The EU’s fine comes after preliminary findings from last year indicated that Temu was exposing consumers to significant risks from products sold on its platform, such as baby toys and small electronics, that did not adhere to EU consumer safety regulations.
The penalty, imposed by the bloc’s executive branch, falls under the Digital Services Act (DSA), a comprehensive set of rules that mandates online platforms to enhance user safety against harmful content and questionable products, with hefty fines as a consequence for non-compliance.
Temu has yet to respond to a request for comment. The company is known for providing low-cost items—from clothing to home goods—shipped by sellers based in China. With 92 million users in the EU, it is owned by PDD Holdings Inc., which also operates the popular Chinese e-commerce platform Pinduoduo.
The European Commission stated that Temu failed to recognize, analyze, and evaluate the systemic risks posed by illegal goods available on its platform and the subsequent impact on European consumers.
The commission pointed out that neglecting to conduct proper risk assessments constitutes a serious infringement of the bloc’s digital regulations.
Risk assessments are “not box-ticking exercises,” emphasized European Commission Executive Vice-President Henna Virkunnen.
“Temu’s risk assessment downplays real risks, lacks detail, is not based on robust evidence, and lacks comprehensiveness,” she remarked in a prepared statement. “It leaves regulators, users, and the public uninformed about the actual extent of potential harm posed by illegal products sold on Temu. The time has come for Temu to adhere to the law.”
Temu has until the end of August to provide an “action plan” to address the issues. Failure to comply may result in additional daily, weekly, or monthly fines.
