If you hurry to search the internet and ask ... 800,000 yen? What you should be careful about is 16:06 on March 30th.

The house is no longer unlocked.

The water crew didn't stop.

In such a case, we are grateful for the service that can be reached with a single phone call.

What do you guys do when looking for such a vendor?

Anyway, I think that there are many people who search on the net and ask for it.

However, some malicious vendors charge exorbitant fees.

The number of troubles related to services related to daily life is increasing rapidly.

Under these circumstances, efforts are underway to introduce "reasonable prices" in cooperation with the government and local industry groups.

Here are some points you should know and be aware of so that you will not be in a hurry even if you have trouble in your life.

(Kobe Broadcasting Station Reporter Kinreirin, Osaka Broadcasting Station Reporter Asana Hashino)

Contents summarized in this special feature

・ The shower does not stop!

Billed 130,000 yen !?

・ The key cannot be opened!

Billing amount 800,000 yen !?

・ Trouble is increasing rapidly. Consultations related to "Internet advertising" are more than 10 times . ・ Be

careful

of "advertisements" displayed on the search result screen.

・ Government also feels a sense of crisis Kobe City HP also provides guidance on “standard price” information

・ How can I find a “reasonable price” vendor?

・ Things you can do before contacting the trouble

The shower doesn't stop!

Billed amount 130,000 yen !?

Mayu (pseudonym) in her 50s who lives in Hyogo prefecture.

Last summer, the shower in my bathroom didn't stop.

I hurriedly searched the net and asked the vendor who found it to come.

It was 130,000 yen that was charged after completing the work

"the entire part needs to be replaced" .

At that time, I paid as I was told.

Mayu

"I was in a panic at that time, so I couldn't calmly judge whether the price was right or not."

But then I start to feel suspicious.

The replaced parts were also available at mass retailers.

When I got an estimate at the store as a trial, it was 27,000 yen including the work fee.

Estimates from other vendors were as high as 40,000 yen.

Mayu asks the vendor for a cooling-off period.

However, the vendor said:

"Even if you suddenly say that you're cooling off. I'll give you a lawyer for the company.

"

It wasn't until more than a month later that the refund was given.

Mayu:

"It was difficult because I couldn't get a partner without a lawyer. I regretted that I should have chosen a vendor more carefully from the beginning."

I can't unlock it!

Billed amount 800,000 yen !?

In some cases, we received even higher charges.

My name is Miyoko (a pseudonym) in her 70s and lives in Osaka.

She broke the door lock when she was inside the apartment last winter and couldn't get out.

Miyoko also hurriedly searched on the net and called the vendor that appeared at the top of the screen.

I asked the two workers who came to me to do something about it.

I heard the sound of work outside the door, but it didn't open easily.

One worker wraps around from the outer wall and enters the room from the balcony.

I worked from the inside and the outside, and finally the key was fixed.

The amount billed was 834,680 yen.

Miyoko

"I didn't think it was expensive at that time. On the contrary, the workers looked shining. I was full of feelings of gratitude and excuse."

Immediately, I dropped the limit of 400,000 yen at a convenience store and paid it.

The remaining 400,000 yen will be handed over the next day.

Shortly after, when I told my friend about this event, it was pointed out that it was an exorbitant amount.

Miyoko who returned to me.

She finally became calm.

She called the worker's cell phone and told her, "I can't pay her bill."

She says, "She was a life-threatening job," but she said she couldn't pay what she couldn't.

Miyoko decided to take a cooling-off procedure in order to recover the 400,000 yen she had already paid.

She sends a document requesting a cooling-off to the vendor's address.

However, she returned with "no destination".

The vendor's address on the contract was false.

At that address was a warehouse.

The 400,000 yen paid by Miyoko did not come back after all.

The number of consultations related to "Internet advertising" is increasing more than 10 times.

The number of troubles related to "living rescue services" such as keys and water services is increasing rapidly.

The number of consultations received by the National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan in 2021 exceeded 6,000 (data up to March 14).

It's more than three times as much as eight years ago.

In particular, the number of consultations about having trouble after seeing online advertisements has increased more than 10 times.

It accounts for nearly half of all consultations.

There are conspicuous cases where you search for "○○ repair △△ prefecture" and ask the vendor displayed at the top of the screen to cause trouble.

The person in charge of the National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan said,

"It is thought that the spread of smartphones to the elderly has had an effect. As a result of rushing to search the Internet, they will contact you immediately without making a careful comparison. I think there are many things. "

Pay attention to the "advertisement" displayed on the search result screen

Lawyers familiar with consumer issues want you to be aware of the "advertisements" that appear in search results.

It is a mechanism called "listing advertisement".

Also known as "search-linked ads," ads related to the keyword searched at that time are placed above the part where the search results are displayed.

By paying the search engine side, the vendor will display it at the top of the search result screen, making it easier to see.

When the user is in a hurry, he may not notice that it is an "advertisement", so he says that he needs to be careful.

