A group of children in southwest China has damaged more than 30 new electric cars after playing bumper cars with them.
Channel News Asia reports that a 10-year-old boy, named under the pseudonym Xiao Yu, enjoyed visiting the Chongqing car dealership to play. During one of his visits, he discovered that the cars were unlocked and the keys were in the ignitions.
Doing what many inquisitive 10-year-olds would do, Yu jumped behind the wheel of one and started to drive around the dealer’s parking lot. Before long, Yu invited a number of his friends over to the car dealer and taught them how to drive.
Soon, a larger group of children joined in on the action and the delinquents started playing real-life bumper cars with the EVs, causing damage worth more than 200,000 yuan ($31,000)!
The car dealer discovered what was happening and notified the police who tracked down the group of children earlier this month.
After learning what they’d done was wrong, the children expressed their regret and the dealer is currently discussing compensation with the parents.
At aged 10, we certainly weren’t doing anything like this, too preoccupied with more mundane activities. Then again, perhaps this experience could foster some car enthusiasts from the group of children.