An international travel agency was ordered to return a 100,000 yuan (US$12,346) deposit to a customer as it couldn't provide evidence to back up its contention that it had already repaid the deposit.

Travel agencies often ask customers heading abroad to put down a large cash deposit, to prevent people from heading abroad as part of a group tour and then illegally staying in the foreign country. When customers return to China, they get their deposit back.

On April 19, a man surnamed Liang paid a 100,000 yuan deposit to the Shanghai Peace International Travel Agency ahead of a trip to Australia. The travel agency gave Liang a receipt, which clarified that he would get the money back if he returned to China on his scheduled flight.

Just before Liang left for Australia, an employee of the travel agency surnamed Yan called him and asked to take back the receipt to make business records.

Liang asked Yan to write "the receipt has been handed back without returning the deposit" on the receipt and kept a copy.

After Liang returned from Australia in August, the travel agency refused to give his deposit back, however, saying that it had already returned the money to Liang.

Liang had to file a lawsuit to get his money back.

The travel agency told the court that Liang didn't have the original receipt, which proves he had received his deposit back. It said the copied receipt Liang provided to the court proves nothing, as he could have written it out himself.

The agency also said it couldn't find the original receipt since it had returned the money.

To prove its opinion, the agency offered a bill to show Yan had drawn 100,000 yuan from the agency to return to Liang.

The court ruled the travel agency is responsible for proving it had returned the deposit, which it failed to do.

So the court supported Liang's request and ordered the agency to pay him back in full.

(Shanghai Daily December 26, 2005)