An Ontario buyer who purchased one of the most expensive brands of watches in the world from a seller based in Richmond is suing the seller and a courier company for $58,000 after he was delivered an empty box.
Xinyang Sun, who lives in North York, a district of Toronto, bought the watch in April from ZX Time Jewelry, owned by Haixiang Ren, according to a lawsuit filed in B.C. Supreme Court.
Sun said he sent a wire transfer for $58,000 to ZX Time for an Audemars Piguet 26240ST White Dial watch. Audemars Piguet uses model numbers to name its watches and more than 40 of the watches with the 26240ST model number are listed for sale on the website Chrono24.ca at between $60,000 and $101,000 each.
According to the lawsuit, Ren confirmed receipt of payment three days after the sale was agreed upon, and “on or around April 15, 2024, ZX Time purportedly delivered the luxury watch from Vancouver to Toronto using the services of UPS,” according to the lawsuit.
ZX Time said it delivered the watch to United Parcel Services “in perfect condition,” the lawsuit said.
“At no material time did ZX Time and/or Mr. Ren confirm or represent to the plaintiff that the watch was physically inside the package prior to the package being shipped by UPS to the plaintiff,” it said.
Sun said he received a small package the next day and when he opened it, “it was empty, with no watch. The bottom seal of the package had been visibly tampered with and resealed with transparent tape.”
Sun alleges the watch was lost or stolen while in the possession of UPS, according to the claim.
He made an official complaint to the company in May and sent a demand letter in June, requesting an update to the complaint and hasn’t received a response to either, it said.
The claim says UPS breached its duty of care to “exercise reasonable care and skill” while transporting the watch and failed to “take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm” to it.
“The damages sustained by the plaintiff were a direct result of UPS’s negligence,” it said.
Sun is also suing ZX Time and Ren for breach of contract and unjust enrichment and is seeking $58,000 in damages plus costs, according to the claim.
Neither UPS Canada nor Sun’s lawyer responded to a request for comment. The seller could not be reached.
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