EU enforcement actions against Shein for consumer rights violations

The European Union's Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Network concluded a coordinated investigation in May 2025, finding Shein in breach of multiple EU consumer protection laws across six categories of violations. The enforcement action, involving authorities from Belgium, France, Ireland, and the Netherlands, represents the EU's most significant consumer protection enforcement against a Chinese e-commerce platform, with potential fines exceeding hundreds of millions of euros.

Background

Shein is a Chinese fast-fashion e-commerce platform founded in 2008 that has rapidly grown to become one of the world's largest online fashion retailers. The company operates a direct-to-consumer model, shipping products from China to customers worldwide. By 2024, Shein had around 108 million monthly active users in the EU.

The company's business model relies on ultra-fast fashion production cycles, with thousands of new products added daily at extremely low prices. This rapid growth attracted regulatory scrutiny as early as 2021, when Health Canada recalled a Shein toddler jacket containing 20 times the allowable lead limit. By 2024, mounting concerns about consumer protection and product safety led to increased EU regulatory attention.

EU enforcement actions for consumer rights violations

The Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Network, comprising consumer protection authorities from Belgium, France, Ireland, and the Netherlands, launched a coordinated investigation into Shein's business practices. The investigation concluded on May 26, 2025, identifying systematic violations of EU consumer protection laws.

The CPC Network documented six categories of consumer law violations:

• Fake discount schemes: Using artificially inflated "prior prices" to create false impressions of savings
• Pressure selling tactics: Employing countdown timers that reset continuously to create false urgency
• Hidden customer service contacts: Deliberately making it difficult for consumers to find customer service information
• Misleading return information: Failing to properly inform consumers of their 14-day withdrawal rights under EU law
• False scarcity claims: Displaying misleading stock levels to pressure immediate purchases
• Unclear pricing practices: Presenting prices in ways that obscure the total cost to consumers

The investigation found these practices violated the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive and Consumer Rights Directive, affecting millions of European consumers.

Shein's response

Following the CPC Network's findings, Shein issued a statement committing to cooperation with European authorities. The company stated: "...we intend to work closely with the CPC Network and the Commission to address any concerns."

Shein announced it would invest more than $15 million in product safety testing and compliance tools, claiming to have conducted over 2 million product safety tests in 2024 alone. The company was given until June 26, 2025, to propose specific corrective measures to address the identified violations.

Potential penalties and ongoing actions

Under the Consumer Protection Cooperation Network framework, Shein faces minimum fines of 4% of annual turnover in each affected EU member state where violations occurred. Given the company's estimated revenues, total fines could exceed hundreds of millions of euros.

Separately, violations of the Digital Services Act carry potential penalties of up to 6% of global annual turnover. The European Commission retains the authority to escalate enforcement if Shein's proposed corrective measures prove inadequate.

Consumer response

Consumer advocacy groups welcomed the enforcement action, with it receiving widespread support from consumer protection advocates who had long criticized Shein's business practices. The coordinated nature of the investigation was seen as a significant step in addressing the challenges posed by global e-commerce platforms operating across traditional jurisdictional boundaries.

The BEUC, a major European consumer advocacy organization, welcomed the CPC Network's findings and expressed their desire for "urgent and ambitious action". They stated: “Consumer groups fully support the European Commission and national authorities launching enforcement actions, like the ongoing one we launched against Temu and the one announced today against Shein”.