The price appraisal data collection process is directly linked to the determination of the appraised price and significantly affects whether a suspect is found guilty or not, as well as the severity of the crime. It is therefore an extremely important step in the price appraisal procedure. Based on daily data-collection practices and drawing on work experience, this article analyzes the specific details and techniques employed by price appraisers and proposes strategies and recommendations for conducting data-collection work more effectively.

I. Selection Methods and Approaches for Survey Units in Price Collection Work

1. Prioritize selecting legitimate and duly licensed establishments and shops owned by local friends and relatives as the subjects for price data collection and surveys. Choosing these entities as survey respondents ensures that communication and information feedback will be convenient and smooth.

2. Fully leverage existing platforms such as the “Anhui Price Monitoring Network,” the “Price Information Network,” provincial and municipal price certification exchange groups, as well as official and e-commerce networks like “JD.com” and “Taobao.com” to facilitate price exchanges, inquiries, and comparisons.

3. Select “Price Integrity Units” and “Price Monitoring Points” accredited by the price authorities of provincial, municipal, and county (district) governments as the subjects for price surveys.

4. Prioritize selecting merchants that are large-scale in production and operations, enjoy a high level of credibility, have complete business licenses and various permits, and demonstrate warmth and attentiveness toward the entities and personnel being investigated as the subjects for routine price collection activities.

5. Obtain a copy of the latest “Anhui Telephone Directory” or “Citywide Telephone Directory” from the local telecommunications authority’s office. Both directories contain up-to-date telephone numbers for various industries and sectors, and can serve perfectly as reference tools for daily price investigations related to cases.

6. Price appraisal personnel can consult the “114” landline service hotline to obtain telephone numbers and business addresses for industries related to processing, recycling, and commerce.

II. Details and Techniques for Daily Price Surveys

1. Regardless of the price survey method employed, investigators must first use polite language, maintain a sincere attitude, and speak in a friendly tone. They should clearly identify their professional status (or even pose as customers to request price quotes) and provide the surveyed businesses with price information relevant to the benchmark date for price assessment. Sometimes, the staff members receiving investigators may be newly hired employees who are unfamiliar with the business and unable to promptly provide the requested price information. In such cases, investigators can further ask for the mobile phone numbers of the sales supervisor or the person in charge, so as to verify the actual market prices. At the conclusion of the investigation, we should express our gratitude for the business’s close cooperation! At the same time, it’s important to emphasize that similar inquiries might arise again in the future (Note: If the investigator posed as a customer to request price quotes, there is no need to repeat unnecessary remarks from the other party).

2. When price appraisers conduct on-site visits or telephone surveys, if the business being surveyed is busy serving customers during business hours, they should patiently wait until the customer service concludes or arrange a convenient time to carry out the price appraisal of the items involved in the case.

3. Price appraisers may apply for a QQ account specifically for routine price surveys. The online nickname can be set as something like “Anhui Pricing, Administrative Law Enforcement,” and so forth. This not only makes it convenient and efficient to transmit relevant images and text messages later on, but also ensures that the process is unaffected by geographical or weather conditions. Moreover, the surveyed entities will feel that cooperating with the administrative law enforcement authorities is not only an obligation but also a demonstration of trust and recognition in their pricing efforts.

4. Price appraisers may copy the text and image information exchanged with the entity under investigation via the internet or QQ into a newly created document. The header of this document can be labeled as follows: “The following text and image information was obtained during a price inquiry conducted by price appraisers Wei** and Wang** via QQ from 9:45 a.m. to 9:58 a.m. on June 10, 2015. The online nickname used by the price appraisers is ‘Urban Color,’ and their QQ number is 42220**** (including the appraisers’ names, workplaces, and phone numbers). The online nickname used by the entity under investigation is ‘Mingmen Auto Industry,’ and their QQ number is 36789*** (including the entity’s address, the name of the person being investigated, and their phone number). Following this, paste the exchanged price-related content from both sides. Finally, neatly arrange the document, print it on A4-sized paper, and file it in the case file as part of the price-inquiry materials.”

5. Regardless of the investigation method used—whether by phone, on-site visit, external inquiry, or expert interviews—price appraisers should prepare the relevant materials and arrive ten minutes early at the agreed-upon time. If, due to traffic congestion or unforeseen circumstances, they are unable to arrive on time, they must inform the other party in advance to gain their understanding.

