days later, Xiao He did not receive a reply, so he went to the platform to ask the customer service to ask.
By October 14, Xiaohe and his friends received 100 yuan in compensation each.
"In fact, it wasn't for the money. I originally wanted to complain to the tourism department. Later, I just didn't want to be entangled, and my heart was so tired." Xiao He told reporters, "100% will not choose day trips or group trips in the future. "
Xiao He posted on a social networking site to complain about this one-day trip experience, which also caused some netizens to post about similar situations they encountered in various places.
Visitors’ attitudes influence later rights claims
"Participating in a tour group is actually establishing a legal relationship in a travel contract with a travel agency, and both parties have rights and obligations." In this regard, Wang Xiaoguang, a lawyer at Beijing Jingdu Law Firm, believes that travel agencies, as providers of travel services, are obliged to provide travel contracts. For the services included in the travel contract, tourists can require travel agencies to bear liability for breach of contract.
Regarding the several issues mentioned by Xiao He, Wang Xiaoguang believes that tourists must first read the terms of the contract clearly, and have the right to raise them immediately when they find something inconsistent with the terms.
For example, if you discover at the beginning of the tour that a group of 25 people is actually a group of 30 people, you can refuse to join the group and request a refund of all the money, and at the same time bear the corresponding losses, such as the transportation expenses that have been paid.
However, if the tourist sees this unreasonable phenomenon and continues to participate, it means that the group has been approved, which means that the rights and obligations of both the tourist and the travel agency have changed in the process.
"On the one hand, it depends on the written agreement when the contract was originally concluded. On the other hand, if there is a change in the performance of the contract, what is the attitude of the tourists, whether they are approved or not, this will affect the rights and interests of the tourists in the later period." Wang Xiaoguang Say.
However, in reality, even if most tourists feel unreasonable at the beginning, they will basically choose to continue participating in the group.
Wang Xiaoguang believes that if a tourist believes that the actual service is too far apart from the agreement at the end of the tour and causes losses to himself, he can claim a fee deduction. During the litigation process, the court may support a partial deduction.
If you think there is no need to go to court, Wang Xiaoguang suggests that you can report to the tourism department.
"The most basic basis for disputes involving tourist groups is the contract law." Wang Xiaoguang said, if the contract terms are too long or too obscure, tourists need to communicate directly with the travel agency for confirmation, and keep the relevant written records of the communication.
If false propaganda is involved in scenic spots, it falls within the scope of tourism supervision, and tourists can directly complain to the supervision department.
Legislative follow-up plus corporate self-discipline
Currently, online travel is one of the most important travel management services.
From October 1st, the “Interim Regulations on the Management of Online Tourism Operation Services” issued by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism were formally implemented, which included matters such as “unreasonable low-cost tours”, evaluation rights protection, and use of tourist information. Unhealthy business behaviors such as "skilled" have also become key regulatory areas.
Legal experts in the industry believe that the new regulations define online travel entities, clearly regulate their business and service behaviors, clearly stipulate the relevant responsibilities that tourists should bear, and regulate related administrative supervision and inspection behaviors, etc., which will regulate my country Online tourism business service behavior is of great significance.
Xu Xiaolei, chief brand officer of CYTS, told reporters that before the introduction of the new regulations, they had consulted travel agencies. After the documents were released, what they did was to continuously optimize services, such as using new technologies such as big data to better serve tourists.
For tourists' complaints, their philosophy is to "embrace complaints" and actively deal with them. "If people complain to you, they still have hope for you."
Liu Simin, vice president of the Tourism Branch of the China Future Research Association, believes that market demand will give rise to many unreasonable phenomena. If tourists do not change their minds and increase their consumption wisdom, they will easily fall into the trap. "In terms of unreasonable low-cost travel, in fact, The main reason is the immature consumer psychology of tourists."
He believes that the focus of the governance of the regulatory authorities should be on combating counterfeiting and compulsory transactions, so as to increase the cost of violations and increase the benefits of rights protection.
Government departments should strictly enforce the law, and enterprises should strengthen self-discipline.
Wu Lirong