HEYTEA Claims 11 Times in a Month? Has Food Safety Law Become a Path to Wealth?

A String of Complaints Against a Well-Known Milk Tea Chain

Recently, within a single month, 8 stores of a well-known chain milk tea brand received 11 complaints from different customers using different phone numbers but for the same reason. The pattern was always the same: each customer first claimed that a hair had turned up in their takeout milk tea, then immediately demanded ten times compensation from the shop.

The First Complaint

When the first complaint came in, a woman identifying herself as Ms. Zhang reported that there was hair in her takeout milk tea and demanded ten times compensation. In the recorded phone call, Ms. Zhang said, "I've already made the maximum concession. I won't make trouble for you or create any negative impact, because once I speak out, it will definitely spread from one person to another, and then to more."

At first the merchant offered to waive the charge, but Ms. Zhang held firm: "I understand the law too, which is why I'm going through the Food Safety Law with you. Right now I'm the one making demands, not you."

The Legal Basis and How It Was Resolved

In the call, Ms. Zhang argued that her claim was well founded, citing the Food Safety Law: "For food that does not meet food safety standards, in addition to claiming compensation for losses, consumers may also demand that the producer or seller pay compensation equal to ten times the price of the food."

To protect its brand image, the shop readily agreed to Ms. Zhang's request, waiving the charge and paying ten times the compensation.

The Second Complaint

A few days later, however, another chain store of the same brand in the same area also received a complaint call. This time a woman identifying herself as Ms. Wang reported hair in her takeout milk tea and likewise demanded ten times compensation. The store again paid out as requested.

A Pattern Emerges

After those two incidents, other stores of the same brand in the same area received complaint calls one after another. Within a month, eight stores had received eleven complaints from different customers with different phone numbers, all for the same reason, with total compensation amounting to more than 11,000 yuan.

For a chain with more than 600 stores, hygiene requirements are extremely strict, and store managers found it highly unusual that so many complaints about hair in milk tea could occur in such a short window. After comparing the information the stores had collected, they noticed that the complainants were all female customers and that the delivery addresses all pointed to the same residential community, though with different recipients and locations. The decision was made to report the matter to the police.

Investigation and Arrest

The police said that, based on the information provided by the shops, they initially determined that the same suspect was behind the calls and quickly identified her. They located the suspect, Ms. Wang, at an accounting firm and arrested her on suspicion of extortion and blackmail. When the police arrived at her door, Ms. Wang was somewhat caught off guard.

Legal Consequences

The crime of extortion and blackmail is prosecuted according to the amount involved. Under the relevant regulations, the amount must be "relatively large," with the threshold beginning at 2,000 to 5,000 yuan. Clearly, the total Ms. Wang extracted exceeded 11,000 yuan, and her conduct already constituted the crime of extortion and blackmail.

Confession and Consequences

By Ms. Wang's own account, her first claim was genuine - there really was hair in the milk tea. But through that exchange she discovered how easy it was to claim compensation. After successfully claiming compensation the first and second times, she decided to embark on this "path to wealth." What she did not expect was that her "path to wealth" would amount to the crime of extortion and blackmail. She has since expressed that she knows she was wrong.

Where Things Stand and the Potential Penalty

At present, the police have criminally detained Ms. Wang and the case is under further investigation. If the findings are confirmed, under China's Criminal Law, extortion and blackmail of public or private property in a relatively large amount or on multiple occasions carries up to three years of fixed-term imprisonment, criminal detention, or public surveillance, and a fine or a separate fine may also be imposed.

A Legal Perspective

A business must comply with the relevant laws and regulations, and when something goes wrong with the goods it sells, it must bear the corresponding legal liability or compensation. But when the law is used as a tool for making money, the person wielding it will be sanctioned by the law in turn.

Image Source

Image source: screenshots from the "Rule of Law in Progress" Weibo video.

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