News of electric bikes spontaneously combusting has been frequently reported of late. Something to do with the heat? And that’s reigniting the debate over the dangers posed by those who insist on taking their electric bikes home to charge. 

The dilemma is this. If you encounter someone in a lift with their electric bike, do you have the right to challenge them?

Up until now, that was a bit of a grey area. But now we have a precedent. 

One day recently at noon time in Nanjing’s Jiangbei New Area, a man by the surname Li was about to push his electric bike into the lift, when another man, surnamed Zhao, intervened to stop it. 

During the resulting quarrel, Zhao shot a video and then posted it in their residential community’s WeChat group. In the video, Li’s entire body is clearly visible, reports The Paper.

Li believed that Zhao’s behavior had damaged his reputation, and so he sought to sue Zhao and have a court demand that Zhao delete the video from his phone, apologise and pay compensation to the sum of ¥5,000 yuan for his “spiritual loss”.

Zhao countered that Li had been violating the relevant regulations and that the content of the video was objective and true.

The court of Jiangbei New Area held that illegal acts that infringe on the right of reputation usually take the form of insult and slander, which are subjectively malicious. 

In this case, although Zhao uploaded a video and made inappropriate remarks, he did not create any false fact or commit insult or slander.

In the eyes of the law, Li had violated the Provisions on Fire Safety Management of High-rise Civil Buildings, promulgated and implemented by the Ministry of Emergency Management on 1 August of last year.

So the next time it happens to you, take note. If you take your electric bike into your lift and someone else objects, gathering evidence of your deeds with their phone, they are not infringing your right of reputation.

For your own safety and that of others, The Nanjinger reminds:

Copyright © 2010-2022 SinoConnexion Ltd. The Nanjinger is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read our policy as to external linking.

The Nanjinger is the English media of record for the city of Nanjing in Jiangsu province, China. This website is part of The Nanjinger brand, 100 percent owned and operated by SinoConnexion Ltd., a UK media company registered in 2009, and its subsidiary in China; Nanjing Hefu Cultural Media Co. Ltd. (南京贺福文化传媒有限公司).