6. During on-site visits and surveys, be sure to carefully record the business information of the surveyed entities as well as the prices they provide. While seeking the signatures of the surveyed entities or their marketing personnel on the market-price survey forms, it’s best to proactively request relevant product promotional brochures, take photographs of price tags for the items involved and of POP price display posters. Also, photograph the exterior view of the surveyed entity’s business premises and its shelf displays. After completing the on-site visit, place all printed materials in the case file. These materials will serve as authentic evidence to confirm that the image information captured by the price appraisers during their appraisal work fully matches the information gathered during the on-site visits.

7. If the materials submitted by the commissioning party meet the acceptance criteria and the appraisal agency agrees to accept the case, and if physical items involved in the case are available, during the inspection, verification, and recording of damaged (or stolen) items, appraisers must carefully record the 13-digit barcode number if such barcodes are present on the items involved. This information will help improve the timeliness and efficiency of subsequent price appraisal work. Appraisers can use the “Search” function on their mobile phones to manually enter the relevant product prices, and then conduct a comprehensive analysis by combining these prices with price information obtained through other channels.

III. Inquiry Methods for Common Underlying Assets

(1) Survey of prices for high-end luxury watches, prized pets, antiques, calligraphy and paintings, and other such items.

1. For individual cases involving entrusted items, there is currently no well-established trading market locally, and it is difficult to obtain reliable pricing information. ① You can conduct telephone inquiries using the purchase location, merchant name, or phone number provided in the preliminary documentation or relevant attachments submitted by the public security authorities, and keep detailed written and audio records of these conversations. ② The appraiser may leverage members from national, provincial, and municipal price expert databases, schedule specific on-site visits, and bring along the physical items involved to collaborate with the client’s designated personnel during the fieldwork. ③ Bring the physical items involved and, in cooperation with and under the guidance of the client, visit provincial-level retail stores or dedicated counter marketing consultants together.

2. Alternatively, you may send a letter, make a phone call, or dispatch personnel to the price certification agencies in the regions where the entity engages in production, processing, and sales, requesting their cooperation in obtaining price information on the relevant items involved in the case.

3. For price appraisal cases involving large-value items, numerous projects, and complex and intricate circumstances, during the price investigation phase, appraisers should prepare an investigation checklist before conducting on-site visits and invite the commissioning party to actively participate and cooperate. Additionally, the police officer in charge of the case should brief the units being investigated on the initial circumstances surrounding the seizure and confiscation of the relevant items, thereby better restoring the original state of the items involved. At the same time, joint investigations involving multiple departments yield significant results and accelerate the progress of the work.

(2) Vehicle Damage Quotation Techniques

In their daily caseload, price appraisal agencies frequently handle cases involving intentional damage to property—among these, cases involving damaged vehicles account for a significant proportion. In recent years, the majority of damaged vehicles entrusted to these agencies have been mid- to high-end non-commercial vehicles. Price appraisers often find themselves frustrated by the lack of cooperation from auto dealerships and the difficulty in obtaining accurate quotes. During frontline quote inquiries, after-sales service personnel at 4S repair shops typically explain: “Our company has a policy against providing quotes over the phone, because our after-sales technicians haven’t yet seen the damaged (accident-damaged) vehicle. We’ll provide a quote once the vehicle is brought into the shop.”

When encountering such issues, the following approaches and methods can be adopted for resolution: 1. With the cooperation of the case-handling police officers, the vehicle owner whose car was damaged, and other relevant parties, the appraisal agency’s price appraisers should jointly inspect the accident scene. At the scene, the appraisers will verify the vehicle information provided by the client and confirm the damaged parts of the vehicle. They will then provide the vehicle owner or other relevant parties with a brief list of damaged components, clearly noting which parts need to be replaced or repaired. The owner is advised to obtain the relevant receipts and repair invoices from the 4S service center in advance. 2. After the damaged vehicle is brought into (or entrusted to) the repair shop, the client, the appraisal agency, and both parties involved in the damage should agree on a specific time to jointly visit the 4S service center where the vehicle is being repaired. At the site, they will carry out recording, photography, verification, and price collection activities. 3. Alternatively, one can refer to relevant resources such as “Auto Claims Network” and “Comprehensive Auto Claims Magazine” to find prices for parts of the same make and model. 4. If the time difference between the benchmark date for the damaged vehicle’s appraisal and the current date is relatively small, the appraisal agency can also refer to previously conducted price assessments for the same make and model parts. 5. If the price appraisal staff are familiar with the after-sales service manager, they can promptly send the pre-designed survey form for damaged vehicle parts (in electronic format) to the manager for conducting the price investigation.

