On the Internet, the consumer, Ms. Wong, unwittingly drew a video from the Doubao pet shop in Nanchang city, Jiangxi province, and then added a Twitter message from the sales staff to consult them about the purchase of pets. On 28 March 2024, in a micro-letter, the parties agreed that Ms. Huang would buy a pet Samoye larvae from the pet shop for $800. The pet shop promised that the dog had been vaccinated with two shots, tested with the canine virus and the canine fever virus, that the health products were excellent and that it would be sold after three months.
On 1 April, Ms. Huang transferred $800 to an account designated by the pet shop, after which $800 was paid at the request of the pet shop to purchase dog food on hand. On that day, the pet shop delivered dog and dog food to Ms. Wong, who paid a further $100 for the shipment and $180 for the testing requested by the pet shop.
On 2 April, when she received the pet dog, she found that the dog was in poor health and unable to stand and immediately photographed the pet store to reflect the presence of a parasite. On 3 April, Ms. Huang took her pet dog to the hospital in Shekju, Hubei Province, where she was diagnosed as a canine virus and less likely to cure it. Ms. Huang voluntarily gave up her treatment and paid for medical treatment and medicines totalling 257.8 dollars. On April 4, the dog died.
After receiving the pet dog, Ms. Wong found her poor state and had been negotiating the post-sales with the pet shop, but the parties had been unable to agree on the post-sales treatment. In addition, during her advocacy, Ms. Huang identified a number of other consumers who also purchased quality-related pets at the pet shop and collected relevant purchase and advocacy records. In order to defend her legitimate rights and interests, Ms. Huang brought the pet shopkeeper before a court of law for the refund of the purchase money, the food package and the medical expenses, while claiming three times the punitive damages.
At the hearing, the People ' s Court of the City of Suisse of Hubei Province found that:
When the pet shop failed to deliver Ms. Wong ' s health dog as agreed, and concealed the fact that the pet had not obtained a quarantine certificate, the court concluded, in conjunction with chat records, medical records and similar complaints, that the pet shop was aware of the false promise of the pet ' s illness and that there was a clear element of subjective malice by using tied-up, test fees to transfer the cost of the marriage. According to the relevant provisions of the Consumer Protection Act of the People ' s Republic of China, the acts of pet shops constitute consumer fraud.
The court decided to cancel the contract of sale between Ms. Wong and the pet shop, which refunded a total of $1780 for the purchase of the dog by the consumer and paid a three-fold compensation of $5340 and the shipping fee of $100 and medical expenses of $257.8.
Net purchase pet consumption tips:
The purchase of pets should go to a regular, qualified and reputable pet business. Where web-based procurement options are chosen, there should be a full understanding of the vendor ' s evaluation reputation, business address, qualifications, etc. Consumers are not advised to buy pets through the circle of friends and the Internet.
In selecting pets, consumers are encouraged to consult professionals in regular pet clinics in advance to learn about them and to avoid buying them. Pre-purchase of pets should be preceded by a check of quarantine certificates, and it is recommended that consumers, after purchasing them, consult with the vendor and, within a specified time frame, go to a laboratory with a state-certified qualification to test the pets for animal disease, and make prior agreement with the vendor to perform animal disease tests, with the responsibility of the pet seller.
In the purchase of pets, care is taken to obtain the relevant consumption certificate from the shopkeeper, including the signing of a service agreement between the parties. If a pet is ill and goes to a pet hospital for medical treatment, the hospital ' s medical certificate is kept in accordance with the terms of the agreement between the two parties, in order to defend their legitimate rights and interests by legal means.