Lack of integrity in the market for bottom formaldehyde treatment: Businesses create anxiety, false testing and false removal
2024-11-25
Formaldehyde treatment cannot be "false detection and false removal". Currently, formaldehyde pollution has become a widely concerned topic among the public after home decoration, and services such as formaldehyde detection and treatment have also emerged. However, many readers have reported encountering problems with "false detection" and "false removal" of formaldehyde. For example, Zhang Teng, a reader from Shenzhen, Guangdong, claimed to have encountered illegal merchants who, on one hand, used their fear of formaldehyde hazards to deliberately exaggerate and create "formaldehyde anxiety"; On the other hand, manipulating formaldehyde detection values to guide the purchase of formaldehyde treatment services. Another netizen from Jining City, Shandong Province, called 'Tudou', has reported that some companies do not have governance qualifications but falsely claim to be able to completely remove formaldehyde, deceiving consumers. Faced with the problem of "false detection and false removal" in the formaldehyde detection and treatment market, experts and readers call for: the indoor air detection industry is closely related to public interests, and relevant departments need to further clarify detection standards and operating procedures, regulate the commercial model of "first-hand detection and first-hand treatment"; Businesses that infringe upon the legitimate rights and interests and physical health of consumers should be seriously investigated and dealt with. The market for formaldehyde treatment is facing a lack of integrity due to false testing and removal. Some companies claim that if they purchase their treatment services, the testing fees are completely free, and the formaldehyde can be removed the next day. Not only can they pass the test, but they can also immediately move in, "Zhang Teng told reporters. However, if they stay in the house for more than ten minutes, they will feel a pungent smell, and over time, they will have a sore throat and cough." Formaldehyde is obviously not effectively removed. "Creating" formaldehyde anxiety "is a common tactic used by many businesses to induce customers to purchase services. Some unscrupulous businesses, in order to promote their services, add fuel to the harmful effects of formaldehyde and even spread sensational rumors on the internet, causing anxiety among the public, such as "living in newly renovated rooms without formaldehyde testing, leading to acute leukemia", "excessive formaldehyde in decoration and furniture, and children being diagnosed with blood cancer". Some merchants also attempt to deceive customers with false data. In July of this year, Mr. Chen from Guangzhou, Guangdong purchased a "whole house formaldehyde testing" service from an environmental governance agency. During the collection of air samples by the staff, Mr. Chen opened the detector brought by the institution and found that in a hidden page, the base of formaldehyde content had been set to "+0.03". Mr. Chen learned from relevant practitioners that "if the base is set to '+0.03', regardless of the actual data, the test results will be 0.03 milligrams higher per cubic meter", and businesses can use this to guide customers to purchase formaldehyde treatment services. In addition to manually adjusting the basic values of the detector, some institutions also use methods such as color reagents to manipulate the instrument values. The more drops are made, the higher the formaldehyde concentration, and vice versa, turning the detector into a tool for deception. In some places, the integrity of the formaldehyde treatment market is lacking, with artificially increasing the detection value during initial testing and then artificially reducing the detection value during retesting. Such operations have become a secret that businesses do not disclose. In February of this year, Ms. Du, a reader from Chengdu, Sichuan, spent 2990 yuan to purchase whole house formaldehyde testing and treatment services before moving into her newly renovated house. After the treatment, the staff tested the formaldehyde concentration and found it to be "qualified". However, shortly after moving into the new home, her son began to experience symptoms such as dizziness, chest tightness, and shortness of breath. "Afterwards, I contacted two more authoritative third-party institutions for testing, and the results showed that the formaldehyde concentration exceeded the standard by more than twice. We had to immediately move out and rent a house outside," Ms. Du said. What needs to be more vigilant is that some illegal elements profit by illegally issuing enterprise qualifications and personal ability certificates for formaldehyde testing and treatment online, forming a gray industry chain from online to offline. The reporter searched for "formaldehyde testing certificates" on a mainstream e-commerce platform and found that there are many online stores that can issue relevant enterprise qualifications and personal ability certificates. Some product pictures even advertise in large characters that "official websites can verify authenticity". The reporter randomly consulted the customer service of an online store to inquire whether they could apply for a business qualification certificate for engaging in the formaldehyde treatment industry. The other party stated that they needed to provide a business license and said that "a set of fees is 600 yuan, including a three-year annual review". When asked by the reporter whether an assessment was necessary, the customer service immediately sent a WeChat account and stated, "Those that are not strict can basically pass. When the reporter asked whether he could handle the personal competency certificate for formaldehyde treatment, the other party said that he only needed to provide ID number number, name, and his own self photo, and did not need to do the competency test. Some institutions have questionable test results, and many household formaldehyde detection products on the market cannot be fully trusted. Last October, the Shanghai Consumer Rights Protection Committee tested 15 popular formaldehyde detectors, of which only 3 had small errors in lower concentration testing. Among these products that have been tested and found to have problems, there are various and exaggerated slogans, and many even use the names of professional institutions, authoritative media, and well-known universities to promote themselves. The formaldehyde treatment market has to some extent the problems of low entry barriers and difficult identification of practitioners' qualifications. The reason why consumers are frequently deceived is, on the one hand, because the formaldehyde treatment market has many traps and deep "tricks"; On the other hand, the market for formaldehyde detection and treatment has a relatively low threshold for practitioners, and the qualifications of practitioners are difficult to distinguish. Industry insiders have revealed that some institutions can purchase a few detectors and bottles of chemicals to support their stalls and take on tasks. "Some cleaners have switched to doing formaldehyde testing and removal for a living. Netizen "Tudou" reported that many posts promoting joining formaldehyde treatment institutions can be seen on various social media platforms. "If you want to become a formaldehyde treatment institution, all you need to do is establish a company and apply for a business license. After the promotion channel of the short video platform is opened, you can start accepting orders online," said a short video titled "Formaldehyde Removal Entrepreneurship" on a certain social media platform. The low industry threshold leads to uneven levels of practitioners, disorderly competition, and even chaos. In order to attract customers and business, one may fall into vicious competition of price wars. Zhang Teng noticed that there are currently some very low-priced formaldehyde testing and treatment services on the market, often using "special offers" and "limited time flash sales" as gimmicks to attract consumers' attention. For example, the original treatment price of 60 yuan per square meter has been lowered to 20-30 yuan by many businesses. The risks of unprofessional personnel, rudimentary equipment, and unqualified reagents behind this much lower than cost quotation will ultimately be borne by consumers. At present, formaldehyde treatment brands mainly expand their market through a "franchise" model. The lower entry standards and simple franchise methods make the formaldehyde treatment market a competitive arena for "quick money". In fact, in recent years, many leading brands in formaldehyde treatment have experienced setbacks. Not long ago, "Senjia Environmental Protection", a franchisee spread across the country, was exposed for suspected illegal and irregular formaldehyde removal services, disregarding consumers' lives and health by establishing a "conversion rate" based on false formaldehyde detection values. Against the backdrop of insufficient regulation in the formaldehyde treatment market, some brands have changed their appearance after the incident, erased their "black history" and made a comeback, exacerbating the chaos of industry dishonesty. In addition, there are also many counterfeit companies on the market that use the name of professional testing institutions to conduct business, which has a negative impact on the image of legitimate enterprises. Mr. Li comes from a legitimate and professional environmental testing institution in Beijing. In May of this year, Mr. Li received a call from a customer stating that the testing prices of his company were not uniform, and the information of the on-site testing personnel did not match that of the company's personnel. At this moment, Mr. Li realized that his company's name had been stolen. "Our company has professional qualifications, and our media account is also certified by a professional number, but this fake company has not been certified by a professional number." Mr. Li found after multiple confirmations that the testing agency did not obtain authorization, but used the name of Mr. Li's company, "which not only damaged the company's reputation, but was also suspected of cheating customers." "Formaldehyde testing and governance is a job with a certain professional threshold, not a job that can be done quickly, especially it also involves the health of consumers, so it should be treated carefully." Feng Lin, associate professor of the School of Ecological Environment of Renmin University of China, said. Strict review of enterprise qualifications and establishment of indoor environmental safety defense line. The demand for formaldehyde detection and treatment is increasing day by day. On the one hand, excessive formaldehyde does indeed pose a certain degree of harm to people's health; On the other hand, under the hype of merchants, many consumers have excessive anxiety and fear towards formaldehyde. A reporter's investigation found that when searching for "formaldehyde" on some mainstream short video platforms, popular videos mostly come from self media accounts, including those who exaggerate the harm of formaldehyde, and there are relatively few professional and authoritative science popularization videos. Formaldehyde is colorless in a gaseous state and has a pungent odor. Its release has a certain cycle, which may be several years or even decades. Therefore, it cannot be completely removed at once and requires long-term window opening and ventilation for treatment Associate Professor Chen Jinwei from the School of Materials Science and Engineering at Sichuan University believes that it is necessary to strengthen science popularization and publicity among the public, help them establish a correct understanding of formaldehyde, and improve consumers' ability to distinguish between fake and inferior formaldehyde removal services. In recent years, relevant departments have continuously updated indoor air quality standards and specifications. The latest version of the "Indoor Air Quality Standards" implemented last year stipulates that after closing doors and windows for one hour, the indoor formaldehyde concentration should not exceed 0.08 milligrams per cubic meter. In practical testing operations, the detection value is usually influenced by multiple factors. The first step in formaldehyde detection is to seal the indoor environment. If the amount of formaldehyde released by decoration materials is slightly higher or lower during the two days of sealing, the detection value will be inaccurate. At the same time, the temperature also affects the amount of formaldehyde released. If the detection is carried out in high temperature weather, the value may also be higher, "said Chen Jinwei. For the issue of formaldehyde removal institutions acting as both "athletes" and "referees" in testing and management, laws and regulations also have clear provisions. Last year's updated "Criteria for Qualification Accreditation and Evaluation of Inspection and Testing Institutions" required that "inspection and testing institutions should be independent of the stakeholders involved in the inspection and testing data and results they issue, and not be affected by any factors that may interfere with their technical judgment, ensuring that the inspection and testing data and results are fair, accurate, and traceable. Based on this, the business model of "left-hand testing and right-hand treatment" is a violation of regulations, not to mention falsifying formaldehyde testing data, which has already crossed the "red line". Feng Lin believes that the regulatory authorities should raise the entry threshold for formaldehyde detection and treatment industry, and strictly review the qualifications of enterprises; Regulatory authorities should strengthen supervision, regulate the market for formaldehyde testing and treatment, and build a solid defense line for indoor environmental safety for residents. For the problem of data fraud in formaldehyde detection and treatment processes, we should adhere to 'zero tolerance', timely improve corresponding laws and regulations, set up road signs and draw red lines for the industry; for the existing black and gray industry chain, we should form a linkage mechanism and a normalized supervision mechanism to make fraudulent behavior nowhere to hide
Edit：Rina Responsible editor：Lily
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