Chinese man receives US$13 redress after courier lost US$14,400 gold soccer ball signed by football superstar Lionel Messi – kicking off fierce debate online
- The owner bought the limited edition souvenir and posted it to a friend in Shanghai in November last year
- He did not pay for insurance but is arguing the company has a responsibility for items it delivers, prompting debate on mainland social media
A man in China who received just 90 yuan (US$13) compensation from a courier company after it lost a Lionel Messi-autographed golden soccer ball worth 99,800 yuan (US$14,400) has kicked off widespread discussion on mainland social media.
The man, surnamed Xue, from Jiangsu province in eastern China, is currently negotiating with the state-owned Express Mail Service for further compensation, news site Vista reported.
In a video with the news report, a screenshot showed a table of franchised products from the Fifa World Cup Qatar 2022, including the Messi-autographed mini gold soccer ball priced at 99,800 yuan.
After Xue bought the limited edition collectible, he posted it to a friend in Shanghai in November last year.
Xue picked the Express Mail Service because he trusted their reliability. However, he did not buy parcel insurance and just paid 15 yuan (US$2) for the express service option.
The next morning, Xue saw that the soccer ball had arrived at its destination according to the company’s tracking system. Xue called his friend excitedly, but the friend said he had not received the soccer ball.