If you don't choose the packaging fee, you can't place an order, and is it reasonable to charge the packaging fee for online supermarket shopping

"I just buy a barrel of soy sauce, and the soy sauce itself has a handle, why do I have to pay a yuan for environmentally friendly packaging?" Not long ago, Mr. Wang from Chaoyang, Beijing, wanted to buy a barrel of soy sauce on a supermarket app, and found that the packaging fee option appeared at the checkout, and he couldn't place an order without selecting the packaging fee option.

Mr. Wang often buys things in the supermarket app, and he used to buy a lot of things at one time, and he didn't care too much about the packaging fee charged. Buy a barrel of soy sauce now and collect it, he feels that the platform is "ripping off customers" and infringing on the legitimate rights and interests of consumers.

A reporter from the "Rule of Law Daily" recently interviewed and found that many online supermarkets charge packaging fees, and some consumers do not recognize this, believing that there are problems such as vague charging standards, no obvious hints of fees, and even mandatory fees.

In the opinion of the interviewed experts, it is understandable that online supermarkets adjust their business strategies and charge a certain packaging fee, but the price must be clearly marked. In practice, there are problems such as inconsistent packaging fee standards and insufficient protection of consumers' right to choose. Operators should fully listen to the opinions of consumers, set business strategies based on the actual situation, pay attention to consumers' feelings while balancing profits and costs, and return the choice of whether they need packaging bags to consumers.

Merchants are accused of "arbitrary charges" The lack of uniformity in standards is confusing

According to Mr. Wang's prompt, the reporter entered the supermarket App to try to buy related goods and found that when placing an order, bagged rice noodles, edible oil and other goods did not show that they needed a packaging fee, but when choosing an individually packaged soy sauce, there was a packaging fee option, and if you didn't choose, you couldn't place an order.

The reporter called the customer service of the supermarket App and described the situation encountered. The customer service explains: "For a product like oil, it is usually packaged in a larger package and can be picked up directly. But for small items like soy sauce, additional bags may be required to load, so a packaging fee will be charged. ”

The reporter said that a barrel of soy sauce has a handle, and you can carry it by hand, and you don't need a packaging bag. The customer service responded that it was impossible to change the online packaging fee option, but it could apply for a two-yuan coupon for the reporter, which was equivalent to a reduction in the packaging fee.

When the reporter further inquired about the packaging fee charging standard, the customer service said that under normal circumstances, most of the goods need to pay the packaging fee when placing an order online, and there are some special goods, which may not need to pay additional packaging fees because they have their own packaging. The customer service also admits that due to the lack of unified standards, consumers will inevitably have doubts during the purchase process. They can't modify such options on the platform, but they can offer coupons to apply for packaging on their next order.

Not only this supermarket app, but also another fresh food app also has a similar situation: when consumers go to the payment interface, they find that there is a packaging fee, and they must select the packaging fee to place an order.

There are also interviewed consumers who reported that some of them charge packaging fees and some do not charge for orders placed on different platforms. For example, if you buy a bag of rice on a supermarket app, you don't need to pay a packaging fee, but if you place an order for the same type of rice in the above-mentioned supermarket through a takeaway platform, you must pay a packaging fee of 1.2 yuan.

"Is it reasonable to pay the same packaging fee for buying a bunch of things as you buy as much as you buy?" said Ms. Zhao from Xicheng, Beijing, adding that some online supermarkets and takeaway platforms charge packaging fees in an unclear and arbitrary manner.

The purpose of plastic restriction is not to charge for money Simple and crude charges are not advisable

According to public reports, online supermarkets responded to the charging of packaging fees: in accordance with the national "plastic restriction order" and other relevant policy requirements, biodegradable plastic bags were used, and packaging materials were appropriately charged.

But some consumers aren't buying it. Mr. Niu, who lives in Chaoyang, Beijing, and often shops in online supermarkets, said that if companies are to cooperate with the "plastic restriction order", then they should find ways to get consumers to buy fewer plastic bags, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach.

According to Chen Yinjiang, deputy secretary-general of the Consumer Rights Protection Law Research Association of the China Law Society, according to the national "plastic restriction order", businesses should actively advocate the concept of environmental protection and use environmentally friendly materials to package goods to reduce the impact on the environment. Businesses should continue to improve their technology, raise service standards, and use environmentally friendly packaging bags as much as possible, rather than just increasing fees to meet environmental requirements.

