[5] Yuanqi Forest made a major mistake; how can it recover millions in losses?
[4] Compiled from: Red Star News
Case review
On the evening of October 25, the official store of Yuanqi Forest launched a promotional event, but due to an operational error, 36 bottles of sparkling water worth about 216 yuan were actually paid only 10 yuan, resulting in a loss of over 2 million yuan for the store. Subsequently, the involved store, Yuanqi Forest Official Store, removed all its products.
Some consumers posted screenshots showing that after they made purchases, a staff member claiming to be from the Yuanqi Forest Taobao store admitted to a setup error and asked them to cancel the order and request a refund. Currently, netizens are divided into two camps: some believe it was an unintentional mistake by the staff, while others suspect it was deliberate marketing.
On October 26, Yuanqi Forest's official store stated: "There was an operational incident on the Taobao store last night, and we are currently working on a proper solution."
Civil Code of the People's Republic of China
Article 6
Civil subjects engaging in civil activities shall adhere to the principle of fairness and reasonably determine the rights and obligations of all parties.
Article 151
If one party takes advantage of the other party's distress or lack of judgment, causing a civil legal act to be manifestly unfair when established, the injured party has the right to request the people's court or an arbitration institution to revoke it.
E-Commerce Law of the People's Republic of China
Article 49
If the goods or service information published by an e-commerce operator meets the conditions for an offer, and the user selects the goods or service and successfully submits an order, the contract is formed. If the parties have otherwise agreed, such agreement shall prevail.
An e-commerce operator shall not stipulate in standard terms or otherwise that the contract is not formed after the consumer pays the price; if standard terms contain such content, that content shall be invalid.
[1] The author's perspective
Currently, there are differing opinions on whether the official Yuanqi Forest store should "ship as per the order." The author will analyze this from the following two perspectives:
1. No shipment: manifestly unfair and revocable.
According to Article 151 of the Civil Code, although the erroneous price was set by the staff of the official Yuanqi Forest store itself, it also constitutes a manifestly unfair situation in terms of the resulting damages. The official Yuanqi Forest store may file a lawsuit with the court, arguing that this contract is manifestly unfair and beyond the scope of normal promotional activities, thus revoking the contract to ensure fairness in the transaction.
If the court supports the claim of the official Yuanqi Forest store and does not require shipment at the erroneous price, but the consumer has already suffered losses, the store may be liable for partial compensation.
2. Delivery: Contract formation must be complied with
According to Article 49, Paragraph 2 of the E-Commerce Law, e-commerce operators shall not use standard terms or other methods to stipulate that the contract is not formed after the consumer has paid the price. That is to say, discounts and promotions are common in online shopping, but as long as the consumer confirms the price and pays the amount, the contract is formed, and the merchant cannot claim that the contract is not formed for any reason.
Moreover, because special laws prevail over general laws, the E-Commerce Law should take precedence over the Civil Code. Therefore, Yuanqi Forest should deliver the goods at the price paid by the consumer and faithfully fulfill the obligations stipulated in the contract.
