Shipping fee is 20,000 yen? Internet mail trap: December 27, 18:26
At the end of the year and New Year, many people may buy new years or gifts online.
It is a familiar and convenient online mail order, but caution is required.
Nowadays, the number of people complaining of the damage of “net mail order fraud” is increasing rapidly.
(Good Morning Japan Director Ririko Hirase)
The postage of toothpaste ...
The opportunity for the interview came from a younger brother living in Matsuyama City.
My brother purchases various things, such as daily necessities, from online shopping.
Two months ago, his brother purchased 1400 yen toothpaste online and was charged 21,400 yen.
When I was surprised and looked at the bill, I realized that the postage was charged as much as 20,000 yen.
"Eh? 20,000? It's like registering all the card information, so you can place an order in about two clicks, and the last order confirmation screen may have a shipping fee, but honestly, at all I didn't. "
My brother rushed to contact the seller and replied, "It was a system error."
After that, he was given a refund.
Was it just an error?
When I checked the seller's page, the shipping cost for all items was 20,000 yen.
To make things even more unnatural, the shipping cost was reduced to 20,000 yen depending on the day.
If you look at the reviews about this seller,
Writing that shows anger, such as "I am a scam," "Is fun," "I ordered toothpaste, but for some reason the shipping fee was free, but it was changed to 20,000 yen and the order was confirmed." But many.
Apparently, it wasn't just his brother who paid the expensive postage.
If you hit the seller directly ...
Why set a high shipping cost?
I tried calling the phone number on the seller's page.
However, it does not lead at all.
So, I decided to visit the written address.
Take the Shinkansen from Tokyo and drive more than one hour from the station.
We arrived at a café standing in the mountains.
I asked the owner about the situation.
I said, "My brother was charged 20,000 yen for shipping?"
Shopkeeper "20,000 yen? Why?"
I said, "I wanted to ask why ..."
Shopkeeper: "I haven't heard that story ..."
According to the store owner, he wasn't involved in the listing business, just rented the store's address to an acquaintance.
Therefore, we asked the seller who rented a cafe address and actually charged a high shipping fee on an anonymous condition.
A man who runs the exhibition business while working as a company employee.
It is said that they started adding the cost to shipping one year ago.
Initially, it started at around 5,000 yen, but gradually increased to 20,000 yen.
He mentioned the breakdown of the additional 20,000 yen in terms of personnel, administrative, and material costs.
While adding these costs to shipping costs, reducing the list price of products means that when products are listed in the "lowest price" order on the web, products will be displayed in the top prominent column .
Me "Did you not want buyers to notice expensive shipping?"
Man: "I don't have that feeling. Because the shipping fee is displayed on the screen, I think that the customer has agreed to buy it. I do not feel sorry."
An online shopping site where sellers can freely set shipping costs.
According to lawyers familiar with consumer affairs, these practices are more likely to result in "fraud" for deceiving the buyer.
The only way to avoid the trouble of paying high shipping costs is to check the shipping cost of the product before purchasing or checking the invoice.
As we proceeded with the interview, it became clear that the act seemed to be a scam that exploited online shopping and used more sophisticated techniques.
Luggage that I have not ordered one after another ...
Items not ordered since last month arrived at the office of a male office worker living in Osaka.
"In the beginning, I thought it was what my wife had ordered, so I paid for it and received the goods for the time being. I paid about 10,000 yen for the goods by cash on delivery."
"But when I opened the box, I found that it was a device for putting a business price tag used in supermarkets. I checked my order history, but it was not what I ordered."
The man usually used online shopping frequently, and paid for it at that time, so he paid without any difficulty.
After that, I was able to contact the seller and have him / her return and refund, but after that, I continued to receive items that I did not recognize.
The man said, "I don't know the purpose at all, and I feel sick."
On SNS, there are many writings of people who have the same experience as this man.
"I received 5 points for cash on delivery. I didn't recognize it and refused to receive it. It was really creepy."
"I received a product that I didn't ask for by cash on delivery and my mother-in-law paid for it."
Some wrote that more than 50 unordered items arrived per week.
According to the National Consumer Affairs Center, consultations on such troubles have been occurring one after another since March of this year.
Sellers also suffer damage
Who keeps sending products?
When we interviewed the sellers, we found that the sellers were alleging damage.
One of the major online shopping sites is a company that sells automotive supplies.
It has been said that orders for cash on delivery have been increasing since this summer.
However, most of the shipped products are "rejected".
Returns and refunds will be accepted, but all fees and shipping costs must be borne by this company.
An auto supply dealer "I'm really irritated because the recipients of the product think that the seller sent it without permission."
According to this contractor, orders placed by cash on delivery often include the orderer's name in alphabetical order, wrong Japanese address, and missing apartment room number.
The vendor has canceled such "suspicious orders" in advance, but because the number is too large, it has been set up so that payment by cash on delivery cannot be made.
Then, the "suspicious order" is said to be gone.
In fact, a special bulletin board where sellers selling products to major mail-order websites exchange opinions showed a similar complaint.
"Two damages today," "Rejection or cancellation," "Damage every day since July," etc.
The aim is "point"?
Who is going?
According to Akiko Takahashi, an IT journalist who is familiar with online shopping, it is said that this is an "action aimed at points."
If you enter an address and name on a major mail order site, the orderer can send the product to a third party through the seller.
Originally, it would be used as a gift-giving function, but this function was abused.
According to Takahashi, enter the address and name obtained by a third party in some way.
Then select "Cash on delivery" as the payment method and send the goods. The purpose of this third party is "points" given to the orderer.
If the goods are not paid, the points entered by the orderer will disappear, but when the points are awarded, they may immediately use the points to buy and cash the goods.
It is the seller who bears the points awarded.
According to a lawyer familiar with consumer issues, it is likely that this is a fraud, but it is difficult to identify the actual orderer.
"If you don't get it, you'll only get money, so for those who send it, the benefits alone are very low risk. That's why fraud is so prevalent."
We asked Rakuten, Amazon, and Yahoo, the three major online retailers, to report that a series of such abuses have been exploited. They say they are canceling contracts.
What should I do to avoid such troubles?
The National Life Center calls attention to consumers through its website.
▽ If you do not remember the item you received, you will not receive it ▽ You do not need to pay for it if you receive it, and if you do, you will immediately contact the seller or shipping agency 場合 If you use the mail order site, Make arrangements with your family, including the payment method. If you receive a product that you do not remember, contact the nearest consumer service center (Consumer Hotline "188").
We want to continue reporting.
We look forward to providing information from everyone who has read it.
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