"It is clearly unreasonable for businesses to increase packaging costs without taking substantial steps to reduce the use of plastic products. Chen Yinjiang said that this can neither effectively comply with the "plastic restriction order" nor really reduce the negative impact on the environment.

The Jiangsu Provincial Consumer Protection Commission said in a document on January 10 that operators can explore sales strategies to reduce the frequency of use of plastic shopping bags, rather than simply and rudely charging a flat fee. The ultimate purpose of the "plastic restriction order" is not to charge fees, but to reduce the frequency of use of plastic shopping bags through fees, and guide consumers to spontaneously form green consumption habits, so as to reduce the adverse impact of plastic products on the environment.

"When shopping offline, the bag can be bought or not, no one forces it, but the online supermarket is mandatory to charge, since it is for environmental protection, I will keep the bag intact and return it, support environmental protection, why can't I refund it?"

Su Haopeng, a professor at the Law School of the University of International Business and Economics and director of the Consumer Protection Law Research Center, believes that this approach is obviously inappropriate, "When the takeaway brother delivers the goods to the consumer, the function of the packaging bag has been realized, and the consumer has also enjoyed the performance of the contract." Therefore, the practice of returning the bag to the takeaway guy and refusing to pay the packaging fee is not legally protected."

It should be judged based on product attributes Reasonable fees guarantee the right to choose

In response to the problem of packaging fees, the interviewed experts generally said that some platforms in the early development process, in order to attract consumers, do not charge packaging fees, when the operating costs or supply and demand changes, it is understandable to appropriately charge a certain packaging fee, but the key is to charge a reasonable fee, and to protect consumers' right to choose.

Su Haopeng believes that the law does not make specific restrictions on packaging fees and other expenses, so legally speaking, supermarkets can take packaging fees as a separate charging item and have market pricing power. However, according to the provisions of the "Provisions on Clearly Marked Prices and Prohibition of Price Gouging", if you want to charge a fee, you must clearly mark the price.

"The core of clear pricing is that operators must openly and transparently display all expenses in the course of sales or services. It is an offence to charge any fees without clearly informing the consumer, or to defraud through misleading price displays. Su Haopeng said that when online supermarkets provide packaging services, they should clearly indicate the packaging cost on the product page, rather than suddenly proposing it when consumers settle the bill, which not only violates consumers' right to know, but also violates the provisions of clearly marked prices.

He suggested that details of the bag should be provided on the product page, including images, dimensions and materials, so that consumers can make an informed choice. In addition, operators should also offer different sizes and types of bag options to meet the needs of different consumers. This not only helps consumers make reasonable consumption decisions, but also ensures fair competition in the market.

Chen Yinjiang also pointed out that it is understandable for operators to charge a certain packaging fee, but the premise is that it should be fair and reasonable, based on the necessity of commodity packaging and actual cost considerations. At the same time, merchants should also fully listen to consumers' opinions and provide a variety of packaging options, so that consumers can choose independently according to their needs and preferences, so as to improve the consumer experience. Only in this way can a win-win effect be obtained: consumers will return again if they get a good consumption experience, and operators can achieve better development if they have more repeat customers.

"The charging of packaging fees should be based on the attributes of the goods. Packaging needs may be different for different types of products. For example, for fresh goods, if not properly packaged may affect the quality, so packaging is necessary, but should not be over-packaged, enterprises need to choose a reasonable packaging method according to the attributes of the product and actual needs. Chen Yinjiang said.

The Jiangsu Provincial Consumer Rights Protection Commission called for the optimization of warehousing and distribution links, and the use of recyclable packaging for environmentally friendly distribution, since takeaway or supermarket delivery is mostly delivered to the door. For example, eco-friendly materials such as cloth bags can be used for delivery, and the delivery staff will bring back the packaging bag after the product is delivered to your door.

"How to balance profits and costs, while paying attention to the psychological feelings of consumers, is a problem that businesses need to constantly think about. Lai Yang, a member of the Expert Committee of the China General Chamber of Commerce and the chief expert of the Beijing International Trade Center Research Base, said.

(Rule of Law Daily)