Minors who purchased online game accounts in high amounts were sentenced to full refunds
(Reporter Lu Yue) The Supreme People's Court released 9 typical cases of judicial protection of minors' rights and interests on March 1.
In one case, a minor purchased an online game account for a high amount, the court ruled that the payment was invalid, and the defendant refunded the full amount.
The facts of the case show that the 14-year-old plaintiff, Li Moumou, without the knowledge of his parents, purchased 374 game accounts from the online store "X Games" operated by the defendant 7 times through a certain platform, paying a total of 36,652 yuan. The equipment is all skins, masks, flower skirts, etc.
After the plaintiff's parents found out the next day, they promptly contacted the customer service staff of the defendant's online store, stating that they would not ratify the plaintiff's purchase of a game account and payment, and asked the defendant to refund the money. The defendant did not agree to a full refund.
After hearing, the court held that Li Moumou was a minor at the time of the case and was a person with limited capacity for civil conduct. The act of purchasing a game account to pay 36,652 yuan was obviously incompatible with his age and intelligence, and his legal representative also made it clear that the act was not appropriate. It was ratified, so the purchase by the plaintiff Li Moumou was invalid, and the defendant was judged to return the full amount of 36,652 yuan for the purchase of the game account to the plaintiff.
Regarding the typical significance of this case, the Supreme People's Court pointed out that this case mainly involves the validity of minors' payment behaviors that are not suitable for their age and intelligence.
According to the provisions of the Civil Code, if a minor over the age of 8 commits a purchase and payment behavior that is not suitable for his age and intelligence, without the ratification of his parents or other legal representatives, his purchase and payment behavior is invalid, and the operator shall comply with the law. Return the price.
This case reminds the majority of parents that, as guardians of minors, they should strengthen their guidance and supervision of their children, and should keep their mobile phones and bank card passwords safe to prevent their children from using them to make large payments.
Internet companies should further strengthen legal awareness and social responsibility, and handle disputes arising from minors' payment behaviors inconsistent with their age and intelligence in accordance with the law.
Lu Yue