Beijing Internet Court sees 42,000 cases within a year

The Beijing Internet Court has seen a surge of disputes related to online shopping since it opened last year, a report from the court said on Friday.

From Sept 9, 2018, the day it opened, to Oct 31, the court filed 42,099 internet-related cases, of which 4,838 were related to online shopping, the second-largest share of the total, according to the report.

By the end of last month, the court had concluded 3,939 shopping-related cases, and most ended in mediation, it said.

"Most consumers came to the court for the poor quality of online goods, especially expired food and health care products with improper or excessive additives," Liu Shuhan, a court judge, said when she explained the report at a news conference on Friday.

Besides low-quality of electronic products, makeup and clothes were among the items cited by consumers in their litigation, Liu said.

"For example, some buyers sued sellers in our court after finding trademarks of sportswear or luxury clothes they bought in online stores were falsified," she said.

When handling cases, the court also found a few online shoppers misled consumers by exaggerating or hiding true information or functions of their products, "or even cheated buyers with fake discounts," Liu said.

As she called for online sellers to clearly inform information on express delivery to buyers, the judge also said consumers who abused their litigation rights, such as those who leave false comments about goods to mislead other buyers, or affect online deals, should be held responsible. 

Two days ahead of this year's Nov 11 online shopping carnival, the court suggested consumers be more sensible with their purchases and communicate with sellers in a timely manner if confused about a store's discount rules.