Consumers warned about internet shopping platform

The Cypriot Union of Consumers and Quality of Life has warned consumers about purchasing items from the internet platform Temu, which it says does not respect European consumer safety legislation.

“We would also like to draw the attention of our own Consumer Protection Agency (CPA) to the fact that the platform in question does not adequately protect consumers based on EU security rules,” the organisation said.

“Additionally, the company uses manipulative practices that violate the law, thereby preventing consumers from making an informed decision in the context of transparency.”

The organisation said that EU law stipulates it is crucial that the products sold on online or offline markets, whether they are European or of other origin, are safe and comply with European legislation, when addressed to European citizens.

Temu, it added, which has over 75 million monthly users in the EU, “does not adequately inform consumers about the trader who sells his products through the platform in question, as a result of which it does not comply with the rules for European product safety standards”.

The organisation calls on the government consumer protection service to investigate the platform and to take measures.

According to a Reuters report on Thursday, Temu was hit with a European Union complaint over a potential breach of online content rules.

Under the EU’s Digital Services Act, online marketplaces and intermediaries are required to fight illegal and harmful content as well as counterfeit products on their platforms.

Pan-European consumers organisation BEUC said it has lodged a grievance with the European Commission while 17 of its members in countries including France, Italy and the Netherlands have also filed complaints with their relevant national authorities.

The complaint said that Temu uses manipulative practices such as dark patterns to get consumers to spend more than they may want and that there was insufficient information on how it recommends products to consumers.

“Temu is being complacent here because it is breaching the EU’s Digital Services Act,” BEUC Director General Monique Goyens said in a statement.

“Products sold on marketplaces, whether online or offline, whether they are European, American or Chinese, must be safe and comply with European law if they sell to European consumers.”

Temu, which entered the EU market just over a year ago, said it actively adjusts its service to align with local practices and preferences and that it is committed to full compliance with the laws and regulations of the markets where it operates.

The platform is also facing class-action lawsuits in the US over its alleged failure to protect the online data of users.