Why scammed consumers in China are shunning their right to fight for compensation

Consumers in China unhappy with their purchases stay quiet rather than fight for their rights because they think trying to get compensation is too time consuming and costly, according to analysts.

China’s consumer protection law was introduced over 20 years ago and has recently been revised, but the legislation is still not encouraging shoppers to seek redress, the experts said.

The consumer law, which has long been criticised for having an excessive number of loopholes, was amended two years ago.

Among the changes made were raising the level of compensation for consumers who get swindled to three times their initial payment. Minimum compensation is set at 500 yuan (HK$600).

The law also added clauses requiring financial institutions to release full information about their products to clients. Online shoppers also have “regret rights”, meaning they can return goods within a set period if they are unhappy.

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Professor Liu Junhai, an expert based at the law school at Renmin University, said consumer rights were generally better protected than before thanks to more choice for shoppers in the market and the higher importance attached by businesses to maintaining their reputation for quality and fairness.