Several citizens have recently reported that elderly family members have had hundreds of yuan deducted from their accounts by the internet insurance brokerage platform Waterdrop Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. (Waterdrop Insurance) without their knowledge.

Numerous complaints have been filed, with the elderly being particularly vulnerable. According to reports, a citizen, Mr. Zhang, explained that his mother in her sixties received a text message in November 2025 notifying her of a 399.58 yuan deduction but could not recall any related purchase. After checking her bank statement, the deduction was traced to Waterdrop Insurance. The elderly woman only remembered accidentally paying 0.7 yuan in late October and was unaware it would lead to further high charges. Contacting the platform revealed she was enrolled in a "Million Cancer Medical Insurance" plan with 12 payment periods; after the first period, each subsequent premium was 399.58 yuan. Mr. Zhang believes the platform uses low initial costs to mislead middle-aged and elderly users.

Another citizen, Mr. Cao, stated that his wife in her seventies was processing insurance for a grandchild at a bank last December when a Waterdrop Insurance promotional pop-up appeared on her phone screen and could not be closed. To complete the bank transaction, she paid 1.5 yuan, after which the pop-up disappeared. Her end-of-month statement showed a 548.45 yuan deduction from Waterdrop Insurance. Mr. Cao noted his family never activated password-free payments and could not understand how the platform completed the deduction.

Furthermore, multiple consumers reported frequently encountering Waterdrop Insurance pop-up ads in various daily scenarios such as charging pile mini-programs, recycling equipment, self-service car washes, residential gate access systems, shared bicycles, and shopping platforms. A slight misstep could lead to entering an insurance enrollment process. Many consumers only discovered the automatic renewals weeks after the first deduction.

Additional media reports described a middle-aged woman anxiously showing bank staff a 194 yuan deduction on her phone, with the transaction details showing "Waterdrop Insurance" – a charge she found confusing and infuriating as she never purchased any insurance.

On the Black Cat Complaint platform, complaints against Waterdrop Insurance have reached 2,846, with "unauthorized charges" and "automatic renewal" being the primary issues. The elderly are disproportionately affected by these automatic deductions.

Some users noted that after discovering a family member was unknowingly enrolled, they attempted to contact Waterdrop Insurance customer service but found it impossible to reach a human agent.

Common pathways for accidental enrollment include mistakenly clicking SMS marketing links, accidentally tapping pop-up ads while scanning codes, and being induced by promotions like "0 yuan insurance" or "1.9 yuan first month."

In May 2025, the Shanghai Consumer Council highlighted four types of issues in the internet insurance sector, specifically naming Waterdrop Insurance. The notice pointed out that Waterdrop's "Million Medical Insurance" product had discrepancies between its advertising and policy terms: the page claimed coverage for ages "0-70," but the actual policy required the insured to be between 30 days and 65 years old.

Waterdrop Insurance has also faced regulatory penalties for non-standard marketing practices. The former China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission issued a fine to Waterdrop Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd., citing the sale of insurance products using "0 yuan for the first month/period" or "3 yuan for the first month/period."

In August 2025, the Hubei branch of Waterdrop Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. was fined 100,000 yuan by the National Financial Regulatory Administration's Hubei Bureau for "untrue business information," with relevant personnel receiving warnings and fines totaling 20,000 yuan.

During a 2024 "3.15 Consumer Voice" investigation, Waterdrop Insurance was exposed for using a "low-cost trap" in selling its million medical insurance. Advertisements on short video platforms promoted "600 million yuan in medical coverage for 1.9 yuan per month," attracting many consumers. However, users found the "1.9 yuan" was only the first month's premium, rising to 191.3 yuan from the second month onwards, leading to a surge in complaints.

Industry insiders indicate this "low first-month price" marketing, known within the industry as the "magic cube business," is a grey-area customer acquisition tactic. It exchanges a low initial cost for user authorization and automatic deduction permissions. If consumers fail to notice promptly, the platform gains a stable cash flow to fund further advertising. Since medical insurance often has a waiting period, the platform's costs are relatively low.

Regulators have repeatedly clarified their stance. A November 2023 "Risk Notice on Short-Term Health Insurance Products" required that sales processes must clearly communicate key information such as deductibles, payment methods, and cancellation terms. Misleading phrases like "as low as," "starting from," or "up to" are prohibited, and automatic renewal and deferred payment must be fully explained to ensure policyholders genuinely understand.

Insurance operations form the core of the company's revenue, with Waterdrop Chou serving as the primary traffic source. Waterdrop Insurance is the internet insurance technology platform launched by Waterdrop Inc. in May 2017. On May 7, 2021, Waterdrop Inc. was officially listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "WDH."

Waterdrop Inc. is widely known for its public welfare-oriented services like Waterdrop Chou (crowdfunding) and Waterdrop Mutual Aid. However, beneath this charitable exterior, the insurance business is the company's primary revenue pillar and profit driver. The main role of Waterdrop Chou is to channel traffic to its internet insurance platform, Waterdrop Insurance, for monetization.

In its early stages, Waterdrop Inc. primarily used Waterdrop Chou and Waterdrop Mutual Aid to aggregate traffic, which was then directed to the insurance business for monetization. However, due to ongoing regulatory scrutiny over the compliance of online mutual aid, Waterdrop Inc. shut down its "Waterdrop Mutual Aid" business before its 2021 IPO, losing a significant traffic source.

Subsequently, Waterdrop Chou became the company's main channel for traffic acquisition. As of March 31, 2025, approximately 475 million people had donated a cumulative 68.8 billion yuan through Waterdrop Medical Crowdfunding to about 3.47 million patients.

While Waterdrop Chou itself is not profitable as a traffic entry point, it brings massive user volume to the company. By the end of June 2025, cumulative donations had reached approximately 480 million participations, with a customer acquisition cost of only 0.3 yuan per user.

This traffic is efficiently converted into Waterdrop Insurance customers. In the first half of 2025, the company's insurance revenue reached 1.397 billion yuan, accounting for 87.74% of total revenue, with an operating profit of 322 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 27.85%.

According to the latest financial report, Waterdrop Inc.'s net revenue for the third quarter of 2025 was 975 million yuan, with net profit attributable to parent company shareholders of 158 million yuan. This indicates that despite controversies surrounding its business practices, Waterdrop Inc.'s performance remains strong. Insurance-related revenue reached 870 million yuan, a 44.8% year-on-year increase, and first-year scale premiums grew 32.3% quarter-on-quarter. Company founder and CEO Shen Peng attributed these results to the deep integration of AI technology.

Recently, Waterdrop Insurance officially released its 2025 Service Report. Throughout 2025, the company launched 242 customized insurance products, 57 of which required no health declarations. Through professional claims assistance services, it helped users complete 66,344 claim cases, assisting with claim amounts totaling 394 million yuan.

Regarding coverage for the silver-haired demographic, the company launched 221 elderly-friendly products in 2025, with the average claim amount exceeding 10,000 yuan, reaching 11,265.13 yuan.

The report also stated that over the past year, Waterdrop Insurance continued to upgrade its "Three-Good Service" system – "good products, good service, good claims" – by deepening the integration of inclusive product innovation and AI technology applications. Empowered by AI and big data, Waterdrop has accelerated its product innovation pace, using intelligent risk control models and precise demand analysis to offer more diverse possibilities for customizing insurance products.