Two teenagers who urinated into a pot of broth at a popular hotpot restaurant in China have been ordered to pay 2.2 million yuan (approx. BD116,000) by a Shanghai court.
The 17-year-olds sparked widespread criticism on Chinese social media in February after they posted a video of their drunken acts at a Shanghai branch of Haidilao, China’s biggest hotpot chain restaurant.
After the incident came to light, Haidilao compensated more than 4,000 diners who visited the branch with a full refund and a cash compensation of 10 times the amount they were billed.
They also replaced all hotpot equipment and said they had conducted cleaning and disinfection.
Haidilao sued the teens for its losses, and a Shanghai court found them guilty on Friday of infringing upon the company’s property rights as well as its reputation through 'acts of insult,' noting that their actions contaminated tableware and 'caused strong discomfort among the public.'
The court also found that the teens' parents had 'failed to fulfil their duty of guardianship' and ordered that they bear the compensation of 2.2 million yuan, according to state media reports.
The figure includes 2 million yuan for operational and reputational damage, 130,000 yuan to one of the caterers for tableware losses and cleaning expenses, and 70,000 yuan in legal costs.
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