Severe flooding in Zhengzhou, hotels raising prices opportunistically, punishable!

Compiled from: Hexun.com
 
It is reported that on July 20, the day of the severe rainstorm in Zhengzhou, the Zhengzhou East Railway Station branch of Xi'an Hotel took advantage of the situation to raise prices, charging guests at rates of 1,500 yuan/room, 1,688 yuan/room, and 2,888 yuan/room, which were 3-5 times the usual price. According to the relevant provisions of the Price Law of the People's Republic of China, the Zhengzhou East Railway Station branch of Xi'an Hotel is suspected of using other means to drive prices up too quickly and too high. Given that the Xi'an Hotel branch proactively apologized and mitigated the social impact, the Zhengzhou Market Supervision Administration imposed a penalty of 500,000 yuan on the branch.

 

 
Case review
On July 21, a netizen stranded in Zhengzhou due to the rainstorm, "Yifan Fanfan," posted on Weibo that on the evening of the 20th, the Xi'an Hotel near the railway station raised prices from two to three hundred yuan to over two thousand yuan, saying, "Suddenly hiking prices, so unethical!" The netizen recounted: "I paid 2,000 yuan for a double bed last night, and the room had no electricity, no windows—just a fake window."
 
After the incident escalated, Xi'an Hotel issued an apology statement, stating that the incident was caused by the franchisee's failure to comply with the brand headquarters' directive not to raise prices and to accommodate as many guests as possible.
 
"The hotel bears an undeniable responsibility for any issues guests encountered during their stay," Xi'an Hotel said, apologizing to all guests and actively cooperating with relevant authorities in the investigation. Xi'an Hotel also stated that it has imposed severe penalties on all relevant management personnel involved in this incident, will strengthen internal process checks, enhance employee training and education, and prevent similar incidents from recurring.
 
 
Price Law of the People's Republic of China Article 14
Business operators shall not engage in the following unfair pricing practices:
(1) Colluding to manipulate market prices, harming the legitimate rights and interests of other operators or consumers.
(2) Dumping goods at below-cost prices, except for the lawful price reduction of fresh goods, seasonal goods, overstocked goods, etc., in order to exclude competitors or monopolize the market, disrupting normal production and business operations, harming national interests or the legitimate rights and interests of other business operators;
(3) Fabricating or spreading price increase information, driving up prices, or causing excessive price increases for goods;
(4) Using false or misleading pricing methods to induce consumers or other business operators to engage in transactions;
(5) Applying price discrimination to other business operators with equivalent transaction conditions when providing the same goods or services;
(6) Using methods such as raising or lowering grades to purchase, sell goods, or provide services, thereby covertly increasing or reducing prices;
(7) Seeking exorbitant profits in violation of laws and regulations;
(8) Other unfair pricing practices prohibited by laws and administrative regulations.
 
[1] Provisions on Administrative Penalties for Price Violations Article 6　
If an operator violates the provisions of Article 14 of the Price Law by engaging in any of the following acts that cause commodity prices to rise too quickly or too high, they shall be ordered to correct the act, have their illegal gains confiscated, and be fined not less than five times the illegal gains; if there are no illegal gains, a fine of not less than 50,000 yuan but not more than 500,000 yuan shall be imposed, and if the circumstances are relatively serious, a fine of not less than 500,000 yuan but not more than 3,000,000 yuan shall be imposed; if the circumstances are serious, they shall be ordered to suspend business for rectification, or their business license shall be revoked by the administrative authority for industry and commerce:
(1) Fabricating or spreading price increase information to disrupt the market price order;
(2) Except for self-use in production, hoarding in large quantities commodities that are in short supply or experiencing abnormal price fluctuations, beyond normal storage quantities or storage periods, and continuing to hoard after being warned by the price authority;
(3) Using other means to drive up prices, causing commodity prices to rise too quickly or too high.
If an industry association or a unit providing services for commodity trading commits the illegal acts specified in the preceding paragraph, a fine of not more than 500,000 yuan may be imposed; if the circumstances are serious, the registration authority shall revoke the registration or license in accordance with the law.
If other units not covered by the preceding two paragraphs spread false price increase information to disrupt the market price order, and such acts should be investigated by other competent authorities in accordance with the law, the price authority may propose a penalty in accordance with the law, and the relevant competent authority shall impose the penalty in accordance with the law.

 
 

[1] The author's perspective
On July 20, Zhengzhou encountered a rare severe rainstorm. The city was flooded, traffic was blocked, and dozens of people lost their lives. The plight of Metro Line 5 remains vivid in memory. The whole nation rose to fight the flood, donating money and supplies to do their part to alleviate the crisis. What is disheartening is that, at a critical moment in flood control and disaster relief, some hotels raised prices for petty gains, even several times the usual rate. Such malicious price hikes are not only shameful but also ruin their future business. This time, the Zhengzhou Market Supervision Administration's fine of 500,000 yuan on such hotels serves as a warning to all businesses.
 
At this critical juncture, as members of society, both individuals and enterprises must shoulder social responsibilities, strictly self-discipline, operate legally, clearly mark prices, standardize operations, fulfill commitments, and conduct business with integrity. If any businesses are found to be raising prices opportunistically or arbitrarily, the public should actively report them, resolutely stopping such ugly behavior of profiting from disasters. Market supervision departments should also impose severe penalties according to the law and implement joint disciplinary actions.