Han Guixia purchased a ticket from Lianyungang, PRC, to Incheon, South Korea, travelling on the Harmony Yungang, a Panamanian ferry operated by Lianyungang China-Korea Ferry Co Ltd (the Ferry Co). On 4 December 2018, during the voyage, the vessel encountered bad weather. While walking to the bathroom, Han Guixia fell and sustained injuries which required surgery on 8 December 2018. Medical treatment costs amounted to CNY 36,048.16. Han Guixia did not seek medical treatment in South Korea and returned to Lianyungang on the same vessel, disembarking on 6 December 2018.

Han Guixia sued the Ferry Co for breach of contract. The Court of first instance applied the Chinese Maritime Code and found the Ferry Co negligent for failing to fulfil its safety precautions and warning obligations to passengers, particularly elderly passengers. The Court found, however, that Han Guixia bore 20 per cent of the liability as an adult with a duty of care for her own safety.

Han Guixia appealed, arguing that the Ferry Co should bear full liability. She contended that it had failed to warn passengers adequately of bad weather or dangerous conditions, whether by broadcast or signage, and that it had breached its carriage contract by failing to transport her safely to her destination. The Ferry Co argued in response that Han Guixia bore the burden of proving its negligence under art 114 of the Chinese Maritime Code, that safety broadcasts had been made, and that the bathrooms were equipped with non-slip floors and appropriate signage.

On appeal, the High People's Court of Jiangsu Province considered which law applied to the dispute. As the Harmony Yungang was a Panamanian vessel operating on an international voyage between the PRC and South Korea, and the PRC is a contracting state to the Athens Convention 1974, the Court considered whether the Convention applied under art 2.1.c. The Court also considered the allocation of the burden of proof under arts 3.1 and 3.3 of the Convention, and in particular whether the presumption of fault applied where a passenger's injury was caused by bad weather rather than one of the enumerated causes under art 3.3.

Held: Appeal dismissed.

The Athens Convention 1974 applied, as the place of departure was in a contracting State under art 2.1.c. Under art 3.1, the carrier is liable for personal injury caused by its fault or neglect. Under art 3.3, fault is presumed only where injury arises from shipwreck, collision, stranding, explosion, fire, or a defect in the ship - in all other cases the burden of proof lies with the claimant. As Han Guixia's fall resulted from the pitch and roll of the vessel in bad weather rather than any enumerated cause, she bore the burden of proving the Ferry Co's negligence. She failed to discharge that burden - she admitted hearing a safety broadcast, the bathrooms were fitted with non-slip floors and handrails, and she had previously travelled on the same vessel and was familiar with its facilities. The Ferry Co had met its passenger safety obligations. The Court of first instance correctly established the facts but erred in its application of law, and was accordingly corrected.