Alcohol retailer suffers $2.5k in losses after deliveryman allegedly kicks box of Moutai bottles

The New Paper
September 18, 2023

An alcohol retailer says he is $2,500 out of pocket after a botched delivery of expensive Moutai (Chinese liquor), claiming that a delivery man had inexplicably damaged the goods during delivery. 

According to Shin Min Daily News, a customer had received a box of Moutai on Sept 14. The man, Lu Guanghui, 65, said he saw the delivery man kicking the box and shattering some of the bottles inside.

"I was waiting for the delivery at home. At about 3pm, my dog heard some noise and ran to the door.

"I followed behind and saw the delivery man put the box on the ground, and then kick it a few times," Lu told Shin Min.

He immediately noticed alcohol leaking out of the box.

Unable to speak fluent English, Lu could only gesture to the delivery man not to leave, but the latter still did.

"There were 12 bottles of Moutai in the box, and five of them were broken. The liquor also soaked the remaining bottles' packaging.

"Since I urgently needed to give away two bottles as a gift, I contacted the retailer and asked him to send two bottles first," Lu said.

Speaking with Shin Min, alcohol retailer Sun Wei said that he had specifically told the delivery man that he was carrying bottles, which were fragile.

Sun, 40, said he contacted Grab over the matter but was told that the company wasn't responsible for the actions of their delivery partners.

“We also reported the case to the police, but they told us to negotiate directly with the delivery platform instead,” he said.

"In the end, Grab only returned the delivery fee of $27 to us."

On Sept 16, Sun replaced the bottles of Moutai that Lu lost, including the ones that were damaged and soaked.

His losses are estimated to be $2,500 as each bottle retails for $500.

Sun intends to hire a lawyer and take this matter to the Small Claims Tribunals. He also hopes that the delivery man who "acted irresponsibly" be held responsible for his actions, and apologise for his mistake.

According to Grab's Terms of Service, the company "is not responsible for the acts… of any partner", and that "partners shall bear all liability in relation to such goods/services".