Shein risks fines over breaches of EU consumer law

Pages from the Shein website, left, and from the Temu site, right, are shown in this photo, in New York, June 23, 2023. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

Brussels, Belgium — Shein risks potential fines after the EU warned the e-commerce platform Monday over a series of practices that infringe the bloc’s consumer laws, from fake discount deals to misleading product information.

The Chinese-founded platform has a month to reply and offer commitments on addressing the issues found during a probe launched in February by the European Commission with consumer authorities in Belgium, France, Ireland and The Netherlands.

Shein said it was working with the authorities to tackle the concerns.

Consumers using Shein faced a range of tactics including “false purchase deadlines” to put them under pressure to buy quickly from the platform, the commission said.

It also said there was “missing, incorrect and misleading information” about consumers’ legal rights to return goods and receive refunds, and deceptive labels that suggested a product offered something special that was already required by law.

The EU also accused Shein of providing false information about the sustainability benefits of its products.

“EU consumer protection laws are not optional -- they must be applied in all cases,” said the EU’s top consumer protection official, Michael McGrath.

“It’s now for Shein to step up, respect the rules and bring its practices fully in line with EU consumer standards,” he added.

A Shein spokesperson said: “We have been working constructively with national consumers authorities and the EU Commission to demonstrate our commitment to complying with EU laws and regulations, and we are continuing to engage in this process to address any concerns.”

The EU last week said it was preparing to impose a two-euro (US$2.30) flat fee on the billions of low-value packages that flood into the bloc each year, which would affect popular platforms like Temu and Shein.