Blind boxes of live animals appear on the online shopping platform, and some sellers cannot provide health certificates and claim that they will not be returned
"(Live turtle) I'm just messing around with blind boxes. If you really want to raise them, it's best to buy turtles directly...Blind boxes on the Internet are all gimmicks." A seller said on January 28.
A reporter from the Beijing News found that blind boxes containing live animals such as puppies, kittens, tortoises, and rabbits began to appear on online shopping platforms.
Some sellers made it clear that once such blind boxes are sold, they cannot be returned or exchanged, and they cannot provide animal health certificates and other materials.
The China Consumers Association mentioned in its official account push article on the 27th that although there is a certain degree of confidentiality regarding product styles in blind box sales, information related to product quality and services should be fully informed.
In addition, the couriers of several companies such as SF Express, Shentong, Yuantong, etc. told the Beijing News reporter that their companies explicitly prohibit the delivery of live animals.
Some live animal blind box sellers cannot provide health certificates
On January 28th, a reporter from the Beijing News inputted keywords such as "live pet blind box", "cat blind box", "dog blind box" and "tortoise blind box" on the online idle trading platform and found many live pets Blind box seller.
Among them, the price of blind boxes for cats such as puppets, short American shorts, and British shorts is about 200-400 yuan, while blind boxes for dogs such as Husky, German Shepherd, Golden Retriever, and Teacup Dog sell for about 500 yuan.
Two sellers of "live pet blind box" said that the cats and dogs in the blind box have been dewormed and vaccinated.
But it is unable to provide specific pictures of health certification materials, such as vaccination certificates.
Some sellers said that, except for animal deaths or "health problems", blind boxes are generally not allowed to be returned after they are sold.
However, when the reporter asked about the specific content of the "health problem", the other party avoided answering and did not explain the specific conditions for return and exchange.
There are also sellers who clearly stated that "Once they are sold, they will not be refunded or exchanged."
In addition, when a reporter from the Beijing News asked a "purebred live cat blind box" seller how to ensure the health of the pet, the other party replied "If you don't buy it, don't ask"; "You go, if you want to buy it, you can buy it or not. ".
Then the reporter directly "blocked".
A reporter from the Beijing News searched on another online shopping platform and found that there are many shops selling "Blind Tortoise Boxes" with prices ranging from a few yuan to thousands of yuan.
The merchant clearly stated in the product image and color classification that the tortoise blind box is non-refundable, non-refundable, non-acceptable, and cannot post comments about the variety.
For example, "Don't ask what turtle it is, I don't know it myself", "You can't post the real picture, you can take it again if you can afford it", "The variety is distributed randomly, luck depends on yourself, don't ask me what I am, I don't know ......", "The size is unknown, the quantity is unknown, and whether it is the whole product is entirely based on luck. It is not recommended to shoot if the mentality is not good.
The customer service of two stores told the reporter that the turtles in the blind box were randomly selected by the store, and they were “healthy and complete.” However, when the reporter asked to check the "appearance" of several types of turtles that "participated in the blind box sales" Was told that no pictures were available.
Several couriers said that the company banned the delivery of live animals
Couriers from several companies such as SF Express, Shentong, Yuantong, etc. told the Beijing News that their companies explicitly prohibit the delivery of live animals.
A courier said, "Even if a lot of things are packed in boxes, sometimes we guess what they are as soon as we get them. Live animals are generally afraid to accept them. If they pass the security check, they will be fined at least 500 yuan. Can be shipped. Success is usually made by the salesperson and the seller in private."
According to an owner of a physical pet store, when transporting pets, “usually, if you are near you, you will send it by yourself. If you are a little farther away, you will choose online car-hailing. If you can’t get the online car-hailing, you will use air transportation, which is safer.” He also mentioned, go. Air transport requires a quarantine certificate, and the cost is relatively high.
According to a previous report by Xinhua News Agency, Ding Hongtao, the head of the Legal Affairs Department of the China Express Association, mentioned in an interview that the postal law enforcement rules prohibit the mailing of live animals, but this provision has been covered by the Wildlife Protection Law in practice, that is, "no delivery Protected wild animals and highly poisonous and infectious animals", not all live animals are prohibited from being sent.
Ding Hongtao mentioned that, as the internal items of the mail, the security system of delivery channels such as receiving and sending inspection, real-name receiving and sending, and machine security inspection are applied.
"In practice, if it is believed that a certain type of animal may be a prohibited item, it should be investigated and collected in accordance with the law, including inspection and quarantine."
Lawyer: You cannot give up or cover up the notification of product information with the "blindness" of the blind box
Lawyer Liu Gao, a senior partner of Hunan Furong Law Firm, told the Beijing News that consumers have the right to know and cannot give up or conceal the notification of product information with the "blindness" of the blind box. This essentially constitutes a consumer The infringement of the right to know, "As a blind box of the business model, consumers know the product information, only through a certain amount of blind guessing to increase the interest and appeal."
"Therefore, the so-called replies of some sellers of'Don't ask what tortoise is','Don't show the real picture', and'Don't ask me what' are not in compliance with the Consumer Protection Law and violate the consumer's right to know. "Attorney Liu Gao said, on the other hand, consumers have the right to obtain quality-qualified products, and products sold on the market must be of qualified quality and obtain corresponding product quality certificates.
Attorney Liu Gao mentioned that if you sell substandard products in the name of "blind boxes," it will violate the legitimate rights and interests of consumers. "In practice, those who cannot provide health certificates, and when inquiring about their health conditions, they avoid answering even saying " Sellers who don’t buy, don’t ask, violate consumers’ right to obtain quality products."
China Consumers Association: Blind box operators must bear statutory quality guarantee responsibilities
"Blind box, as the name implies, is to place different products in the same box. Consumers do not know in advance which one is in the box, but there is a certain probability that they can get their favorite products." China Consumers Association (hereinafter referred to as) : China Consumers Association) published an article on the official official account on the 27th to remind consumers not to buy blind boxes blindly.
The article pointed out that compared with ordinary products, blind boxes have a strong information asymmetry. Consumers can only rely on merchants’ advertising to purchase, which can easily be exaggerated by merchants, fictional probability of winning, and color. Misleading by false propaganda such as style inconsistency.
The China Consumers Association mentioned that some consumers reported that some merchants "deceived customers" and could only exchange them when they encountered quality problems; some merchants had low after-sales efficiency and had been delaying the handling of consumer problems.
In this regard, the China Consumers Association believes that regardless of whether the blind box is sold as a genuine product or an accessory, the blind box itself is a commodity, and the operator must bear the legal quality guarantee responsibility.
On the one hand, it is necessary to ensure that the product source is reliable and the chain is complete, and to eliminate "three noes" products and counterfeit products; on the other hand, it is necessary to actively fulfill the operator's obligations such as return, replacement, and repair, and no "gift" or "lottery" Such excuses are exempted from the obligation of quality assurance and after-sales service.
In addition, blind box operators should ensure that the product quality information is true to ensure consumers' informed choice.
Although there is a certain degree of confidentiality regarding product styles in blind box sales, information related to product quality and service, such as origin, ingredients, production date, shelf life, use and storage conditions, safety warnings, prices, "three guarantees", etc. It should be fully informed.
Reporter Wu Linshu and intern Zhu Shichen