Unawareness means many buyers are cheated
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Amid a growing number of complaints, consumer rights in China are being challenged by buyers' lack of awareness and a complicated compensation procedure.
Huang Jianhua, deputy chief of the consumer protection bureau under the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, said the bureau dealt with 5.2 million inquiries and 750,000 complaints in 2010.
He said the bureau also retrieved 980 million yuan ($149 million) for buyers who were cheated, a 45-percent rise year-on-year.
Huang made the remarks during the special annual program hosted by China Central Television on Tuesday - World Consumer Rights Day.
Previously, an annual report on consumers' complaints released by the China Consumers' Association revealed that more than half of consumers' complaints were related to poor product quality.
However, despite the rising number of consumer complaints, Wang Hai, a consumer rights advocate with more than 14 years of experience, told China Daily the growing number of complaints does not necessarily mean consumers in China are becoming more aware of their legal rights.
"In fact, some consumers are not aware that their rights have been violated, since the traps are harder to detect amid the country's rapid socioeconomic change, especially in the burgeoning industries," Wang said.
A reporter surnamed Yao who participated in the TV program told China Daily a lot of enterprises she investigated took it for granted that they would obtain commercial benefit by violating consumers' rights.
"What was worse, those poor consumers, such as my friends and colleagues, didn't know their rights had been trampled and didn't think they should appeal," Yao said.
Jiang Shuhua, a Beijing-based lawyer specializing in product quality at Yingke Law Firm, said most complaints he received last year were about automobiles and cell phones.
Jiang said some customers who bought vehicles did not understand the importance of keeping receipts and often forgot to ask for them from car sellers, which consequently brought them a series of potential problems.
Among customers who complained about cell phones, the biggest problem was from defective batteries that led to dangers such as a risk of explosion, Jiang said.
Compared to past years, Wang Hai noted that the protection of consumers' interests today requires more specialized knowledge, patience and determination.
"Many customers turned out to be passive when they wanted to protect their rights, not only because of a lack of legal knowledge but also because of the complicated compensation procedure," Jiang said.
"The most effective way to solve the problem is to reduce the cost of protecting consumer rights, since most consumers decided to give up appeals after they heard how much court fees would cost."
Jiang also said China Consumers' Association should better promote legal knowledge.
The Ministry of Agriculture dispatched an inspection group on Tuesday to look into the illegal use of clenbuterol, which is better known as "lean meat powder" in China. The powder is added to pig feed to lower the fat content.
The drug can speed up muscle building and fat burning, resulting in leaner pork. However, it can also lead to dizziness and cardiopalmus among people who eat the meat, according to an earlier media report.
Ham made by Henan-based Shineway Group, a famous meat food producer with more than 10 billion yuan in assets, was found to contain the drug, China Central Television reported on Tuesday.
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