(File photo)

Recently, a number of Chinese tourists were overcharged in Japanese duty-free shops. The customers paid high prices for health care products and were then unable to return the items.

Based on recommendations from tour guides and sales assistants, many Chinese tourists bought products such as natto extract, enzymes and deep sea fish oil. The price for one box of these products was about 20,000 yen (1,200 yuan), and tourists were required to buy at least four boxes. None of the products were refundable. 

How could the enzyme, which is sold for just several thousand yen per box in drugstores, jump so extremely in price in duty-free shops? Why were refunds not allowed in these shops? 

It seems that the duty-free shops and tour guides were collaborating to cheat Chinese tourists. Such traps often target group tours. The tour guides exaggerate the effect of the products, and sales assistants claim that the products are monopolized commodities. 

Poor supervision by relevant authorities in Japan also helps the tourist trap to thrive. The consular section of the Chinese embassy in Japan has negotiated with the consumer affairs and tourism departments of Japan many times on this matter; however, the answer is always the same: "There is nothing we can do." 

In 2015, 4.99 million Chinese tourists visited Japan, spending a total of 1.42 trillion yen (86.3 billion yuan) for a per capita consumption of 284,000 yen (17,000 yuan). Chinese tourists spend the most out of any group of foreign tourists. Meanwhile, many of the deceived Chinese tourists said they would never visit Japan again.