A Chinese woman intentionally flooded a hotel room in Hainan province after her cancellation request was denied by the hotel, according to the South China Morning Post (SCMP). She ended up paying 280 times the original room rate for the damages she incurred.
The woman had booked the room for a night at a rate of 108 yuan (US$15). But wanted to get it cancelled. The hotel, however, had refused to cancel her reservation, citing their policy of no cancellations after check-in.
The woman had claimed the room was of poor quality and had inadequate soundproofing. The hotel even offered her a free upgrade, but she denied, prompting the hotel staff to call the police.
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In a fit of rage, she turned on the bathroom taps and flooded the room, which caused significant damage to the walls and floor, and as she waited for the police, she threw the bedding set in the shower room and poured shower gel on it after turning on the washbasin's tap and the showerhead.
The taps were on for around 3-4 hours, and water had leaked from her second-floor room.
When the police interrogated her, she eventually agreed to compensate the hotel for the damages.
As a fine, she paid nearly 30,000 yuan (US$4,200), which is around 280 times the original room rate.
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The incident went viral on Chinese social media. As quoted in the report, one user wrote. "She ended up paying nearly 300 times the hotel room rate that she wanted to avoid."
"Compared to greater legal consequences, the 30,000-yuan compensation is a rather light punishment," said another, as quoted.
"Anger can cause great consequences if we do not put a leash on it. The law can be a good leash," said another.
