A man spent nearly 180,000 yuan on a matchmaking website and requested a refund due to dissatisfaction with the service. The company, Century Jiayuan, stated that they will negotiate the matter.

Recently, Mr. Wei from Shanghai reported to the public interaction platform “Service Pai” that he registered as a member on the Jiayuan website in 2019 and signed contracts twice, totaling nearly 180,000 yuan. However, the information about the women introduced to him by the website’s staff did not match the actual situation, and the promise to extend the service period was not fulfilled. “They said they would keep introducing women until I succeeded, but now the relevant staff have left and do not answer calls.” Mr. Wei requested a refund but to no avail.

In the first contract Mr. Wei signed, the details regarding VIP services were included. He stated that in 2019, due to his need for a romantic partner, he registered as a member on the Jiayuan website. Subsequently, a one-on-one matchmaker assigned by the platform called him, promoting a promotional activity that allowed members to find partners for free, which led him to pay 88,888 yuan and sign a contract. “The other party said this service had a refund benefit, like saving money, and verbally promised to help me find a partner within a year,” he said, so he paid and became a VIP member of Jiayuan.

A document he provided titled “Jiayuan VIP Member Service Contract” shows that it was stamped by Shanghai Baihe Jiayuan (following the merger of Jiayuan and Baihe in December 2015). The content states that during the matchmaker service period, there would be one-on-one communication with Mr. Wei, emotional consulting and guidance would be provided, a matchmaking plan would be developed based on his personal profile, precise positioning of partner requirements would be conducted, and at least 12 meetings with potential partners would be arranged.

The document’s “Marriage Refund” conditions indicate that clients can choose to receive wedding services valued at 99,999 yuan or opt for a cash refund based on the last amount Mr. Wei spent with Jiayuan, excluding any additional service fees he paid.

“In actual meetings, the quality of the introduced partners was very poor, and I was dissatisfied with the service,” Mr. Wei said, noting that the matchmakers introduced partners who looked very different from their photos and did not meet his personality requirements. He requested a refund but was unsuccessful. He mentioned that after each meeting with a woman, the matchmaker insisted he sign off on the meeting service, and if he refused, the salesperson would cry and make a scene.

Mr. Wei stated that after meeting 12 potential partners, there were still a few months left in the service period stipulated in the contract, but the platform stopped introducing new matches. He then attempted to apply for a refund. “They sent a sales manager named Wang to talk to me, saying they would strive to improve the service and asked me to renew my payment; otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to get a refund for the previous fees.” Consequently, in January 2021, he paid another 88,888 yuan but still did not succeed in finding a partner.

The second contract Mr. Wei signed, titled “Baihe Jiayuan One-on-One Service Contract,” indicated that the service fee was 88,888 yuan, and the company would provide meeting services, among others. An attachment titled “Welfare Return” specified that during the contract refund period, if Mr. Wei met the redemption conditions, the company would provide him with third-party electronic platform vouchers or 70% of the service fee as wedding cash, primarily for purchasing “gold” products on the electronic platform. This “welfare return” required that Mr. Wei and the company had to register their marriage after dating for more than 31 days during the contract refund period.

The contract’s “Supplementary Agreement” mentioned that since both parties signed the original contract on October 9, 2019, and upon expiration, they reached the following supplementary agreement: 1. The original contract included “marriage refund” benefits. If Mr. Wei did not meet the refund conditions by the time the original contract expired, the amount from the original contract could be included in the new contract’s “marriage refund” gold benefits; 2. If Mr. Wei met the refund conditions during the new contract period, he could only initiate a refund request after the new contract expired (after January 1, 2022).

“They promised to extend my service, but they did not fulfill it. I requested a refund, but there was no result, and the staff no longer answer my calls,” Mr. Wei said, believing that Jiayuan was involved in false advertising and inducing consumption, and he demanded a refund and compensation.

Mr. Wei mentioned that the staff he was in contact with claimed to have left the company and advised him to reach out to Jiayuan directly.

On December 10, a staff member named Lin, who signed the first Jiayuan VIP contract with Mr. Wei, stated that she had left Jiayuan a long time ago and did not remember Mr. Wei, advising him to contact Jiayuan for any issues.

In response to Mr. Wei’s complaint, Jiayuan’s relevant staff stated that they had forwarded the complaint to the appropriate colleagues for follow-up. On December 6, a colleague provided some feedback to Mr. Wei, and both parties would further negotiate the disputed content. Regarding multiple managers claiming “not responsible after leaving,” Jiayuan’s staff stated that they would verify this and have it handled by superiors.