Frozen Durian Seller Drives 1,600 km to Prove Customer Fraud After Mold Claim
A frozen durian seller from Henan drove 1,600 km to Shandong to investigate a customer's mold claim, finding no evidence of the discarded fruit and filing a police report after the buyer sought a refund without returning the 190-yuan order.
A frozen durian merchant from Henan Province in China is seeking justice after suspecting a customer from Shandong Province of exploiting a system loophole by falsely claiming the durian arrived moldy to obtain a refund.
According to reports, the customer placed an order for frozen durian on April 26 and received it on April 28. The buyer then claimed the fruit was moldy, submitted photos as evidence, and requested a "refund only" without returning the product. When the merchant reviewed video footage from the packing process and compared it with the customer's photos, the durian in the images didn't match what was shipped. The merchant rejected the refund request and wanted to investigate further.
Although the order was only worth 190 yuan (approximately 710 baht), the merchant stated he would take full responsibility if the fault was his, but expected the customer to apologize and return the goods if they were at fault.
When discussions reached an impasse, the merchant made the extraordinary decision to drive to the customer's address himself to gather evidence. He made two round trips between Henan and Shandong covering over 1,600 kilometers and spent more than 5,000 yuan (approximately 23,000 baht) in expenses. He even searched garbage bins near the customer's home and found only packaging materials, not the moldy durian the customer claimed to have discarded.
On May 6, the merchant filed a police report and submitted evidence including videos, photos, and collected data. Police formally began their investigation on May 7.
This incident has reignited discussion about the "refund without return" policy on Chinese e-commerce platforms. While designed to protect consumers, critics argue the system is being exploited by some buyers who abuse loopholes to obtain free goods. Many merchants complain that platforms typically side with consumers during refund disputes, forcing sellers to waste time and money while scrambling to gather proof of their innocence.
