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shi fengchu

buying and installing home appliances is a process that every consumer who is decorating their new home must go through. when introducing the after-sales service of home appliances, customer service often says "home delivery and free installation", but after actually experiencing it, many consumers will feel "hurt" to varying degrees. "0 yuan installation" is not really 0 yuan. although labor costs, door-to-door fees, and debugging fees are waived, there are still high-altitude fees, guardrail removal fees, and a lot of auxiliary material fees. (beijing daily, september 18)

to be fair, if a merchant promises free installation but charges fees under various pretexts during installation and deliberately deceives consumers, the merchant has not fulfilled its obligation to inform and warn, and has violated consumers' right to know and right to choose.

generally speaking, free home delivery and free installation for home appliances are in line with legal provisions and social common sense. although air conditioners and water heaters are two different goods and services from home delivery and installation, the two cannot be separated by assumption. according to relevant legal provisions and legal principles, home appliances are the subject matter of the main contract, and delivery and installation are the subject matter of the ancillary contract. the two are indispensable and inseparable. the merchant's provision of home appliances to consumers who purchase home appliances is the fulfillment of the main contract obligations, and the provision of delivery and installation services is the fulfillment of ancillary obligations.

the civil code clearly stipulates that the parties should fully perform their obligations in accordance with the agreement, follow the principle of good faith, and perform obligations such as notification, assistance, and confidentiality according to the nature, purpose, and transaction practices of the contract. after consumers purchase home appliances, merchants should fulfill obligations such as home delivery and installation, and should also assist consumers in using them correctly, conveniently, and safely.

if a merchant charges additional fees without clearly informing consumers, it violates the obligation of assistance and the accompanying obligation, and also violates the trading habits, which is suspected of fraud. this does not mean that no fees can be incurred during home delivery and installation, but it means that if the relevant fees are paid by the merchant by default or are already included in the price of the home appliance, if the merchant wants to charge additional fees, he must inform in advance and inform truthfully.

of course, the merchant's obligation to provide free assistance has certain limits and requirements. for example, home delivery is often limited to floors below a certain level. if the floor exceeds the limit and there is no elevator, an additional fee will be charged. consumers will also need to bear additional costs for removing protective nets, installing extended pipelines or protective pipes and other auxiliary materials, and laying additional water, electricity, and gas lines.

the reason why the free assistance provided by the merchants has a certain limit is that the indoor and outdoor facilities on many floors do not meet the installation conditions and require a certain amount of manpower for dismantling and modifying. the labor cost, especially the high-altitude work, is relatively expensive, and it is not realistic for the merchants to bear it completely. if the merchants bear all the costs, they are likely to share this part of the cost by raising the selling price of home appliances, and some consumers who do not need related services and auxiliary materials may pay for it invisibly.

for the parts beyond the free range, it is ok for merchants to charge installation fees for home appliances, but they must fulfill their obligation to provide clear reminders and notifications, and should explain this to consumers when they purchase home appliances, so that consumers know which ones are free and which ones are charged before paying for them. consumers can see clearly and consider clearly. when the charging standards are clear at a glance, consumers can have a clear prediction of the possible expenses, so that they will not suddenly find out that they have to pay "sky-high" installation fees and auxiliary material fees when installing home appliances.

for businesses, it is important to attach importance to consumer rights, use less flashy publicity and false concepts, and make consumers feel truly respected and treated well, without having to worry about extra costs. this is itself an integral part of operating with integrity.