During price investigation assignments, investigators should make an effort to interact more frequently with after-sales managers or warehouse managers. Through such exchanges and learning, they can not only build a broader network of contacts but also broaden their professional knowledge base as price appraisers, which in turn helps enhance both their practical skills and theoretical understanding. Ideally, price appraisers should become familiar with at least two or more prefectural-level sales or after-sales managers from different car brands. If they are acquainted with only one sales representative, any situation—such as that representative’s job change—could create difficulties for their work and investigations at critical moments. Therefore, establishing a solid circle of contacts for price inquiries is highly beneficial for performing price appraisal tasks effectively.

IV. Several Recommendations for Conducting Price Collection Work Effectively

1. For units (merchants) that have achieved outstanding results in cooperating with price appraisal and data collection efforts, we will actively recommend them to our Commission (Bureau) for priority consideration as “Demonstration Units for Price Integrity” or “Demonstration Stores for Transparent Pricing,” among others.

2. Apply for funding for special-related activities. At year-end, invite the surveyed entities that have provided strong support and cooperation in price appraisal work to participate in symposiums and appreciation meetings, thereby building stronger bonds of friendship with these entities and encouraging them to continue cooperating more effectively and providing better service for price appraisal data collection.

3. For the entities and businesses that have been investigated by price appraisers, be sure to carefully verify their business nature and industry category, and promptly place the businesses’ business cards in a dedicated card collection area.

A dedicated office staff member shall be responsible for promptly archiving, in electronic format, the latest price data and information—including the names, addresses, and phone numbers of the businesses surveyed; the names, genders, and positions of the operators (or hosts) interviewed; the degree of cooperation shown by the respondents; as well as details such as the benchmark date for price appraisal of the items involved, item models, market prices, photographic evidence, and case numbers—so that our unit can refer to, retrieve, and utilize this information in future operations.

4. Price appraisers must learn to analyze the nature and characteristics of cases accepted each year, and from this analysis, identify and systematically document price information that should be retained at each critical point in time when such incidents occur. For example, during summer each year, women tend to wear fewer layers of clothing, exposing more gold and silver jewelry. As a result, cases of street robbery committed by suspects targeting such exposed jewelry tend to increase exponentially compared to previous years. Therefore, from May to September each year, price appraisers should pay close attention to recording and documenting local transaction prices for gold jewelry.

5. For merchants who have provided business cooperation during our work, we can proactively send them New Year greetings during holidays—wishing them prosperous business and the fulfillment of their wishes—and express our heartfelt gratitude for their close cooperation in previous price verification and survey efforts. By doing so, we can strengthen mutual trust and goodwill between both parties, thereby providing additional support for future price collection and survey activities.

6. Price collection is a task that challenges both one’s self-esteem and patience, requiring price appraisal personnel to devote considerable time and effort. The head of the price administration authority may purchase electric bicycles specifically for price collection purposes for the relevant business departments, facilitating daily work and operations. As for the travel expenses incurred by price appraisal personnel when visiting survey units located far from the city center or in other regions, the unit should promptly handle reimbursement according to applicable regulations.

7. Price appraisers should be aware that, during on-site investigations, the prices marked by some merchants do not necessarily reflect the actual listed prices. Often, consumers can still negotiate a lower price based on the marked price. Therefore, when conducting relevant price surveys, it is essential to ask merchants not only about the marked price but also about any additional discounts they can offer and the lowest possible transaction price.

8. When price appraisers conduct surveys on relevant prices as customers or consumers, they must first thoroughly memorize the product names, models, the benchmark date for price appraisal, and information about whether the products are currently in stock—along with other pertinent market price details. Typically, shopping malls prohibit photography due to commercial confidentiality; therefore, it’s advisable to prepare small notes in advance for collecting price data.

9. Only by continuously accumulating and summarizing pricing experience can we better and more comprehensively carry out price collection and survey work in the new era.

(Author’s Affiliation: Price Certification Bureau of Taihe County, Anhui Province)