Beijing Tea Scam
 

Just got stung by the Beijing Tea Scam and I'm still fighting my credit card company who refuses to assist and insists I pay the charges even thought they were notified 2 hours after the incident. Any advice on dealing with the credit card company after the fact, any consumer protections available, or other help you can recommend? Thanks for any assistance!
A STUNG TRAVELLER WHO WILL BE PASSING ON BEIJING IN THE FUTURE!

Sorry, I don't know of any recourse you have. I expect that the credit card company maintains that you drank the tea, so the merchandise promised was delivered. Such scams are common the world over. My ex got caught in that kind of scam in Italy - the drinks were $90 each... I've never heard of a credit card company willing to refund on those kinds of scams.

Consider it a useful lesson you will never forget.

There was advice offered on this forum some time ago by Peter N-H on how to deal with the cc company. IIRC, it involved getting third party support in convincing the cc company that it is a typical scam.

I don't remember who the third-party authority was, but I don't think it was the US Govt. You could check travel.state.gov consular info sheet for China to see if it mentions this scam. You are not the first person to be a victim of the scam and surely the cc companies have had multiple complaints about charges from the same company. I would not give up yet.

Try searching this forum for "Peter N-H" to see what he wrote about this issue.

I just did a search and found a post from scottyP who thanked Peter N-H for supplying a letter. But that was not enough to convince (the pitiful) Bank of America.

If you go back to your original thread/posting linked below - Peter NH answered your post and said to email him and he'll supply you with a letter

http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessa...en_name=LRD123

Yes, it does leave a nasty taste in the mouth after being ripped off.

I know you're angry but can I just gently say that the best policy for your mental health is to cop it on the chin, make all the predictable resolutions about not being so gullible again then forget about it and move on.

Think about the time and the grief you're causing yourself. How many hours have you spent angry? How much is your time worth? You're just compounding the wrong that was done you. Dump it. Turn it around - you'll get your money's worth in the long run - think of it as a great dinner party story.

You've just learnt an expensive lesson, that's all. Join the club - there isn't one of us on these boards who hasn't been scammed - even the seasoned travellers amongst us.

The only person who will lose out by you not going back to Beijing will be yourself, ultimately. They aren't ALL con artists.

Caveat emptor is the rule in China and elsewhere, mate. They saw you coming. On the face of it I can't see why the credit card company or anyone else should pay for your moment of weakness. I got stung in Beijing too, an entirely different scam, but I'm stuffed if I can see why my moment of weakness was down to anyone else but me, and I certainly have't wiped Beijing from my future travel plans. My advice is to move on and be more careful in future. After I calmed down I recalled the saying that "a fool and his money are soon parted". Go thou and do likewise.

Thanks for the "tea and sympathy"! It was alot better than what I got in Beijing! Your advice and admonitions are greatly appreciated. I'll try to post the outcome of this ordeal for future travellers finding themselves wandering down this path. Thanks again! (BTW, I read the scottyP post - beware! the price of tea has gone up. I was scammed for almost $1000).

Ouch! That's the price of a roundtrip ticket. We all live and learn, if not in Beijing, it's Rome or Rio.

Please don't pass on Beijing in the future, I do hope you have some good memories of the trip.

LRD123, sorry if I sounded a bit harsh there. It can be hard to admit to being scammed, but you've piqued my curiosity - how exactly did this happen? Can you give us chapter and verse? Why did you pay such an outrageous amount - did you feel physically intimidated? This might be a good example of why it's a good idea to carry a fair amount of cash (yuan, not US$) - faced with unreasonable demands you may have the option to just shove some bills in the scammer's hand and walk off. We used credit cards for major outlays only - hotels, air fares, a day tour and the occasional upmarket restaurant. Well, I suppose $1000 for a tea ceremony can be considered a major outlay, can't it? Good lord, $1000 or Y8000 is a year's pay for a lot of Chinese workers!

I fell for the same scam. Came out of the South gate of the Forbidden City (and waved away the art student) and was approached by "Annie" and "Xiao-Xiao" who started chatting with me -- both teachers from Xin-Ah or whatever.

As it happened for me, they found me just as I was looking for a place to sit down and have some tea!! So I was the one who brought up the idea of having a cup of tea.

I figured something was amiss because Annie's English was way too good and her partner (who I now assume was a trainee in the scam) was not credible as an English teacher as she claimed to be. Her English was terrible. Also, Annie's shtick was over the top with flattery, but it still was effective. She's disarming.

The tea ceremony was actually cool and the conversation was good (They taught me a substantial amount of Chinese). When the bill came in at 3,070 RMB I immediately protested and got it knocked down to 2030, about $270 US, but the damage was done.

I'm not sure what it's worth, but I took their picture and recorded Annie's voice very clearly on my cell phone (under the pretense of having her record Chinese phrases so I could play them back to learn them). I also have the merchant name: "Tingzan Yushilin", for what that's worth.

I paid by credit card. I wish I had written "THIS IS A SCAM" in the signature line, but I didn't. Is the money lost? Is there anything I can do with the digital recording of her image and voice?

I guess you can play the voice and look at the digital image to remind yourself of being scammed, but I expect you don't need the record to remind you of it. You bargained down the price - and you paid less than LRD - is that some comfort?

I don't expect you have any recourse from anyone - not your credit card, not the tourist bureau. Consider it a lesson learned.

I wonder if you had written "this is a scam" or something else other than your signature in the signature spot(how would the chinese scammers know?)if that would be enough to get you out of legally being liable for the paying the vredit card bill?

Takes a scam to beat a scam!

Yes, I know it 'leafs' a bad taste in the mouth,and I have loads of sympathy, BUT, it's really not a new scam. Just another notch on your travellers belt. You're not the first to fall for an old scam and you wont be the last!
Put it down to experience!

wow. a driver once stopped for lunch at a roadside restaurant of his choosing...the simple lunch cost us £7 (should have been about £2). i guess i shouldn't feel so bad!

HT, what a good idea. I sure am glad I don't drink tea--hate the stuff!