“Find a load, haul the load” “Hauling goods, moving homes, transporting items”, on the vehicles of many drivers who join the “Huo La La” platform, you can see similar advertising stickers. Recently, Mr. Liao, a driver on the “Huo La La” platform, complained to reporters that his vehicle was required to display the advertising logo of the Huo La La platform, and because he did not upload photos of his vehicle with the advertisement on time, the platform deducted 200 yuan (30$) from his deposit. Red Star News reporters found that drivers are being required by Huo La La to display advertisements on their vehicles, otherwise they will be fined in many places. In the investigation and interviews conducted by reporters, several drivers interviewed stated that not displaying the platform logo or not uploading the corresponding vehicle photos will result in them being suspended from receiving orders. Lawyers believe that according to legal regulations, whether the vehicle owner is obligated to display advertisements on the vehicle needs to be based on the agreement signed between the vehicle owner and the Huo La La platform. If the agreement stipulates that the vehicle owner is obligated to display standard advertisements, the vehicle owner must fulfill the corresponding obligations; otherwise, the platform has no right to demand display.
Driver complains: Failed to upload vehicle advertising photos as required, fined 200 yuan (30$) by Huolala On April 7, driver Liao complained to the 12345 hotline that he was fined 200 yuan (30$) by the platform for not uploading photos of his vehicle with Huolala advertisements on time. “I joined the Huolala platform last year, and the car is mine,” Liao told reporters. In November 2023, he learned that by joining Huolala as a driver, he could receive orders from the platform and participate in activities to receive rewards. With a try-it-out attitude, Liao communicated with platform staff and joined Huolala as a registered driver. Reporters saw that on December 13, 2023, in the chat screenshots between Liao and a worker named “Car Sticker Assistant” on WeChat, Liao said he did not see the contract details for Huolala vehicle advertising. The worker replied, “That’s not important.” Liao then asked about his obligations and rights, to which the reply was, “When you need to take photos of the car stickers, just do it. You will be notified in advance every month when the advertising fee is issued.” When asked by reporters, Liao said that when he initially participated in the vehicle advertising activity, he did not sign any contract with Huolala, but was only informed via WeChat that he needed to upload photos of his vehicle with advertisements every month to receive 150 yuan (20$) in the first month and 100 yuan (10$) in subsequent months as a reward. In March of this year, Liao was fined 200 yuan (30$) by Huolala for not uploading the vehicle advertising photos as required. With the help of relevant authorities, Liao was able to get the 200 yuan (30$) refunded.
During the driver registration process on the platform, are there any relevant contents in the electronic version of the agreement? The journalist registered as a driver on the platform and found that the agreements that need to be checked include the “Privacy Agreement” and the “Software Use Information Service Agreement.” After reviewing the electronic content of the two agreements, no terms related to posting car ads were found. The journalist added the “Car Sticker Assistant” WeChat of Master Liao and asked if they had signed any relevant contracts or agreements with Master Liao, but as of the deadline, the other party had not responded.
Reporters in Chengdu randomly interviewed some Didi drivers. “It’s mandatory, if not posted, can’t take orders.” At the Yulin intersection, a Didi driver who declined to give his name told reporters that when he first joined the Didi driver team, he was required to pay a deposit. If the driver does not upload photos of the vehicle with advertisements on time, or refuses to post the advertisements, 200 yuan (30$) will be deducted from the deposit, and the driver will no longer receive orders from the Didi platform. Regarding related rewards, the driver said, “There used to be rewards, but now I haven’t received any.” The driver said he couldn’t remember how long it had been since there were no rewards. A Didi driver waiting to load goods told reporters, “The vehicle advertisements must be posted, and there are no rewards now.” Reporters found that similar situations had been exposed by the media multiple times. For example, in 2021, Didi driver Lin Jun in Guangzhou was asked by Didi company to spray “Didi” logo on his truck. Worried about being fined by traffic police and affecting orders from other platforms, he refused to spray the logo and was deducted 200 yuan (30$) from the 1000 yuan (140$) deposit paid to the platform by the company. In 2021, Didi driver Master Liu also had the same experience of being fined 200 yuan (30$), as his uploaded vehicle sticker photos did not meet the requirements, leading to the rejection of the audit. Not only was the deposit deducted, but each order he took also incurred a “sticker deduction” fee.
