Getting charged just for clicking ads—has your money been secretly taken away?

This article is reprinted from: Xinmin Evening News

Clicking on ads leads to insurance deductions—has your money been secretly taken?

Industry experts remind citizens to improve their awareness of prevention and suggest using the “Jinshi Tong” App to check all policies under your name.

Ms. Zhang’s communication records with “Taikang Online” customer service show she has been paying premiums for several months. All images in this edition are provided by the interviewee.

Elderly Mr. Li was surprised to find his Agricultural Bank account was deducted for insurance premiums.

“I don’t even remember when I bought the insurance, but my bank card was directly charged over 200 yuan. It’s just baffling!” Mr. Li told “Xinmin Bang Nong Mang.” Recently, his mobile banking account suddenly received a deduction notification. Upon checking, it was a premium from an insurance company called “Taikang Online.” The key issue is that he had no idea about this policy. Can an insurance company purchase a policy without the person’s consent? During the interview, the reporter learned that such incidents are not isolated.

Unexplained deductions by insurance companies

Elderly Mr. Li, nearly 70, said that at the end of January, he suddenly received a transaction message on his phone showing 254 yuan was deducted from his Agricultural Bank card. “I didn’t buy anything that day, so how could money be deducted?” Mr. Li couldn’t understand. He asked his daughter to help check the bill, and they found it was an insurance fee.

“This money was deducted via quick payment, and the recipient was an insurance company called ‘Taikang Online.’” His daughter explained she immediately called “Taikang Online” to inquire about the deduction. “They said it was an elderly person who had purchased a medical insurance policy, and the deduction was for the first month’s premium. But my dad says he never bought any insurance.” She was worried that her father might have forgotten an operation, so she asked “Taikang Online” to provide the full process of the policy purchase. “They checked and said the elderly person clicked on an advertisement to buy the insurance, but they couldn’t provide the entire process.”

What puzzled Mr. Li and his daughter was that if just clicking an ad can complete the purchase and then money is directly deducted from the bank card, isn’t this behavior too aggressive? Shouldn’t insurance require filling out personal information and confirmation by the individual? Under their strong protest, “Taikang Online” agreed to cancel the policy, requiring them to submit a refund request, which ultimately returned 245.53 yuan. “The remaining 8.47 yuan was for already incurred coverage costs. Luckily, we caught it early; otherwise, more would have been deducted.” The father and daughter felt relieved but also a bit fortunate that the elderly person had mobile banking with SMS alerts for deductions. Without that, automatic monthly deductions could have caused greater losses.

Many people face monthly premium deductions

In fact, Mr. Li’s experience is not unique. The reporter’s investigation found that several citizens have posted similar stories on social media, reporting that they were unknowingly insured and then automatically charged. Some only discovered after several months of continuous deductions, all pointing to “Taikang Online.”

Ms. Zhang said she usually doesn’t pay much attention to her bank account transactions. Unexpectedly, she found a deduction of 122.8 yuan that month. Checking the receipt, it was for an “online insurance purchase.” She couldn’t recall when she bought insurance. After downloading the insurance company’s app and checking, she found she had a medical insurance policy worth one million yuan, costing over 1,300 yuan annually, with a monthly deduction of 122.8 yuan. Further review showed she had been deducted for four consecutive months. Except for the first month, which was less, the next three months each deducted 122.8 yuan, totaling over 400 yuan. “I contacted customer service, and they said I bought the insurance myself on the platform. If I want to cancel, there will be some costs, and the refund will be only about 50 yuan.”

Some netizens also shared their experiences of being “mysteriously” insured. Some only realized they had insurance when the institution called to ask for renewal payments. When they asked Taikang customer service, they were told it was because they clicked on an ad or scanned a QR code, but the insured had no memory of doing so. When requesting a refund, “Taikang Online” said they could apply and upload documents but would deduct certain fees. Some netizens summarized a “loss recovery” method: call customer service, strongly demand cancellation and full refund, and be firm.

Customer service states intermediaries are responsible

Why do so many citizens have no memory of purchasing insurance but still have policies under their names? In response, the reporter contacted “Taikang Online,” which replied that “the relevant intermediary bears responsibility.”

Customer service said that some insurance products are promoted by different partner agencies. After verification, they confirmed that these agencies did not conduct sales according to regulations. The cooperation with these agencies has been terminated, and they have been ordered to carry out comprehensive rectification. However, the specific agencies involved, their issues, and how many users are affected are considered trade secrets and cannot be disclosed. When asked whether they would conduct a full review of existing policies, the response was that if users actively report, they will investigate promptly, or they can provide user information for investigation.

What confuses many “insured” people is how these “unknown” policies can access personal information so easily and complete automatic deductions. Industry insiders say that in daily consumption scenarios, many people link quick payment platforms and enable password-free payments. According to relevant electronic payment agreements, just entering “card number + SMS verification code” is considered authorization for deduction, without a separate contract. This creates opportunities for online signing and automatic payments for policies. Citizens are advised to improve awareness by disabling auto-renewal, being cautious with password-free authorization, and setting spending limit alerts.

How can one check if there are unknown policies under their name? Citizens can download the official “Jinshi Tong” App from the National Financial Regulatory Administration to query all policies linked to their name with one click. If there are doubts about any policy, they can contact the relevant insurance provider for consultation.

How to eliminate the chaos of “being insured and charged” industry-wide? How can citizens’ financial security be better protected? “Xinmin Bang Nong Mang” will continue to follow up.

Staff Reporter: Li Xiaoming