Prepaid card consumption, be careful? Card?

Beauty card, haircut card, fitness card, car wash card In daily life, many consumers have prepaid cards, and prepaid consumption is becoming more and more popular. This consumption pattern can promote consumption and prosper the market to a certain extent, but in the process of development, there have also been some chaos. Merchants promise all kinds of discounts when they apply for the card, but once the service is not satisfactory and the store closes, it becomes people's trouble to return the card and get a refund.

In recent years, many parts of the country have issued relevant laws and regulations to manage single-use prepaid cards and legally restrict the consumption of prepaid cards? A spell? The consumer protection network is becoming more and more dense.

Prepaid consumer disputes have a long history.

? I got a membership card in the barber shop and gave 500 yuan a 30% discount. ? Mr. Wang, who works in Chaoyang District, Beijing, told reporters that the original price of 58 yuan's haircut standard is probably 40 yuan after the discount. In the view of Mr. Wang, who often has a haircut, it is quite cost-effective.

Xiao Li, a graduate student in Beijing, likes delicious food and recharges cards in many restaurants. ? There is a Sichuan restaurant that cooks very authentic food. Saved 1000 yuan, free when eating, and then 20% off consumption. ? Xiao Li said that this card can be used not only by yourself, but also by friends, which is both affordable and convenient.

With the rapid development of electronic consumption and credit consumption, prepaid consumption has gradually become a common consumption mode. ? The so-called prepaid consumption means that consumers pay a certain amount to operators in advance and then get goods or services on time or on schedule. ? Chen Yinjiang, deputy secretary general of china law society Consumer Protection Law Research Association, said.

Liu Junhai, a professor at the Law School of Renmin University of China, believes that under ideal circumstances, both buyers and sellers can achieve a win-win situation. Consumers can get real discounts, project gifts, etc. , but also avoid the trouble of each payment; For businesses, they can not only raise funds, expand their scale, but also lock in customers in this way.

With the popularity of prepaid consumption, some problems have followed. The reporter found through interviews that some consumers have applied for cards because of impulse or business inducement, but they have not consumed them yet, or they are dissatisfied with the service after spending several times, but they want to return the cards but are rejected; Some businesses even shut down or run away, so consumers can't continue to enjoy services, and the rest of the money is hard to recover.

In April this year, the Annual Report on Consumer Rights Protection in China (202 1) issued by China Consumers Association pointed out that prepaid consumer disputes have always been a difficult point in consumer rights protection. 202 1 Affected by the fluctuation of the epidemic situation in COVID-19, it is easy for consumers to pay in the early stage, but it is difficult to complain about the refund in the later stage, which is greatly increased year-on-year.

? Prepaid card is the carrier of prepaid consumption, which is divided into multi-purpose prepaid card and single-purpose prepaid card. ? Chen Yinjiang introduced that the former is issued by franchisees and can be used across regions and industries, and is supervised by the People's Bank of China; The latter is issued by commercial entities, such as fitness card, beauty salon card, car wash and laundry card, supermarket shopping card and so on. , all belong to single-use prepaid cards. ? Among them, single-use prepaid cards are widely used in goods and services transactions, which is a difficult point in supervision. ?

Ms. Zhou, who lives in Fengtai District, Beijing, loves fitness. At the beginning of this year, she set up an annual card of 2000 yuan in the gym near the community. What she didn't expect was that the shop closed in less than two months.

As a fitness expert, Ms. Xie, who lives in Dazhou City, Sichuan Province, also got a card in a local gym. ? I spoke very well when I applied for the card, but later I found that there are always more people coming to exercise than equipment. How can I exercise well in such an environment? ? Ms. Xie said frankly.

Refund is often the first reaction of consumers when the service is poor or the business is closed. However, in practice, prepaid card consumption faces the problem of refund. Over time, many consumers choose to give up and think they are unlucky.

Signing a contract with a merchant is easily overlooked.

? The legal nature of prepaid card consumption is consumer service contract. ? Chen Yinjiang pointed out that the establishment and performance of ordinary consumer contracts are synchronous and have the characteristics of oneness. What about the prepaid card consumption contract? Pay first, then spend, single payment, multiple performances? . In this long-term and continuous performance process, businesses are likely to be affected by various uncertain factors, resulting in disputes with consumers.

