China: Parents of drunk teenagers who peed in broth pot ordered to pay Rs. 2.7crore to restaurant

A Chinese court has penalised the teenagers who were filmed urinating into a pot of broth at a hotpot restaurant and ordered their parents to pay 2.2 million yuan (Rs. 2.7crore) in compensation. The drunk 17-year-olds came under heavy fire when their video of peeing in the broth pot in a private room at the Shanghai branch of China's biggest hotpot chain, Haidilao, went viral online. The restaurant came to know about the incident four days after it happened on 24 February. Haidilao also did not know about the time and location of the disgusting act. After the restaurant became aware of the incident, it offered compensation to over 4,000 diners. However, it does not know whether the contaminated broth was consumed by anyone.

Haidilao filed a complaint with the police in Jianyang, Sichuan. The hotpot chain has its headquarters here and has several outlets in other locations. The teenagers were arrested. A civil lawsuit followed in March, in which the restaurant sought a public apology and over 23 million yuan in damages. The Huangpu District People's Court of Shanghai, while announcing the order, ruled that the teenagers deliberately infringed upon property rights and damaged reputation through “acts of insult”.

Teenagers and parents were ordered to issue a public apology

It stated that the act caused "strong discomfort among the public" and polluted tableware and the dining environment. The court said that the parents had "failed to fulfil their duty of guardianship". They have been ordered to pay 2.2 million yuan, which includes 2 million yuan for reputational and business damage, 130,000 yuan for tableware losses and cleaning expenses, and 70,000 yuan in legal costs. Global Times reported that the parents and the teenagers have been told to issue a public apology in the newspapers. The compensation that the restaurant paid to other diners was not ruled as liable to be paid by the teenagers as the court called it a "voluntary business decision".