EU Targets Safety Hazards on Shein and Temu as Cheap Imports Overwhelm Checks

Millions of Parcels Put Consumer Protection Under Pressure

More than 12 million parcels of low value arrive in the European Union every day from sellers outside the bloc, most of them from China. As of July 21, 2025, the growth of that trade has put Shein and Temu at the centre of mounting concern about dangerous products, overwhelmed inspections and responsibility for goods sold online.

EU justice commissioner Michael McGrath has publicly expressed shock at the scale and severity of hazardous goods reaching consumers through the two platforms. The products drawing scrutiny include baby soothers that pose choking risks, clothing containing toxic chemicals and cosmetics made with an ingredient banned in the EU since 2022.

Shein and Temu have grown rapidly by offering cheap, fashionable products across a vast range of categories. Their popularity now presents European authorities with a practical problem: how to check millions of individual shipments while ensuring that sellers outside the EU follow the same safety requirements as businesses operating within it.

European consumer organisations, independent laboratories and public authorities have identified problems involving chemicals, small parts, sharp edges and unsafe clothing designs. Similar findings in South Korea, the United States and South Africa have widened concern beyond Europe.

Both companies say they operate safety controls and remove products when violations emerge. Regulators and consumer advocates argue that the recurring discoveries, combined with the volume of goods arriving, require stronger enforcement and changes to the rules governing online marketplaces.

Which Products Have Raised Safety Concerns?

Children's products feature prominently among the findings. Investigators have identified baby soothers with loose beads and no airflow holes, creating a serious choking risk. Toys have presented hazards from small parts, sharp edges and chemicals, including excessive boron in slime kits.

Clothing and accessories have raised different concerns. Children's raincoats and other garments have contained phthalates and formaldehyde at levels hundreds of times above legal limits. Excessively long drawstrings on shorts and jackets can cause trips or become caught around a child's neck.

Sunglasses without ultraviolet protection have also been identified, exposing users to potential eye damage. Sandals have contained excessive lead, while cosmetics have contained butylphenyl methylpropional, commonly called Lilial, despite its EU ban.

Toy Industries of Europe, known as TIE, tested toys bought from Temu and found that 95% failed to comply with EU safety rules. Eighteen of the 19 toys tested posed real risks to children. The industry group has called for online marketplaces to carry legal responsibility when no operator based in the EU is responsible for a product's safety.

European consumer organisations have carried out further testing of toys, cosmetics and household goods. The European Consumer Organisation, BEUC, and national groups in Denmark, Italy and the UK have identified widespread failures to meet safety requirements.

For a family, the consequences depend on the product. A loose bead presents an immediate physical danger, while a chemical in clothing or cosmetics may create exposure through repeated contact. These different risks require checks on both what a product contains and how it is designed.

What Are the Chemicals and Why Do They Matter?

Phthalates are chemicals used to make plastics flexible. They are classified as endocrine disruptors, meaning they can interfere with the body's hormone system, which helps control growth, development and reproduction. They have been linked to reproductive harm, infertility and cancer.

PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are another concern highlighted in the safety debate. Often called "forever chemicals," they persist in the environment and are associated with disruption of the immune system, developmental problems and increased cancer risk.

Lilial is a fragrance ingredient also known by its chemical name, butylphenyl methylpropional. The EU banned it in cosmetics in 2022 because of concerns about fertility and fetal development. Its discovery in cosmetics sold online has therefore raised questions about compliance with a prohibition already in force.

Phthalates, lead, PFAS and other hazardous substances are especially concerning in products used by children or people who are more vulnerable to their effects. Depending on the substance and product, exposure can happen through the skin, breathing or swallowing.

Clothing, toys and cosmetics can bring those substances into everyday contact with users. Washing or ordinary use may not remove them. Some can also persist outside the home, contaminating water and soil and extending the problem beyond the person who bought the item.

Findings Stretch From Seoul to the United States

South Korea's inspections have produced some of the starkest figures. Seoul's environmental health team found Shein shoes containing phthalates at 229 times the legal limit and Temu sandals containing lead at 11 times the permitted threshold.

Weekly inspections in South Korea have uncovered carcinogenic substances in clothing and accessories, with some products exceeding legal limits by hundreds of times. Authorities in South Africa have also reported hazardous levels of carcinogens, chemicals that disrupt hormones and other toxins in products from the platforms.

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission has recalled tens of thousands of children's sleepwear sets sold through Temu because of fire hazards. In Malta, the Consumer Council has ordered the removal of shoes containing high levels of heavy metals.

These actions show how the safety concerns extend across product types and national borders. A chemical restriction, a fire safety requirement and a rule preventing choking each address a different danger, leaving regulators with a broad range of checks to carry out as the platforms expand.

What Shein and Temu Say They Are Doing

Shein says it invests millions in compliance and safety initiatives. Its stated measures include partnerships with international testing centres and the removal of hundreds of vendors that failed to comply with requirements.

Temu says it uses strict checks on sellers, proactive monitoring and rapid removal of unsafe products. It also says it works with international certification organisations, including TÜV SÜD, SGS and Bureau Veritas.

Consumer advocates and regulators argue that these measures remain insufficient for the volume of products being sold. Both platforms rely on sellers outside the EU, making consistent checks and enforcement difficult across a large number of suppliers.

Unsafe listings are frequently removed after authorities or consumer groups identify them. By that point, the products may already have reached thousands of consumers. Removing a listing stops further purchases through that listing, while goods already delivered remain a separate concern for the people who bought them.

The recurring discoveries have strengthened calls for measures beyond voluntary company action. Industry organisations want clearer legal responsibility, while European authorities are pursuing investigations and considering changes to customs arrangements.