Attorney Kitamura

"Troubles related to keys and water supply are in a state where the client is impatient, and it is easy to access the vendor that appears at the top on the net screen, so it seems that the vendor is focusing on listing advertisement. Search advertising itself is one of the advertising mechanisms, but it is possible that some ads may contain malicious vendors. "

In "listing advertisement", the two characters "advertisement" are displayed on the left shoulder.

You can easily distinguish them by calming down and checking the screen.

Some items that require attention to "magnet advertisements"

Not only online searches, but also some magnet advertisements that can be placed in letterboxes, etc. need attention.

This is the case of a trader who was caught by the police.

The president of a waterworks company arrested and charged last year in Kobe.

He has been accused of fraud for deceiving a total of more than 2 million yen from 11 people.

According to investigators, the company was recruiting customers through "online advertising" and "magnet advertising."

After receiving a call at the outsourced call center, a company executive calls the customer back.

Through the exchanges at that time, he was exploring how much knowledge the customer had about water.

On top of that, the customers who called were classified into "slimy" and "astringent".

It is believed that he had determined whether he was a deceptive partner.

Hyogo Prefectural Police Investigative Officer

"People who seem to have little knowledge and elderly people living alone are" slimy ". People who are likely to have knowledge, men in their 40s to 50s, etc. were classified as" astringent ". . Dispatch experienced workers to people who are "slimy" and earn money surely. On the contrary, to people who are "astringent", workers with poor achievements are "no good". "I was dispatched at"

This company spends 10 to 20 million yen on advertising every month.

"Internet advertising" and "magnet advertising" are the pillars.

It means that the customer was charged 200,000 to 300,000 yen.

It is estimated that the number of contracts for this company that was caught in one year was 7,900, and the sales amounted to 600 million yen.

Government also feels a sense of crisis Kobe City HP also provides guidance on "standard charges" information

There are also unusual calls by the government.

In Kobe City, 770,000 stickers were created this year in response to the rapid increase in troubles related to water-related construction in the last few years.

It was distributed to all households in the city.

Over 7,000 posters are also available.

Now, when I walk around the city of Kobe, I see it here and there.

Kobe City also has a 24-hour telephone service called "Water Repair Reception Center".

When you call, 33 companies affiliated with the city will take turns at any time.

In addition, the website of the Kobe City Waterworks Bureau also introduces a site that summarizes standard rate information.

Mr. Tsudaka, Chief of Waterworks Bureau, Kobe City

"We are proceeding with unusual efforts with a sense of crisis. Please choose a vendor carefully without making a judgment based only on online advertisements and magnet advertisements."

How to find a "reasonable price" vendor?

How do you find the right priced vendor?

Attorney Kitamura, who is familiar with consumer issues, points out that:

▽ Even if it looks like a search result, it may be an advertisement

▽ Compare the sites of multiple contractors ▽

Estimate first how much it will cost

▽ It is necessary for contractors who try to do construction first without showing a quotation Attention

▽ Cooling off is possible even if you make a contract.

Consult with Consumer Affairs Center "188"

Many contractors who have done construction work at a reasonable price are also struggling with the current situation and working on countermeasures.

In Tokyo and Nagoya, unions of water contractors have telephone counters.

We introduce vendors with reasonable prices 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

National Federation of Water Services Cooperatives

"The image of the industry as a whole has deteriorated due to the presence of malicious contractors. When it comes time to repair, I get rushed, but calm down and the nearest union Please call the Waterworks Bureau. "

Industry groups on key repair and replacement are also calling:

Japan Lock Security Cooperative

"Like a family doctor, it's a good idea to find a repair shop in advance. Don't be impatient and get an estimate as to whether the price of the requester is appropriate. Please repair or replace it. "

Things you can do before contacting a living trouble vendor

There are some things you can do before you call the vendor in the first place.

First, close the main tap of the water supply.

Do you know the location of the main plug at home?

As long as the main plug is stopped, the damage will not spread further.

In some cases, it can be solved with simple tools that can be purchased at mass retailers.

A "rubber cup" that unclogs drains.

It is sold for about 1000 yen.

There are many things that can be solved with this.

Also, for rented homes, there are often water and key vendors with whom the management company is affiliated.

Make a note of your contact information in case of emergency.

New life from spring Don't panic in case of emergency

New life from spring.

Be careful if you start living alone.

In particular, people aged 18 and 19 will be able to sign a consumer contract without the consent of their parents by reducing the adult age from April.

It is important to confirm in advance what to do if something happens in your life.

I hope you can act calmly and calmly without rushing as much as you did.

Kobe Broadcasting Station reporter

Kim Rei Lin

joined in 2019.

She is in charge of police at the Kobe Bureau, covering gangsters, fraud cases, and sex crimes.

Osaka Broadcasting Station reporter

Asana Hashino

Joined in 2019.

As a police officer at the Osaka Bureau, he covers economic cases and juvenile cases.