Walking while using a phone, watching videos on a bus, replying to messages while cycling... Nowadays, "phubbers" become a common sight on the streets and in alleys. Some people, by ignoring the safety under their feet, have caused various accidents to occur frequently. When injuries are caused by " down," who should bear the responsibility? After finishing a meal at a restaurant in Pudong New Area, Shanghai, Mr. Guo left on foot and accidentally stepped off the edge the steps outside the restaurant, causing him to fall. Surveillance footage outside the restaurant showed that from the moment Mr. Guo appeared in the frame, he had been looking down at his the entire time. The surveillance footage showed no rain or snow, and there was no snow, standing water, or ice on the steps. Ten days after the incident, Mr. went to the hospital on his own and was diagnosed with a fracture of the right transverse process of the lumbar vertebra. Mr. Guo believed that the restaurant operator, a certain company, and the property management company of the building where the restaurant was located, a certain commercial management company, had failed to fulfill their safety guarantee obligations and had not timely repaired the steps, leading to his fall and injury. Mr. Guo filed a lawsuit in court, requesting the catering company and the commercial management company to jointly compensate him for medical expenses, lost, and other costs totaling over 60,000 yuan. The trial court held that Mr. Guo had been continuously looking down at his phone before falling, creating safety risk for himself. Meteorological data and surveillance footage both indicated that at the time of the incident, there were no other objective interfering factors at the scene sufficient to affect walking safety, there were no obvious abnormalities in the step area. The safety guarantee obligations of operators and managers of public places such as hotels and shopping malls should be within reasonable limits. After Mr. finished his meal and left the restaurant, the operator and manager could neither predict nor control Mr. Guo's behavior of looking down at his phone while walking. Mr. Guo a person with full capacity for civil conduct, and the fall was caused by his own failure to fulfill the safety duty of care. The catering company and the commercial management company were not at in this regard and should not bear the liability for compensation. Ultimately, the court ruled: to dismiss all of Mr. Guo's claims.

The judge stated that for "phubbers," looking down at their phones while walking, cycling, or driving puts themselves and others in danger. someone trips and gets injured due to continuously looking down at their phone, they should bear the responsibility themselves. In this case, the trial court found that Guo's trip and injury caused by his continuous looking down at his phone while walking, and had nothing to do with a certain catering company and a certain commercial management company. Therefore, the court did not support Guo' claim for compensation from the catering company and the commercial management company. This not only takes a stand against the behavior of readily attributing one's own damages to unrelated others, but clarifies the boundaries of the safety security obligations of operators and managers of business premises and public places; it resolutely puts an end to the practice of "muddling through," advocates for the awareness of safe and civilized travel and self-responsible safety, and is conducive to promoting the core socialist values. (Outlook New Era)