Does it cost thousands of yuan to flush a toilet? The woman is confused: What kind of tricks are there

The master came to the door to clear the sewer and charged a thousand yuan.

Have you ever encountered such a situation?

Recently, Ms. Zhuge, a reader from Hangzhou

Report to the Chao News reporter,

Find a repairman to come and clear the toilet,

Unexpectedly, he was caught in a trap.

Clearing the toilet cost 1080 yuan

The more a woman in Hangzhou thinks about it, the more wrong she becomes

A few days ago, Ms. Zhuge's toilet was blocked at home. "Because it was evening and the property management in the community was off work, I made an appointment for a pipeline dredging order on the 58.com mini program," Ms. Zhuge told reporters.

Respondents provide pictures

The platform page clearly states that easy clearance costs 121-154 yuan, and difficult clearance costs 298-349 yuan. "I think even if the highest price is 349 yuan, it is within an acceptable range," Ms. Zhuge said.

After the appointment, a phone call came quickly. The other party suspected to be a domestic service agent, and after briefly asking for the address, "He said there will be a master who will contact me. I also asked about the cost over the phone, and he said 100 yuan. I think it's even cheaper than what is written on the platform, so I agreed."

After the master came to the door, he first tried to unclog the toilet using a metal tube machine that was powered on. After a while of operation, the master's face turned pale and said, "It seems like it won't pass through."

After multiple attempts, the master shook his head and said, "We need another machine." He introduced to Ms. Zhuge that this is called a "nitrogen gun" because the cost is relatively high, and firing one gun requires a fee of 360 yuan.

"I already felt very uncomfortable at that time. This was not a pre informed price, and the fees were very expensive, but I thought it was all up to this. I was also quite anxious at the time, so I asked the master to give it a try," Ms. Zhuge told reporters.

But what Ms. Zhuge didn't expect was that after the master used a so-called nitrogen gun to shoot once, it was useless and water splashed all over the ground. "No, you're blocking it very seriously," said the master.

Subsequently, the master tried twice again and finally succeeded in unblocking the toilet after the third attempt. Finally, the master quoted 1080 yuan, which surprised Ms. Zhuge's jaw. "It was quite late at that time, and I was alone at home. I didn't have much verbal struggle, so I transferred the money to him."

But afterwards, the more Ms. Zhuge thought about it, the more wrong it became. She searched online for this so-called nitrogen gun and found that the highest price was only over 100 yuan, and there was no nitrogen in the dredging device. Instead, strong air pressure was used to achieve the dredging effect. "The customer service also explained that if the unblocking device was completely aligned with the toilet, there would be no splashing of water. However, when the master unblocked it, the toilet water splashed all over the floor."

Ms. Zhuge finally realized that she had been caught in a trap. She immediately dialed the home service agent's phone number, but after the other party replied "help communicate and handle it," there was no news. Ms. Zhuge contacted the platform again and after several rounds of communication, they finally refunded half of the fee.

"I spent two bottles of Maotai on a toilet!"

Hangzhou men's sky high priced bills

In fact, the situation of "sky high clearance fees" is not uncommon.

Previously, the Qianjiang Evening News had reported on relevant cases.

"I spent a total of 5500 yuan on using a toilet, which is equivalent to two bottles of Maotai. I feel ashamed when I say this," said Mr. Zhang, a citizen, referring to his experience of using a toilet, still feeling indignant.

Mr. Zhang lives in an apartment in Binjiang, Hangzhou. After discovering that the toilet was blocked, he found a master through a certain platform. After coming to the door, the master first took a pipe to clear it, but after a few attempts, it didn't work. Subsequently, the master took out a "miracle tool" and said it was a powerful solvent, costing 480 yuan per bottle. After adding the medicine, it needed to be flushed down with nitrogen gas under high pressure. The high-pressure gun costs 380 yuan per shot. After obtaining Mr. Zhang's consent, the master started adding two bottles of medicine and injected nitrogen twice, but it still did not pass. At this point, the master kicked Mr. Zhang out of the bathroom, citing its small size and dirty ventilation process.

The master continued to tinker inside for about 15 minutes before coming out. He said he finally got through and told Mr. Zhang that he had added 7 bottles of medicine and injected nitrogen gas 6 times, and the cost was 5700 yuan.

Mr. Zhang wants to pay on the platform, but the master said that the platform can only pay a deposit, and he can pay him directly through Alipay. If it comes to the cost, you can give him a discount. Just pay 5500 yuan for 5700 yuan.

So, Mr. Zhang transferred 5500 yuan to the master's personal account. After the master returned, he passed on the receipt photo to Mr. Zhang.

Mr. Zhang said he didn't feel anything at first, but his roommate said he must have been deceived. He checked online and found that there were indeed many similar cases, and many homeowners were confused and "slaughtered".

In November 2022, the Shanghai Public Security Bureau successfully dismantled a suspected fraud gang that was selling high priced pipeline dredging liquid for huge profits under the pretext of unblocking pipelines. After the maintenance workers of the company come to their doorstep, they rely on their language to encourage consumers to pay for the sky high clearance service. The amount involved in the case exceeded 6 million yuan, and 37 suspect were all taken criminal coercive measures by the Shanghai Baoshan police according to law for suspected fraud.

Previously, the topic of "having a deep way to repair toilets in person" also made it to the hot search on Weibo. On the Internet platform, there are also many consumers roast about their experience of getting rid of the pipeline at a high price: "It costs 3000 yuan to get through the toilet," "it costs 2100 yuan to get through the pipeline," "it costs 1600 yuan to get through the sewer,"... and these consumers almost all place orders on the online platform.

How to avoid pitfalls?

So, how can one avoid being trapped if they encounter a blockage in their home pipeline?

Chao News reminds everyone to look for a legitimate maintenance team, such as the "96365" Zhejiang Province Resident Life Information Service Platform, community property companies, and legitimate offline housekeeping companies. It is not recommended to search for personal repair practitioners or so-called professional companies through search engines or third-party platforms.

In addition, before accepting the service, consumers should first understand the service process, charging standards, and confirm the work qualification certificate of the maintenance personnel.

Generally speaking, the cost of unblocking pipelines is about 100-300 yuan. If the fee is too high, consumers have the right to refuse. The Chao News reporter consulted a legitimate domestic service company, which is priced at 150 yuan/location for branch pipes and 300 yuan/location for total pipes. There is no charge for unclogged pipes, and there are generally no additional "hidden charges".

Lawyer Zhu Huiliang from Beijing Yingke Law Firm told reporters that if consumers encounter similar situations of "sky high clearance fees", they should proactively leave their consumption vouchers and make good recordings. Consumers can complain to third-party platforms and request a refund. If the platform refuses to refund, consumers can also complain to the 12315 Consumer Complaints and Reporting hotline.