Chinese leaders have been celebrating drones this year as a transformative agricultural technology, but a growing number of disputes over drones show that farmers who use them face substantial risks of civil or criminal liability.
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| Drones spraying crops are becoming more and more common in China's countryside. Source: The Paper. |
China has nearly 3.3 million drones, of which 320,000 are agricultural drones that have created a so-called "low altitude economy," spraying pesticides and spreading fertilizer from the air. This year's "No. 1 Document" on rural policy promoted drones and robots as a way of cutting costs and doing more field work as the rural labor force shrinks. Technicians are working on ways to make drones recognize ripe fruit and pick it. However, these gadgets are creating new conflicts, literally colliding with China's changing economic structure, and posing a new threat to the Chinese regime's obsession with secrecy and control of information.
A 2024 article noted that drones spraying pesticides have been involved in a growing number of disputes and incidents involving unintended damage of crops in adjacent fields. The flight parameters of drones have to be set before their flight, so once they are in the air they cannot be adjusted. Land plots are fragmented in a checkerboard fashion, so it is challenging to precisely program a drone to spray only the plots belonging to the farmer or company operating the drone. Drones often mistakenly fly over other farmers' plots, and chemicals drift onto adjacent fields, sometimes damaging neighbors' crops, fish, or animals. In such cases, the farmer causing the damage may have to pay compensation. In some instances, drone or chemical suppliers fly the drones on behalf of farmers, making responsibility and compensation even more messy.
Last year State-run Xinhua Daily highlighted drone dispute cases in Jiangsu Province. One farmer's crop of fox nuts (an edible seed from a type of water lily) suddenly died after an agricultural company used a drone to spray nearby fields. The farmer spent 20,000 yuan of his own funds to establish that drifting pesticides caused the damage, but after a year of litigation he was awarded 100,000 yuan in compensation--half of his estimated losses on the crop. In another case, a farmer lost silkworms when drifting pesticides killed her mulberry trees. A judge said farmers often don't notice loss of crops or crayfish until after spraying has taken place, and they have no concrete proof that can be used in court. The article observed that drone disputes create friction in villages. A technician noted that he frequently receives frantic calls from township offices and plant protection stations asking for help resolving disputes over what wind speeds are allowable for drone flights and the proper buffer zone for pesticide spraying.
Disputes have been increasing so much that the Tianjin No. 1 Peoples Court conducted an investigation of drone incursion cases several years ago. Resolution of disputes requires examining drone flight trajectories, spatial separation between land plots, the type of pesticide used, evaluating the resulting damage, and the statements of the parties involved.
Shanghai news outlet The Paper recently profiled a pair of legal cases intended to reassure the common people that the legal system will protect their interests as China relies on new technologies to power the economy. The cases also warn drone operators that they face risk of paying compensation if they unintentionally harm passers-by, even if they are properly licensed and are legally operating their drones.
In March 2026, The Paper profiled the case of a man in Hubei Province riding an e-bike on a rural road in 2024 who crashed into an agricultural drone after swerving to avoid a truck. A court ruled that the drone owner had to pay 20,000 yuan in compensation to the e-bike rider because the drone operator had a responsibility to ensure safety in the surrounding environment. The court commented that drone operators must ensure their drone is in good working condition before flights, must scientifically delineate a flight plan, and must post conspicuous warning signs.
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| An e-bike crashed into a drone in Hubei Province, 2024. Source: The Paper. |
On May 9, The Paper profiled the case of Mr. Hou who sustained severe head injuries when he was struck by an out-of-control drone while he was picking peaches in Henan Province. The drone operator escaped criminal prosecution for negligent behavior by turning himself in and admitting guilt. The Paper praised the judge as a hero for forcing an insurance company to pay an indemnity to Mr. Hou after the company had initially refused to pay based on exclusionary clauses. The Paper commented that there was no precedent to fall back on in resolving disputes since agricultural drones are a novel technology.
Earlier this month China's Ministry of Public Security warned drone operators that they could be criminally liable for crashing their agricultural drones into high-speed railway tracks that criss-cross the countryside. The Ministry listed cases of agricultural drones crashing into high-speed rail tracks and electrical lines during March and April in Hebei, Guangdong, Fujian and Jiangxi Provinces. In each case the drone operator was arrested and jailed for 5 to 7 days.
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| State media comic published May 18 warns drone operators to avoid "black flights", comply with monitoring requirements, and avoid practices banned by the Ministry of Public Security. |
Last week, Chinese State news media issued a stern warning against using drones to photograph sensitive areas or flying them at altitudes that could interfere with other aircraft. Drone flights have to be registered with authorities and monitored, cannot deviate from their planned flight path, and it's illegal to tinker with software that prevents drones from flying near sensitive locations or at high altitudes.
Another publicized case in March was meant to warn drone operators against using their drones in a dangerous manner by assuring them that they will be caught. An operator in Chongqing used a drone to transport a worker to the top of a mountain to check on orange trees, but the dangerous flight was detected through monitoring by China's leading drone supplier, DJI Innovation, who revoked the operator's license. For good measure, readers were warned the operator was reportedly also being investigated by local police.
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| Drone used to transport a worker to inspect orange trees on top of a mountain. |
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