Helping the elderly in China has become so risky that insurance companies have created a niche policy for would-be do-gooders.
Called the Helping Elderly Policy, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba is the latest company to provide such an insurance plan. For three-yuan (50 cents) a year, the plan will cover up to 20,000 yuan ($3,100) in litigation fees for those who wish to help an elderly person who has fallen, or endured some other setback.
The need for such a policy, unusual as it sounds, seems to be acute. The insurance product has attracted over 60,000 buyers since started sales on Oct. 15.
That such a policy would even exist has widely been seen as emblematic of an overall collapse in basic social morality, according to experts and a survey of online sentiment in reaction to the news.