In the interview, the reporter noticed that most consumers tend to ignore signing contracts with merchants when handling prepaid cards, which is different from paying with one hand and delivering with the other. Among them, there are many cases of signing contracts in fitness, teaching and training industries, and few other common prepaid card consumption industries.

? The rights and obligations of both parties are verbally agreed, and merchants rarely provide written contracts. When the payment is settled, the corresponding bills and consumption details will not be provided. Due to the lack of detailed and clear written agreement, consumers can only enjoy goods or services with prepaid cards. ? Chen yinjiang said that once a dispute occurs, consumers often get into trouble because of lack of strong evidence? Empty talk? An embarrassing situation.

Having a contract doesn't mean everything is fine. Ms. Liu from Hebei has got a membership card in a beauty club, but she can't enjoy relevant services because of moving, so she negotiates with the beauty club for a refund. But the beauty club refused to refund the fee on the grounds that it was written in the contract? If you withdraw from the meeting for personal reasons, the payment will not be refunded? .

? When many merchants sign contracts with consumers, they adopt format contracts prepared in advance, which are often mixed with clauses that are unfavorable to consumers. ? Chen Yinjiang said, this? Overlord clause? It sets obstacles for consumers to refund reasonably, which damages the legitimate rights and interests of consumers.

At present, there is only one provision for single-use prepaid cards at the national level, namely "Administrative Measures for Single-use Commercial Prepaid Cards (Trial)", which was implemented on 20 12 165438 10. Liu Junhai said that with the passage of time, the measures have a lag, which only involves? Retail, accommodation and catering, and resident service? The three industries have not yet covered other prepaid card consumption industries that have emerged in recent years.

In terms of supervision of funds received in advance, the Measures require enterprises in the above three industries to register and file in proportion and deposit funds. Chen Yinjiang said that, in fact, whether to put on record or not depends on the voluntary self-discipline of card-issuing enterprises in most cases.

Why do you sometimes apply for a card knowing the risks? Under investigation? Is the discount strong? It is the answer that reporters hear the most. ? Big discounts and generous rebates are the trump cards of operators, and many businesses make them through manufacturing. Is there this shop after this village? The illusion of inducing consumers to buy prepaid cards. ? Liu Junhai said that in the face of various concessions, consumers will inevitably get a card impulsively.

Comprehensively and systematically regulate prepaid card consumption

Not long ago, Beijing Shunyi District Market Supervision Bureau fined a beauty salon company 3,000 yuan and ordered the company to temporarily stop issuing prepaid cards.

The punishment is based on the newly implemented Regulations of Beijing Municipality on the Administration of Single-use Prepaid Cards. The "Regulations" stipulate that when selling single-use prepaid cards, operators shall issue certificates indicating relevant contents to consumers or sign written contracts. However, the beauty salon company did not issue credentials and signed a contract when selling prepaid cards, and continued to carry out illegal acts after being ordered to make corrections. This case has also become the first administrative punishment case in Beijing to apply the new prepaid card regulations.

The "Regulations" also stipulates? 7-day cooling-off period, that is, as long as the consumer does not open the card after purchase, the contract can be unconditionally terminated within 7 days, and the operator should refund all the prepaid fees at one time; Certainly not allowed to set? Do not return or change, the right of interpretation belongs to the operator? Unfair and unreasonable regulations for consumers; Establish a deposit and management system for funds received in advance, and punish operators who fail to deposit and manage funds according to regulations.

In recent years, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Gansu and other places have also issued relevant laws and regulations to strengthen the management of single-use prepaid cards. Liu Junhai said that on the basis of local legislation, we should sum up experience, study and promulgate laws and regulations at the national level as soon as possible, and comprehensively and systematically regulate prepaid card consumption in terms of access conditions, business requirements, code of conduct, fund supervision, and rights protection and relief.

Prepaid card consumption involves market supervision, commerce, public security and other departments. Which is easy to be formed by multi-head supervision? Vacuum zone? . Xu Haiyan, a professor at the Law School of the University of International Business and Economics, said that in order to further clarify the scope of powers and responsibilities of various departments, it is suggested to establish a fast, efficient and seamless supervision mechanism with market supervision departments as the mainstay and other departments cooperating with each other, so as to promote the legalization, specialization, intelligence and socialization of supervision.

