A mainland Chinese tourist has accused an MTR staff member at University of Hong Kong Station of misappropriating his Octopus card refund, prompting an investigation and the employee’s suspension.
The incident occurred on the evening of October 9 at the station’s Customer Service Centre. The tourist, who shared his experience on the social media platform Xiaohongshu, said he returned an Octopus card and initially received HK$120 in cash without a receipt.
After leaving the station, he realized the HK$50 deposit was missing and returned to query the staff member, who then gave him HK$39, citing a service fee for refunds within 90 days of issuance.
The tourist later contacted Octopus Cards Limited and found his refund had never been processed, raising suspicions that the staff kept the remaining balance. He suggested he may have been targeted because he is a Mandarin-speaking tourist.
Octopus referred the case to MTR, which contacted the tourist a week later to confirm that the remaining HK$7.30 would be refunded and that the employee involved had been suspended pending investigation.
Following a media inquiry, MTR said it immediately followed up after being alerted by the tourist, refunded the remaining balance and deposit in full, and suspended the employee involved. The company emphasized the importance of staff integrity and said a full investigation is underway.
Under Octopus regulations, cards with balances under HK$500 can be refunded immediately at station customer centres, including the HK$50 deposit. Cards with higher balances are processed by Octopus Cards Limited, and refunds requested within 90 days of issuance may incur a small handling fee.
