Tianyancha's deep risk information shows that recently, Walmart East China Department Store Co., Ltd. was fined by the Pudong New Area Market Supervision Administration of Shanghai for unlawfully expanding the scope of products not eligible for a seven-day no-reason return.

The reason for the penalty indicates that the party, starting from a certain month this year, sold the product "DANPUS Tall & Healthy Danish Imported Organic Children's Formula Milk Powder ()" on the platform "Sam's Club Official Flagship Store," clearly marking that the product does not support a 7-day no-reason return, and set the product attribute in the backend as "After-sales Policy: Does Not Support a 7-day No-reason Return."

Upon further examination, the aforementioned goods do not fall within the scope of products exempted from the seven-day no-reason return policy as stipulated. The party has set obstacles for consumers in exercising their right to return goods purchased online within seven days without reason, thereby infringing upon the legitimate rights and interests of consumers.

News + Is infant formula milk powder covered under the no-reason return and exchange policy?

Last month, consumer Mr. Qiu from Suzhou reported that the infant formula he purchased was registered under the old national standard, significantly different from the formula they had been using for a long time. On the same day, he initiated a return and refund request without opening the product, but the customer service refused, citing that "the product does not support a seven-day no-reason return."

Mr. Qiu's chat records with the merchant's customer service, where the other party stated "does not support seven-day no-reason return and exchange." The article's image is provided by the interviewee.

Mr. Qiu then consulted the local authorities and learned that "milk powder does not fall under the category of products that cannot be returned or exchanged within seven days." Ultimately, after multiple communications, Mr. Qiu received a refund.

After conducting an inquiry, the reporter found that according to Article 25 of the "Consumer Rights Protection Law of the People's Republic of China," if the milk powder is purchased through online, television, telephone, mail order, or other methods, consumers have the right to return the product without reason within seven days from the date of receipt. However, it is important to note that this regulation does not apply to all goods. For example, goods custom-made for consumers, perishable goods, digital goods such as online downloads or audio-visual products and computer software that have been opened by consumers, as well as newspapers and periodicals delivered, are not eligible for return without reason.

For infant formula, as long as the product is in good condition and does not fall under the aforementioned exceptions, consumers can return it without reason within seven days.

Sam's supermarket products have been repeatedly exposed and punished by regulatory authorities

In fact, this is not the first time Sam's Club has encountered product issues.

At the end of the month, Sam was required by the Wuhan Municipal Market Supervision Administration to remove all the mixed platters of marinated dishes with "yin-yang labels" from the shelves due to the issue of dual labels. Additionally, he was instructed to rectify the labeling problems of chilled cooked food within a specified period to ensure the visibility and accuracy of the labels, preventing any misleading to consumers.

In this month, according to multiple netizens' reports, a bottle of Yangzhi Ganyu purchased from Sam's Club experienced a "burst" upon opening. Just this month, several consumers have successively reported finding foreign objects in mooncakes and roasted chicken, suspected to be teeth and bullet casings, and one consumer even spotted what appeared to be black eggs of an unknown insect on a milk carton.

Additionally, Sam's Club has been penalized multiple times by regulatory authorities for issues such as false advertising and selling problematic food products. In a recent case, Shanghai Zhenru Sam's Club Co., Ltd. was fined over 100,000 yuan by the Shanghai Municipal Market Supervision Administration and ordered to cease related illegal activities due to such violations.