? Merchants should constantly improve their sense of social responsibility, operate in good faith, and spend their minds on providing better goods and services and enhancing their reputation. ? Chen Yinjiang said.

Xu Haiyan pointed out that for consumers, it is necessary to maintain a rational and mature consumption mentality and examine the business scale and credit status of businesses, instead of blindly listening to sales promotion. If you buy a prepaid card, you must keep the relevant bills and electronic evidence so that you can fulfill the burden of proof when defending your rights.

? I haven't used it a few times, and my card is about to expire. ? In mid-April, Ms. Wei of a residential area in Beijing received the news that the barber shop downstairs was going to close. What about the money left in Cary? Just when Ms. Wei was worried, the store called and said that she had docked with another barber shop and customers could continue to enjoy related services.

It is a good way for businesses and consumers to solve problems through consultation. Under the epidemic, offline stores are closed from time to time. Some businesses do it maliciously, and some have operational difficulties. Really? The heart is willing, but the strength is not enough? . Some experts suggested that consumers and operators should understand each other and give each other, which is not to ignore the rights and interests of consumers, but to communicate and negotiate at this time to tide over the difficulties. After the difficulties, businesses can compensate consumers by providing better services and more concessions.

Chain connection

Key points of "Regulations of Beijing Municipality on the Administration of Single-use Prepaid Cards"

Article 11 Under any of the following circumstances, business operators shall not issue prepaid cards or renewal cards for consumers:

(1) Being listed as the person subjected to execution for breach of trust;

(two) the legal representative, the main person in charge of the illegal acts of the employer is listed as the person who has lost his trust;

(3) Being listed in the list of business anomalies;

(four) apply for cancellation or cancellation procedures;

(5) Other circumstances stipulated by laws and regulations.

Article 12 Consumers shall enjoy the following rights:

(a) to understand the record keeping and advance deposit of operators;

(2) To fully understand the contents, quantity and quality, price and expenses, expiration date, balance return, risk warning, liability for breach of contract, dispute resolution and other information of the goods or services paid by prepaid cards from the operators;

(3) Deciding to purchase prepaid cards independently;

(four) to understand the use of prepaid cards, and to inquire about consumption records, balances and other information;

(5) Other rights stipulated by laws and regulations.

Article 13 A business operator shall issue a certificate to consumers stating the following contents:

(1) Names and contact information of both parties;

(two) the operator's collection account information, the amount received in advance, the payment method, and the performance guarantee measures;

(3) The content, place, quantity and quality of the exchanged goods or services, the types of payment calculation, charging standards and deduction methods;

(four) the time limit for performance, and the business premises owned or leased or leased;

(5) risk warning;

(six) the scope of use, conditions and handling methods of the refund;

(seven) other circumstances of change, suspension and termination of advance payment;

(eight) the refund calculation method, channels and expenses;

(nine) loss reporting, replacement and transfer;

(10) consumption records and balance inquiry methods;

(11) Liability for breach of contract;

(12) methods for resolving disputes.

Where a business operator and a consumer sign a written contract with the contents specified in the preceding paragraph of this article, it shall be deemed as a certificate.

The demonstration text of prepaid card written contract shall be formulated by the municipal industry department in conjunction with the municipal market supervision and management department. To formulate a model contract text, we should listen to the opinions and suggestions of consumers, operators, consumer associations, trade associations and chambers of commerce.

Article 14 Prepaid cards shall be set with validity period, large amount of prepayment, etc. Where the major interests of consumers are involved, the operator shall give a risk warning to consumers in the written contract.

Article 15 The format clauses, notices, statements, shop notices and instructions for consumers formulated by business operators shall not contain unfair and unreasonable provisions for consumers such as no refund or exchange of goods, and the right of interpretation belongs to business operators.

Format terms, notices, statements, store notices, consumer instructions, etc. The contents specified in the preceding paragraph of this article are invalid.

Article 16 If a consumer fails to pay the cost of goods or services within seven days from the date of purchasing a prepaid card, he has the right to ask the operator to return the card, and the operator shall return the prepayment in full within five days from the date of the consumer's request for returning the card; Consumers should return the gifts or services obtained by purchasing prepaid cards or pay a reasonable price.