A company hired to photograph a family - some members of which had flown in from the US - settled out of court yesterday after losing the negatives.
Hui Lai-yee accepted Wealth Track (Hong Kong) Ltd's offer of a refund and a free photo session as compensation.
In a document filed in the Small Claims Tribunal, she said that on September 6 last year, she paid $4,288 to the company, which trades as Wonderful Arts Wedding Service, to take photographs of 12 members of her family on September 10. She also paid the company $4,500 to develop the film.
Most of her family lives in the United States and Ms Hui said it had been a major undertaking for them to gather in Hong Kong for the pictures.
But after the reunion, the company told Ms Hui the negatives had been lost during shop renovations. It declined to repay her or offer compensation.
A disappointed Ms Hui said: 'Many family members have gone back to the States . . . It's impossible to recapture the moments.'