Chinese Couple Using 120 Tons of Water on Seoul Trip Explains "Couldn't Cancel Reservation," Resentful

Deliberate Waste After Refusing 'Reservation Cancellation'

Recently, news of a Chinese couple using 120 tons of water over five days at a shared accommodation in Seoul sparked public outrage, and it was revealed that their actions were motivated by resentment toward the accommodation owner.

On the 18th (local time), Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported the story of the couple who caused trouble during their visit to Korea and then left, detailing the circumstances. According to the media, the Chinese couple, presumed to be husband and wife, booked a detached villa in Mapo-gu, Seoul, for 25 days through Airbnb.

[Photo by SBS]

Despite the long stay, they made the payment without properly checking the location and only later realized that their accommodation was not in the center of Seoul. They then requested the owner, Mr. Lee, to cancel the reservation, but since the booking had already been confirmed and paid for, Mr. Lee refused.

In response, they asked Mr. Lee if there was CCTV in the accommodation, and after hearing that there was none, they decided to take revenge.

Changing their Airbnb account name and nationality, they turned on all the faucets in the accommodation and used 120 tons of water over five days. They also left all electrical appliances such as lights on, kept the windows wide open when going out, and operated the boiler to the point where the floor felt hot.

Additionally, when Mr. Lee checked the CCTV in the alley in front of the accommodation, he found that the couple left the accommodation in this state and traveled to other areas, returning once every 3 to 4 days to stay for less than five minutes. It is known that they visited only about five times during the reservation period in this manner.

As a result, Mr. Lee was billed 840,000 won in utility charges, including 640,000 won for gas and 200,000 won for water and electricity. When Mr. Lee protested and tried to contact them, they reportedly threatened, saying, "If you keep making issues, we will contact the Chinese embassy."

However, despite Mr. Lee's unfair situation, it seems difficult for him to receive compensation. According to Airbnb regulations, "for long-term stays, the host and guest can negotiate utility fees," but in this case, there was no prior agreement on utility fees.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.