Chinese shoppers want to use e-payment records for refunds: Survey

BEIJING - Nearly 80 percent of shoppers would like their e-payment records to be accepted as proof for refunds or exchanges, according to a newspaper survey.

Paper shopping receipts in China are usually regarded as the only evidence for refunds and exchanges. However, such receipts are easy to lose and consumers sometimes forget to ask for them.

As mobile phone payments grow in popularity nationwide, it would be more convenient for consumers to use their e-payment records as proof.

The survey, published by the China Youth Daily on Tuesday, said that of 2,000 respondents, 70 percent of people said that they had lost shopping receipts when they needed a refund or exchange, and only 16.2 percent of people regularly ask for a receipt when shopping.

Liu Junhai, professor with the Renmin University of China, said that "there is no legal ground for shopping receipts as the only evidence for refunds or exchanges."

Business owners should offer refunds or exchanges as long as consumers have proof of buying items there, Liu added.

According to a report by the Internet Network Information Center, 469 million people used their phones to pay for things in China in 2016.

In a report released by the Legal Daily in advance of World Consumer Rights Day on March 15, known as "3.15" in China, industry experts warned consumers about buying luxury goods through overseas purchasing agents.

Zhang Chen, chief examiner of luxury goods with the China Resale Goods Trade Association (CRGTA), said that 60 percent of luxury items sent to the CRGTA for authentication and bought via an overseas purchasing agent were fake.

Zhang suggested consumers be cautious and use professional services for authenticating their luxury goods.