"Sold Perfect Strawberries, But Customer Demands Refund Claiming They Were Bitten... What Should I Do?"

A self-employed fruit shop owner shared a story on the online community 'Apeunikka Sajangida' about encountering a 'difficult customer' who brought strawberries with bite marks on each piece, demanding a refund.

On the 13th, the author, Mr. A, said, "An older lady asked for good strawberries because her child would eat them, so I told her to pick the ones she liked herself. I have eyes too, so I wouldn't sell anything that doesn't look fine. They were perfectly fine." He continued, "About an hour later, the lady came into the store shouting, jumping around, saying, 'How can you give me this when my child is going to eat it?'"

Strawberries returned by a customer one hour after purchase.
[Photo by Online Community]

The strawberries the customer presented for a refund had several pieces missing or showed bite marks as if someone had taken a bite out of them.

The customer had visited the store a few days earlier and purchased 500g of strawberries. Mr. A gave her a pricey Thai-packaged tangerine as a complimentary gift. At that time, the customer said, "There are several people, why only one? There are four people at home." Mr. A said, "I usually don't give extras," but gave her one more tangerine to smooth things over.

In the post, Mr. A said, "She only gave me the damaged strawberries and picked others, so I just said I would refund her. I think she is a difficult customer for bringing strawberries in such a condition," and appealed, "I want to know how to handle this."

Mr. A explained that the strawberries the customer bought were Geumsil strawberries, which are firm and do not easily soften, so he found it hard to understand why the strawberries' condition had changed.

He said, "When I asked why the strawberries were in such a condition, the customer said, '(They were) bad, so I scooped them out with a spoon,'" and added, "I clearly saw that they were in good condition when she bought them." The photo posted with the story showed strawberries inside the packaging box with apparent bite marks.

Meanwhile, in South Korea, refund regulations are established to protect consumers' rights and interests. According to Articles 17 and 18 of the Consumer Protection Act, consumers can withdraw their subscription at any time within seven days from the date they receive goods or services. These refund regulations apply to all contracts, including electronic commerce between consumers and businesses.

However, withdrawal of subscription may be restricted if the goods are lost or damaged due to the consumer's fault, or if the value of the goods has significantly decreased due to the consumer's use.