Law

Promote the establishment of an online resolution mechanism for small-scale consumer disputes through trial use

2026-01-26   

At present, trial classes, trial equipment, and trial products are increasingly appearing in the consumer market. However, once the word "trial" is used, it seems to discount product quality and consumer rights protection. Even in the product usage process, "extra meaning" may be added, such as some trial products can only have written reviews and cannot have advisory reviews. Are there any shortcomings in consumer rights protection in the "trial" economy? The 'trial' economy in the consumption field, more precisely, should be 'trial' consumption, becoming a 'catalyst' to stimulate consumer desires and promote spontaneous consumption. Many consumers immediately make purchasing decisions and engage in actual consumption behavior due to a good experience, and 'trial' has become a low-cost advertising and product or service promotion method. ”In the view of Professor Wu Jingming from the School of Civil and Commercial Economics and Law at China University of Political Science and Law, once the "trial" in the "trial" economy is misused, it will become a disguised marketing model that infringes on the legitimate rights and interests of consumers. Some businesses use the banner of 'free trial' and 'early access experience', but actually infringe on consumer rights. These behaviors not only violate the principle of good faith, but also constitute fraud, infringement, and unfair competition. ”Professor Xu Haiyan from the Law School of the University of International Business and Economics said. In Wu Jingming's view, "trial" consumption may seem diverse and diverse, but it is still a part of consumption and not a newly emerging independent consumption model. Existing laws and regulations are applicable to this part of "trial" consumption, but regulatory measures need to be followed up. Especially in multiple aspects such as information security, product quality, freedom of evaluation, and after-sales protection, as consumers, when their rights are damaged due to "trial" consumption, they can also protect their rights in accordance with existing legal systems and channels. The increasingly diversified scenarios of the "trial" economy and the characteristics of online and offline integration have also brought some challenges to regulatory work. Taking the e-commerce field as an example, in online cross regional trial activities, platforms and merchants inevitably shift responsibility for damaging consumer rights and interests to each other. In this regard, relevant laws and regulations in our country have clearly stipulated the methods for assuming and allocating responsibilities. ”Wu Jingming told reporters that in such issues, China's Consumer Rights Protection Law and E-commerce Law also apply to "trial" consumption. Lu Yun, Director of the Consumer Rights and Product Quality and Safety Legal Professional Committee of the Beijing Lawyers Association, introduced that as a marketing model, it is difficult to determine a unified quality standard for "trial consumption". Especially for the "trial" and "tasting" of cosmetics and some food products, there is no established traceability mechanism like genuine products, and there is insufficient control and investigation of the entire chain, making it difficult to identify their channel sources and authenticity. The interviewed experts unanimously believe that "trial" does not mean accepting discounts on product quality and consumer rights protection, and promoting the "trial" economy for consumer rights protection is urgent. From the perspectives of traceability mechanism, dispute resolution mechanism, and consumer safety awareness, Lu Yun analyzed the feasible methods for safeguarding the consumer rights and interests of trial products. In terms of supervision and traceability mechanism, relevant industry standards should be established to standardize the full chain traceability mechanism of "trial" and "trial" products from the production source to the circulation link and even the consumption link; In terms of dispute resolution mechanisms, it is recommended that corresponding platforms establish and improve specialized channels for handling consumer disputes related to trial products. In addition, consumers should strengthen their safety awareness, avoid blindly listening and believing, and enhance their awareness of prevention. Xu Haiyan believes that relevant regulations and standards should be refined to clarify the behavioral boundaries of the "trial" economy. The implementation regulations of the Consumer Rights Protection Law can be revised or specialized rules can be formulated to clarify the quality and safety standards of trial products in the "trial" business model of merchants, the authenticity standards of marketing promotion, and the joint liability division between platforms and merchants. Xu Haiyan specifically mentioned that on the one hand, it is necessary to establish a trial consumption filing and public disclosure system, strengthen the supervision of the entire process, and strengthen the platform's review and disposal responsibilities; On the other hand, it is suggested to promote the establishment of an online dispute resolution mechanism for small-scale economic disputes. For example, relying on the national 12315 platform to open a special entrance for dispute resolution, applying pre mediation procedures, those who fail mediation can quickly connect to online channels for arbitration or small claims litigation, in order to reduce the cost and time cost of consumer rights protection. Xu Haiyan added that consumers should establish a rational consumption concept, be wary of the temptation of "trial" that is far below market value, understand that "there is no free lunch in the world", and once they participate, they must leave a trace throughout the entire process and properly store electronic or physical evidence such as activity pages, physical goods, communication records, and payment vouchers as evidence for post event legal rights protection. (New Society)

Edit:Yiyi Responsible editor:Jiajia

Source:legaldaily

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