Although the Spring Festival holiday has passed, many people are still surrounded by different delicacies: dumplings from the north, glutinous rice balls from the south, a wide variety of cuisines, different types of snacks, a dazzling array of takeaways, etc., whether during the holiday or not, they can all provide us with Life brings more fun.
However, when enjoying catering services outside, you must also pay attention to food safety and have a certain understanding of the disputes you may encounter. For example, who should you approach to defend your rights if you encounter problems when shopping for food online?
Are restaurants responsible for unclean tableware?
How should punitive damages be claimed?
In this issue of [You Ask Me Answer], judges from the People's Court of Haidian District, Beijing, summarized common food safety issues to help us deal with those "legal issues on the tip of the tongue."
Question: I have a problem with online food shopping. I don’t know who sells it. Who should I contact?
Answer: Find the seller and find the platform.
It is now very common to buy food online, but food safety red lines will not change.
When it is discovered that the food they purchased does not meet food safety standards, consumers often only know which platform and merchant they bought it from, but they do not know which entity they should claim their rights to.
At this time, it is necessary to understand the seller and platform information through publicly available information.
The Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Civil Disputes over Food Safety stipulates that e-commerce platform operators have violated Articles 62 and 131 of the Food Safety Law and failed to regulate food operators on the platform. If the legitimate rights and interests of consumers are harmed by real-name registration, license review, or failure to perform reporting obligations, stop providing online trading platform services, etc., and the consumer claims that the e-commerce platform operator and the food operators on the platform bear joint and several liability, The People's Court should support it.
It can be seen from this that if consumers cannot inquire about the information, licenses and other information of food producers and operators through the e-commerce platform operator, they can claim that the e-commerce platform operator and the food operators on the platform bear joint and several liability, that is, the seller and the platform will be combined Prosecution.
Question: Are catering service companies responsible for providing unclean tableware?
Answer: We should bear responsibility.
The Food Safety Law stipulates that food production and operation should comply with food safety standards. Among them, tableware, drinking utensils and containers for direct food intake should be washed and disinfected before use, and cooking utensils and utensils should be washed and kept clean after use.
At the same time, it is stipulated that in violation of the provisions of this law, tableware, drinking utensils and containers for direct food are not washed and disinfected before use, or the cleaning and disinfection is unqualified, or the catering service facilities and equipment are not regularly maintained, cleaned, and disinfected as required. In case of verification, the food safety supervision and administration department of the people's government at or above the county level shall order correction and give a warning; if the person refuses to make correction, he shall be fined not less than RMB 5,000 but not more than RMB 50,000; if the circumstances are serious, the food safety supervision and administration department of the people's government at or above the county level shall order the suspension of production and business, or even revoke the license.
Food producers and operators should provide clean tableware. When consumers find that the tableware is unclean, they can ask the food producer to replace the tableware, replace the purchased food, return the goods for a refund, etc. If personal injury is caused, the producer or operator can also be asked to compensate for medical treatment. Reasonable losses such as fees and lost work costs.
Q: Who can provide evidence for punitive damages for food safety if the food does not meet food safety standards?
Answer: The burden of proof lies with the plaintiff.
The Civil Procedure Law stipulates that parties concerned have the responsibility to provide evidence for their claims.
The "Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on the Application of the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China" stipulates that parties shall provide evidence to prove the facts on which their own claims are based or the facts on which they refute the other party's claims. However, the law provides otherwise. Except as specified.
Before a judgment is made, if a party fails to provide evidence or the evidence is insufficient to prove its factual claims, the party who bears the burden of proof shall bear the adverse consequences.
When consumers find that the food itself does not meet food safety standards, they should fulfill the initial burden of proof in accordance with the principle of "whoever claims it shall provide evidence."
Generally, the following matters must be completed to provide evidence: first, evidence that the two parties have basic legal relationships such as sales, catering services, and online shopping, such as order information, payment records, group purchase information, etc.; second, evidence that the food does not comply with food safety facts, Such as violations of food safety standards such as foreign matter in the food and sale beyond the shelf life; third, losses caused by consumers purchasing and eating food that does not meet food safety standards, such as consideration paid and personal injury.
Question: Do I have to have an upset stomach to claim punitive damages for food safety?
Answer: You can claim ten times compensation without causing personal injury.
The Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Civil Disputes over Food Safety stipulates that if food does not meet food safety standards, consumers claim that the producer or operator shall bear liability in accordance with Article 148, Paragraph 2, of the Food Safety Law. For punitive damages liability, if a producer or operator defends on the grounds that no personal injury was caused to consumers, the People's Court will not support it.
If consumers find that food does not meet food safety standards, they can claim tenfold compensation without causing personal injury.
If there is a breach of contract or infringement, but if the applicable standards for punitive damages are not met, the producer and operator can be claimed for compensation in accordance with the Civil Code, the Consumer Rights Protection Law and other legal provisions, and will be subject to the rules of loss reduction, offset of fault and other legal provisions.
Reporter Liang Chengdong
Correspondent Gao Jingkai