- Parents of two teens ordered to pay 2.2 million yuan in compensation to two catering firms
- Two 17-year-olds urinated in boiling broth at Haidilao hotpot restaurant in Shanghai
- Haidilao refunded and compensated over 4,000 diners after the incident
A Chinese court has ruled that the parents of two teenagers must pay 2.2 million yuan (Rs 2,71,78,690) in compensation to two catering companies. The ruling comes after two 17-year-old Chinese teenagers, identified by the surnames Wu and Tang, were caught on video urinating into a pot of boiling broth at a Haidilao hotpot restaurant in Shanghai.
The event unfolded on February 24, 2025, in a private dining room, where the intoxicated minors climbed onto a table and deliberately contaminated the communal soup used for cooking meats and vegetables in the traditional Chinese hotpot style. Despite no evidence that any customers consumed the tainted broth, the company compensated more than 4,000 diners who visited the branch between the incident date and March 8.
This included full refunds, plus cash compensation equivalent to ten times the original bill amount, alongside the destruction and replacement of all utensils, followed by thorough cleaning and disinfection.
According to the BBC, Haidilao initially sought over 23 million yuan in damages, citing compensation paid to customers affected by the incident. A Shanghai court ruled that the teens had violated the companies' property rights and reputation through "insulting acts," contaminating tableware, and causing public discomfort. The court also said that the teens' parents had "failed to fulfil their duty of guardianship" and ordered that they bear the compensation
They were asked to pay 2 million yuan for operational and reputational damage, 130,000 yuan for tableware losses and cleaning, and 70,000 yuan in legal fees. The court ruled that Haidilao's additional customer compensation, beyond the billed amount, was a voluntary business decision and shouldn't be covered by the teens.
The court also ordered the teens and their parents to publish apologies in designated newspapers to the catering companies.
Haidilao has rapidly expanded since its first restaurant in Jianyang, Sichuan province, and now operates over 1,000 locations worldwide. The chain is famous for its exceptional customer service and family-friendly atmosphere, offering unique perks like free manicures for women and candy floss for kids while they wait for a table.
