Woman to pay 300,000 yuan for crashing sports car during test drive

A Beijing woman was ordered to pay 300,000 yuan ($48,175) for crashing an expensive sports car into a wall during a test drive, Beijing Daily reported on Monday citing a court judgment.

The woman, surnamed Yang, went to an auto 4S shop in Beijing last month and asked to test drive a Ford Mustang.

After having her driving license checked and signing a test-drive agreement, Yang took the vehicle for a test drive, the report said.

Yang said she was trying to pass a car when the accident occurred, according to the court judgment. She said she was driving in second gear, at a speed of 60 to 80 km per hour.

But an agent at the car dealership said the car can go over 100 km per hour in first gear and Yang must have been driving faster and broke the speed limit.

The car dealership concluded that Yang should take full responsibility for the crash and asked her to pay 1.08 million yuan in compensation.

Yang disagreed with the compensation amount. The main reason, she said in court, was that the car's stabilization system did not operate properly, and the tires were so worn that the vehicle should not have been allowed on the street.

Besides, Yang added, she was supposed to have driven the car on a motor racing track and not a public road, where the car dealer asked her to test drive the vehicle.

The court in Chaoyang district made the decision based on two facts. The court ruled that it cannot be proved that the bad tires caused the accident, so Yang should pay for the loss of the car.

The court also said that the car dealership violated transportation regulations and national tire standards by asking Yang to drive a vehicle on a public road with worn tires, and without a license plate. The auto sales shop is responsible for the accident, the court ruled.

After the first trial, Yang was also asked to pay an appraisal fee of 3,000 yuan.

The car dealership has appealed the judgment.