A passenger on the bus punched the driver and grabbed the steering wheel. The driver had to brake suddenly, causing a pregnant woman to fall and get injured. The bus company was ordered to pay 70,000 yuan in compensation.

Ask AI · Why did the appeal court change the ruling on the bus company’s compensation amount?

A pregnant woman surnamed Gao, at 35 weeks of gestation, was riding a bus when a passenger punched the driver, then snatched the steering wheel. After the driver urgently braked, Gao fell and was injured. The passenger who snatched the steering wheel was later convicted of the crime of obstructing safe driving and sentenced to 8 months in prison, but did not compensate Gao for her losses. Gao sued the bus company to claim compensation, and the court of first instance ruled that the bus company should compensate Gao with more than 40,000 yuan. Gao was dissatisfied and appealed.

Red Star News reporter recently learned from the China Judgments Online that the appeal court, the Hanjing Intermediate People’s Court of Hubei Province, ruled that the bus company should compensate Gao for her various losses of more than 73,000 yuan.

▲ File photo

It is understood that the incident took place in Xiantao, Hubei. The court of first instance found that on December 19, 2024, Gao boarded Route 2 bus operated by a bus company, traveling from Pengchang Town to Xiantao. During the bus’s journey, because passenger surnamed Zhao did not receive a response from driver surnamed Deng regarding whether they would stop at the next stop, he became dissatisfied. He then went to the driver’s cabin, punched Deng and snatched the steering wheel, causing Deng to urgently brake the bus. Gao, due to the emergency stop, fell from her seat and was injured. Gao received medical treatment at hospitals in Xiantao and Wuhan in succession, and was ultimately diagnosed with a fracture of the left ankle joint.

Afterwards, according to a judicial institution’s appraisal, the grading of the extent of disability resulting from the injuries suffered by pregnant woman Gao did not meet any rating level; the subsequent medical treatment projects included rehabilitation training and symptomatic treatment. The time for lost work (work stoppage) was 180 days, the nursing time was 60 days, and the nutrition time was 90 days (all calculated from the date of injury).

In addition, Zhao was subsequently convicted of the crime of obstructing safe driving and sentenced to 8 months in prison, and was fined 2,000 yuan. Zhao did not compensate Gao for her losses.

Later, Gao sued the bus company to claim compensation. The court of first instance ruled that the bus company should compensate Gao for her various economic losses of 40,147.25 yuan. The court of first instance held that, with respect to the lost work earnings portion, Gao’s calculation of lost work earnings of 54,304.96 yuan was incorrect. Based on the appraisal opinion, the work stoppage period should be calculated from December 19, 2024 to June 16, 2025, totaling 180 days. Among them, from February 14, 2025 to June 16, 2025 (a total of 123 days), because Gao took paid maternity leave, her employer paid her maternity leave wages, and her income did not decrease due to the injury; therefore, there was no lost work earnings loss during this period. The court of first instance found the work stoppage period to be 57 days, and the lost work earnings to be 20,216.56 yuan.

After the court of first instance’s ruling, Gao was dissatisfied and filed an appeal. Gao argued that maternity leave is a specific rest right granted by the state to female employees, and it and the work stoppage period are concepts in two different dimensions; therefore, the work stoppage period that overlaps with maternity leave should not be deducted.

The appeal court held that lost work earnings are determined based on the victim’s work stoppage time and income situation. Gao’s work stoppage time was appraised as 180 days. Gao has a fixed wage, and her average annual wage from 2022 to 2024 was 129,456.89 yuan. Gao’s lost work earnings should be 53,401.43 yuan (129,456.89 yuan ÷ 365 days × 180 days − 10,440.32 yuan). Because Gao’s maternity leave is a statutory right granted by the state to women, the court of first instance deducted the maternity leave dates from the work stoppage period and did not calculate lost work earnings, which has no legal basis.

The appeal court held that part of Gao’s appeal requests was well-founded. The court of first instance found part of the facts unclear, leading to improper substantive handling. The Hanjing Intermediate People’s Court of Hubei Province revoked the first-instance judgment and ruled that the bus company should compensate Gao for her various losses of 73,332.12 yuan.

Red Star News reporter Fu Yao Internship student Chen Zheya

Editor Zhang Xun Reviewer Guan Li