Food delivery rider hits and kills someone; the dispatch company cannot escape liability.

Compiled from: Qingdao Intermediate Court
 
In recent years, with the growth of the platform economy, the instant delivery industry has expanded accordingly, leading to an increase in disputes. Once a traffic accident occurs, due to the special nature of platform employment, who to claim compensation from and how to claim become the focus of controversy.

 
 

Case review
In September 2021, a rider surnamed Luo from delivery platform A injured Sun during a delivery, and Sun later died despite rescue efforts. Sun's family filed a lawsuit in court, demanding compensation from platform A, agency B, labor company C, and insurance company D. The Laoshan District People's Court in Qingdao found that the delivery platform was operated by defendant A, and the delivery services in the accident area were actually carried out by defendant B. At the time of the accident, Luo had an employment relationship with defendant C and was dispatched to defendant B for delivery work. Defendant B had purchased employer liability insurance for rider Luo from insurance company D.

 
 

The court ruled that, according to the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, a person who infringes upon another's civil rights due to fault shall bear tort liability. During a labor dispatch period, if a dispatched employee causes harm to others while performing work tasks, the accepting entity of the labor dispatch shall bear tort liability. In this case, Luo injured Sun while working. Although defendant B had no direct contractual relationship with Luo, as the actual employer accepting the dispatch, it should bear compensation liability. If Sun's family also sought compensation from platform A and labor company C, they could be named as defendants. Similarly, since this case involves employer tort liability, and insurance company D explicitly disagreed with consolidating the case, it could not be adjudicated together.
 
Considering that Sun's family had already suffered great pain from this accident, initiating a new lawsuit would not only fail to protect the parties' legal rights but might also create new conflicts. Based on this, the judge, grounded in facts, explained the law to the parties and repeatedly mediated with the defendants via phone and online hearings. Through continuous efforts, an agreement was reached: defendant B and insurance company D agreed to directly compensate the plaintiff with over 600,000 yuan, and the case was successfully settled through mediation.
 
 
《 [1] The People's Republic of China Civil Code
Article 1165
A person who, through fault, infringes upon the civil rights and interests of another and causes damage shall bear tort liability.
If a person is presumed to be at fault in accordance with the law and cannot prove that he or she is not at fault, he or she shall bear tort liability.
 
Article 1191 
If an employee of an employer causes harm to others while performing work tasks, the employer shall bear tort liability. After bearing tort liability, the employer may seek recourse from the employee who acted intentionally or with gross negligence.
During the period of labor dispatch, if a dispatched worker causes harm to another person while performing work tasks, the accepting entity that uses the dispatched labor shall bear the tort liability; if the labor dispatch unit is at fault, it shall bear corresponding liability.
 
Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on the Application of the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China
Article 58
During the period of labor dispatch, if a dispatched worker causes harm to another person while performing work tasks, the accepting entity that uses the dispatched labor shall be the party. If a party claims that the labor dispatch unit shall bear liability, the labor dispatch unit shall be a co-defendant.

[1] The author's perspective
The food delivery industry is in a period of rapid growth, and due to special circumstances in the past two years, the volume of delivery riders' business has increased significantly. However, this type of occupation carries high risks, and riders' safety awareness and legal awareness are relatively weak. Therefore, once an accident occurs, the food delivery platform company may shirk responsibility, ignore non-self-employed riders, and the corresponding insurance system is not well-established.
 
In fact, such cases have not occurred for the first time. Both food delivery companies and dispatch companies should begin to pay attention to these issues. After all, the long-term development of an enterprise cannot be separated from the contributions of every rider. If they evade responsibility when problems arise, over time, it will not only dishearten the riders but also alienate consumers.