More than 65% of chargers, toys and jewelry from Shein and Temu fail in safety

The Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU) revealed this Friday that a recent research study by consumer associations in Germany, Belgium, Denmark and France, coordinated by ICRT, the international research and analysis group of which the OCU is a part, has detected numerous breaches of community safety regulations in chargers, toys and jewelry which is sold in marketplaces by Shein and Temu.

Specifically, of the 162 cheap items analyzed on these two sales platforms, 112 presented some type of irregularity, of which 73% corresponds to Shein and 65% to Temu. Furthermore, more than a quarter were considered potentially dangerous.

This investigation includes electrical, mechanical, and chemical safety tests and an analysis of its labeling. The products analyzed were purchased as any consumer would.selecting popular articles at random, without deliberately searching for those that could present the most risks.

In this way, the work of the European consumer organizations of the ICRT network “demonstrates that “European Union safety regulations are not being met in many of the cheap products sold in these two Chinese marketplaces.”

“It is true that Shein and Temu quickly recalled all products with reported serious defects by the organizations that led this investigation, as required by the new Digital Services Law (DSA), but they did not act with the same diligence when these same complaints were made through private consumers,” says the OCU, which recalls that “Bargains can be very expensive” and recommends that consumers prioritize trusted businesses and products manufactured in Europe or that comply with EU regulations.

“The low prices of the marketplaces not only represent a greater risk of failures and regulatory non-compliance, they also have a higher cost on the environment and an unfair effect on the rest of the companies that they do comply with the regulations,” he concludes. Below, the defects detected in the analyzed products are detailed.

USB chargers: fire risk and poor labeling

Only 2 of the 54 USB chargers purchased met EU electrical requirements. The vast majority break easily, their temples bend too much, or fail drop tests. Another common problem was incorrect or incomplete labeling. Although the most serious thing was that fourteen of these devices reached temperatures of up to 88 °C, exceeding the legal limit of 77 °C set by the Low Voltage Directive, a circumstance likely to cause a fire.

Baby toys: small parts and harmful substances

Teethers, rattles, bath toys… Unfortunately, the majority of the 54 toys for children under three years of age analyzed presented some type of problem. Starting with its labeling, with absent or misleading warnings. And continuing by small parts, stickers, or suction cups that came off easily and could be swallowed. But also an excess of undesirable substances, such as formaldehyde, in tissues sold in Temu as toys, which can cause contact allergies. Or some sound balls sold on Shein that reached peaks of up to 115 dB.

Jewelry: pendants with highly toxic cadmium

The most serious problem was the presence of cadmium in very high quantities, up to 8,500 times the permitted limit according to the REACH chemical regulation in 3 of the 54 metal necklaces analyzed (the three sold on Shein). This substance, classified as carcinogenic, is very dangerous if the pendant is accidentally put in the mouth.