SF Express new rule, extra charge for signing! Netizens not buying it, where's the problem?
Compiled from: China Consumer News & China Consumer Website
Recently, SF Express's "add 1 yuan for delivery confirmation upon signing" trended on Weibo. Subsequently, the Zhejiang Provincial Consumer Rights Protection Committee questioned SF Express for allegedly creating arbitrary charges, triggered by a consumer complaint that the "SF Express+" WeChat public account's 1-yuan "delivery confirmation" value-added service infringed on their legitimate rights. So, without paying this one yuan, will the package not be delivered to the door?
SF Express responds:
This value-added service is a common practice in the express delivery industry. Such password-based signature confirmation services originally stemmed from the special needs of clients in jewelry, 3C electronics, and luxury goods.
For example, in shipments from luxury goods clients, it is common for recipients to tell the courier that they are on a business trip out of town, asking a colleague to receive the package or requesting it be left at the front desk. When an incident occurs, the recipient may not accurately recall the delegation process or whether they authorized it. The password for signature confirmation must be forwarded by the recipient to the authorized person for delivery, effectively avoiding such disputes.
The Zhejiang Provincial Consumer Protection Committee believes:
The "signature confirmation" value-added service launched by SF Express is essentially a legal obligation that the express company should fulfill.
SF Express arbitrarily separates "signature confirmation" from its mandatory legal service content, suspected of creating pretexts to charge fees and infringing on consumers' legitimate rights and interests.
SF Express's introduction of this value-added service may easily lead consumers to mistakenly believe that if they do not select this service, SF Express may not provide the "signature confirmation" service, which is suspected of misleading consumers.
[1] The author's perspective
According to Article 25 of the "Interim Regulations on Express Delivery" implemented on May 1, 2018, express delivery enterprises shall deliver items to the agreed delivery address, the recipient, or a person designated by the recipient, and inform the recipient or the designated person to inspect the items in person. The recipient or the designated person has the right to inspect the items in person. This shows that it is the courier's duty and obligation to deliver the package to the designated location. In other words, door-to-door delivery is already included in the original express service and should not incur additional charges. So, is it reasonable for SF to charge an extra 1 yuan for signature confirmation this time?
In my opinion, we must first note one point: the additional 1 yuan service is selected by the sender and is generally applicable to express services for high-value items, with the purpose of preventing disputes arising from signature issues. That is to say, the fundamental problem this value-added service addresses is not whether the courier delivers to the door, but whether the signer is the recipient themselves or an authorized person. Of course, I do not deny that many couriers currently place packages at collection points without notifying the recipient. This practice undoubtedly fails to fulfill the courier company's obligations and infringes on customers' rights. This situation must be improved. Even during the pandemic, when some residential areas do not allow couriers to go upstairs, couriers should first ask the recipient if the package can be left at the collection point, rather than silently leaving it without notice.
Looking back at this incident, regardless of SF's intentions, given the current public reaction, this value-added service is no longer suitable for continuation. First, it may further encourage couriers not to deliver to the door, and second, netizens who have long been "oppressed" by courier services will not accept it. In fact, online shopping has become very frequent and common in China, and the express delivery industry inevitably develops alongside it. Faced with such a large customer base, the express delivery industry should focus on improving its services. In the face of existing problems, it should think about how to solve them, rather than how to innovate rules to make customers pay.
