False: Image claiming 100-yuan deposit for lifebuoy access is doctored
In mid-September, an image of instructional signage in Simplified Chinese for unlocking a lifebuoy went viral with a claim that a 100-yuan deposit is required before using the emergency flotation ring.
The instruction in the image directs users to pay by scanning a QR code before pressing the button to release the lifebuoy secured to the device.
Posts featuring the same image were found on various social media platforms, including Xiaohongshu, Douyin, Threads, X (here and here), Reddit, and Facebook, garnering around 3,000 likes and hundreds of comments altogether.
Many of those posts ridiculed China for allowing to demand deposit in a life-saving situation. However, Annie Lab can confirm that the instruction in this image is manipulated.
A search for “QR code payment for lifebuoy (扫码付费救生圈)” on Douyin led to a post (archived here) published in September 2022, which is the earliest appearance of this image we can find on the platform.
However, this 2022 version of the image does not say payment is required.
The instruction in the unaltered photo reads:
“Two ways to release the lifebuoy:
- Scan the device’s QR code with a WeChat mobile app
- Press the ‘Emergency Alert’ button to release the lifebuoy.”
There is no mention of the 100-yuan deposit in this version.
Scanning the QR code with the WeChat app leads to a web page called an “intelligent rescue operation platform (智能溺救运维平台).”
It shows an unlock button (开锁) for users to press, along with a form to fill in a name and a contact number. It does not ask for any deposit payment.
A news video and article (archived here) by the Hefei Broadcast Television on May 15, 2022, reported that the lifebuoy device seen on the Douyin image is attached to Feihong Bridge (飞虹桥) at Hefei Emerald Lake (合肥翡翠湖).
This information corresponds with the image from Baidu Map Street View.
The news report states that “Emergency Water Rescue Equipment” (紧急溺水救助设备) provided by Anhui Tanghou Technology Company (安徽唐后智慧科技有限公司) has been installed at both Hefei Emerald Lake Park and Hefei Nanyan Lake Park (南艳湖公园).
The rescue device features a red warning light mounted above a solar panel.
The QR code leads to a name and contact number registration, presumably to prevent misuse of the safety equipment, but the instruction also says pressing the emergency button triggers an alarm, releases the lifebuoy, and sends notifications for rapid rescue.
Scanning the QR code is not necessary in a critical situation.
Based on the evidence gathered, Annie Lab cannot categorically state that no lifebuoy device in China ever requires payment, but we can confirm that the viral image associated with this claim was doctored.
