A full shopping cart and everything under 100 euros: who wouldn’t buy it? But what’s the catch when online shops like Temu, AliExpress, Wish or Shein lure you with unbeatable prices? The risks at a glance.
Online shops with breathtakingly low prices are no longer uncommon. We encounter them on almost all platforms and are becoming increasingly visible with all sorts of advertising campaigns. In particular, the online mail order company Temu has been indispensable in Europe since the beginning of 2023 at the latest and is currently high in the app charts.
According to lawyer Christian Solmecke, partner at the law firm WBS LEGAL and host of the eponymous YouTube-Kanals, the shop is one of the fastest growing e-commerce companies in China. One of the company’s goals is to give consumers in the Western world access to Chinese products.
But that has its pitfalls: That’s why he warns Consumer protection regularly before buying in non-European shops. So it’s worth taking a closer look before you fall into the trap of a supposed bargain.
This is how a bargain becomes usury
The prices obviously speak for themselves, plus free delivery. Logically, you quickly click on the order button. But the goods and products come from third-party providers from non-EU countries. An order from Wish, Temu, AliExpress or Shein can quickly incur high customs fees, which drive up the apparent bargain price. The provider is Temu according to the North Rhine-Westphalia Consumer Center In many cases, they are exempt from EU customs duties because a customs fee is only due when the value of the goods exceeds 150 euros. But the extremely cheap shop only succeeds in this because orders are sent in small packages with a value of goods below the customs limit. However, if this is discovered by the customs authorities, things can get really expensive: buyers have to pay the fees themselves.
And that’s not all: Due to the long delivery times to Europe, packages may not even arrive. The consumer advice center therefore advises that you only pay after delivery and that you never pay for the ordered products in advance – otherwise you may end up stuck with these costs.
“Hot device”: Lack of safety standard
But the financial trap is not the only problem that online shoppers may have to face. Another risk can be the lack of certification of the products offered. Stiftung Warentest warns of serious quality deficiencies and safety of the products that are sold. Products from Asian markets that are offered on Wish, Temu or AliExpress often do not meet European safety standards. This can be particularly dangerous with electronic items, children’s toys or clothing.
According to Stiftung Warentest, when it comes to electronic devices, you should always make sure that a product has the “CE mark” in order to minimize possible risks.
Buy everything, know everything? Data protection of online shops
In addition to the financial and health risks, shopping on platforms like Wish, Temu and AliExpress also poses completely invisible dangers. Keyword: data protection. Consumer Protection NRW also warns that personal data in such shops is unsafe. Basically, there is little transparency on these shopping platforms about how user data is collected and used. According to lawyer Christian Solmecke, the Temu app is particularly interested in the data of its buyers, including the use of location services, access to the camera and microphone and the contact list.
“Fake it till you make it”: A trick for the masses
In addition to the data protection law violations, according to Solmecke, there are also competition violations at Temu that can deceive consumers. Specifically, this concerns the so-called lightning offers or free shipping for a limited time. The timer specified on the website or in the app would not expire as announced by Temu, but would be reset after the time had elapsed and restarted.
Limited-time offers are not the only thing that attracts extremely cheap shops. Plagiarism or copies of expensive products also promise a shopping experience true to the Temu motto “Shop like a Billionaire”. Sometimes you can find a watch in an Apple design, sometimes a dress in a Versace design. There are also numerous products with banned symbols.
The problem: Buying plagiarism and items with banned symbols is illegal. Lawyer Christian Solmecke warns on YouTube about possible customs controls that confiscate and destroy counterfeit and prohibited items. In the worst case, consumers may even be held responsible for trademark and design infringements under certain conditions.
2023-10-12 19:14:07
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