Reply from the Huolala platform: Drivers need to post platform advertisements, rewards are only given for one contract period. On April 9, the journalist consulted the Huolala customer service staff regarding the above situation as a registered driver. The customer service staff told the journalist that currently, drivers joining the platform need to uniformly post advertising car stickers, with the aim of making users feel that the driver is more “professional.” They also mentioned that the car stickers help more customers get to know the platform, as well as help drivers show their identity as Huolala platform drivers, gaining the trust of customers. “It can be understood that car stickers will make more customers aware of Huolala, bringing more orders to the platform, thereby bringing more income to the drivers.” As for whether not posting will affect the dispatching of orders as claimed by the drivers? The other party did not answer. When the journalist asked if it is necessary for drivers to post advertisements on their vehicles to join Huolala as drivers, the customer service staff replied, “It is necessary to post car stickers.” The customer service staff also stated that drivers who post car stickers will receive rewards, but rewards for full-body car stickers are only given for one contract period, and not afterwards. When the journalist asked how long a contract period is, the customer service staff first replied, “6 months,” then corrected themselves to say “one contract period is one year.” The journalist identified themselves and asked the customer service staff if Huolala enforces drivers to post body advertisements. The customer service staff said that the journalist needs to leave their identity information, phone number, and information related to the complaining driver, stating that “a business representative will call back.” However, as of the time of publication, the Huolala platform has not replied to any information or calls. Will posting car stickers on vehicles violate traffic regulations? The customer service staff replied that normal car stickers can be pasted as long as they do not exceed one-third of the body area, which is within the compliance range. If the driver is indeed fined by the traffic police for “affecting driving safety,” they can bring the fine receipt to the local branch of Huolala to apply for corresponding compensation. The journalist repeatedly asked, but the customer service staff did not clearly reply whether the compensation amount has a unified standard, whether it is partial compensation or full compensation.
Lawyer: Mainly depends on whether there is an agreement between the platform and the driver Traffic Management: Posting advertisements exceeding one-third of the vehicle body must be filed Lawyer Guo Gang of Sichuan Fangce Law Firm believes that according to the law, whether the owner is obligated to post advertisements on the vehicle body needs to be based on the agreement between the owner and the Huolala platform. If the agreement stipulates that the owner is obligated to post standard advertisements, the owner must fulfill the corresponding obligation. Otherwise, the platform has no right to demand posting. Guo Gang reminds that the size and content of posted advertisements must comply with legal requirements and must not affect safe driving. The company’s requirement for owners to post non-standard advertisements is illegal, and if owners are penalized by relevant departments for this, they have the right to claim compensation from the company; the company’s deduction of deposits and restriction of dispatching orders due to owners not posting advertisements according to regulations is seriously lacking legal basis. Chen Fengfeng, Senior Partner and Deputy Director of Sichuan Yingji Law Firm, believes: “It mainly depends on how Huolala and drivers have agreed on the management, operation, and income of the truck.” Chen Fengfeng stated that if both parties agree that Huolala has management authority over the truck body and other related parts, and at the same time, drivers can receive corresponding income or have rights to share the income, then the driver should comply with Huolala’s management of the truck body, and the driver should post advertisements on the vehicle body; otherwise, Huolala has no right to require drivers to post advertisements on the vehicle body. According to Article 13 of the Regulations on the Implementation of the Road Traffic Safety Law of the People’s Republic of China, if motor vehicles are sprayed, pasted with signs, or have advertisements on the body, they must not affect safe driving. The Third Division of the Chengdu Public Security Bureau Traffic Management Bureau also reminds drivers that if advertisements on the vehicle body exceed one-third of the vehicle body area and are not filed with the vehicle management office, or if advertisements block the car windows, they will be treated as unauthorized changes to the vehicle body color, and specific penalties will depend on the situation. Red Star News Reporter Hu Qian Intern Zeng Lingpei Photography Report Editor Chen Yixi