Complaints Have Added Pressure for Action

In February 2025, 24 consumer organisations from 21 countries filed a formal complaint against Shein with the European Commission. Their allegations covered deceptive sales tactics and product safety breaches.

The Cyprus Consumers Association called for intervention if the company failed to address the risks and comply with European law:

We urge intervention if SHEIN does not take corrective measures to prevent serious consumer harm until it fully complies with European legislation.

Consumer complaints have helped prompt European Commission investigations into both Shein and Temu. The proceedings carry the possibility of stronger enforcement and new rules. As of July 21, no date was given for a final outcome or for the proposed measures to take effect.

Several dates mark how the issue has developed:

• 2022: The EU banned Lilial in cosmetics because of concerns about fertility and fetal development.
• 2024: The EU's Safety Gate system recorded a record 4,137 alerts about dangerous products.
• February 2025: Twenty-four consumer organisations from 21 countries filed their complaint against Shein.
• July 21, 2025: Investigations and proposals for stronger controls remained central to the EU response.

Customs Fees and Marketplace Responsibility Are Under Review

The EU is considering abolishing the €150 threshold below which imports qualify for relief from customs duties. The existing arrangement has helped platforms send billions of inexpensive parcels into Europe cheaply and with limited oversight, adding pressure to customs and product safety systems.

A proposed handling fee on incoming parcels would help fund more rigorous inspections and discourage shipments that fail to meet requirements. For authorities, the challenge is to pay for closer scrutiny while dealing with a daily flow exceeding 12 million parcels.

A central EU customs authority is another proposal. It would coordinate enforcement and information sharing across member states, addressing the fragmented national systems now struggling with the volume of imports.

European policymakers are also considering expanding the Digital Services Act, or DSA, to hold online marketplaces legally responsible for dangerous and illegal products sold through their platforms. The proposed responsibility would extend beyond their direct sales to goods supplied by outside vendors.

For European businesses, the debate concerns competition as well as safety. Companies operating within the EU must follow strict safety and environmental standards. Regulators want sellers reaching the same customers from abroad to face effective enforcement of those requirements.

The proposals would bring the EU closer to recent US action, where duty exemptions have been reduced and additional taxes imposed on imports of low value from China. In Europe, changes to fees, duties and legal responsibility could require the platforms to spend more on compliance and alter how they operate.

Safety Gate and Secret Shopping Support Enforcement

EU authorities have launched secret shopper operations to gather evidence of regulatory violations. By purchasing goods as ordinary customers would, investigators can examine products offered through the platforms.

Safety Gate, the EU's rapid alert system, allows member states to share warnings about unsafe products. It recorded 4,137 alerts in 2024, the highest total recorded. More than a third concerned cosmetics, followed by toys and electrical appliances.

Cosmetics therefore represented more than one in every three alerts, making them the largest category identified in that annual total. The figures place banned ingredients and other cosmetic hazards alongside the more visible dangers posed by toys and electrical goods.

McGrath, the EU justice commissioner, has linked stronger enforcement to both consumer protection and fair competition for European companies:

I am determined that we step up our enforcement of our product safety laws and our consumer protection rules. It's not only about protecting consumers, but there is a very serious level playing field issue here for European businesses.

His statement sets out the two pressures driving the response: preventing dangerous goods from reaching households and ensuring businesses competing for European customers face comparable obligations.

Cheap Prices Meet Difficult Questions About Accountability

Shein and Temu attract customers with a vast selection of inexpensive, fashionable goods and aggressive marketing. Flash sales, countdown timers and shopping experiences built around games encourage quick purchases and repeat visits.

Their business model relies on shipping directly from Chinese factories to consumers, bypassing traditional retail channels and reducing the oversight associated with those routes. Millions of separate parcels then place heavy demands on customs checks.

Many products come from small suppliers whose identities and production practices can be difficult to trace. The absence of a responsible party based in the EU for many items further complicates enforcement when a product is found to be unsafe.

Consumers face a related difficulty: a low price and an attractive listing provide little practical help in tracing who made an item or who will answer for it. Missing safety information and unclear origins make that task harder, especially for goods intended for children or prolonged contact with the skin.

Stronger marketplace responsibility would place more of that burden on the platform through which a purchase is made. Combined with customs changes and closer monitoring, it could require Shein and Temu to take greater responsibility for the products reaching their customers.

What Consumers Can Check Before Buying

Consumer safety advice urges particular caution with very cheap products intended for children or direct contact with the skin. Toys, clothing and cosmetics deserve attention because their use can involve swallowing small parts, prolonged skin contact or exposure to hazardous ingredients.

Buyers are advised to look for certifications such as the EU Ecolabel, OEKO-TEX or GOTS, which indicate compliance with higher safety and environmental standards. Choosing reputable stores within the EU and avoiding products with unclear origins or missing safety information can also reduce risk.

An unnamed consumer safety advocate described the concern in terms of the choices shoppers face:

Consumers should be aware that the lowest price often comes at the expense of safety and quality. It's important to make informed choices and demand greater accountability from online platforms.

Regulatory authorities, consumer organisations and industry groups continue to monitor products and press for stronger protections. For households, the immediate issue is concrete: whether a toy, garment or cosmetic bought cheaply online meets the safety requirements intended to protect the person using it.

Shein and Temu have pledged improvements, while the EU is weighing changes that could reshape their responsibilities. Consumer awareness remains one layer of protection alongside product testing, enforcement and action against sellers of hazardous goods.

Key Points

• More than 12 million parcels of low value arrive in the EU daily from outside the bloc, most from China.
• Tests have identified chemical hazards, choking risks, unsafe drawstrings and other problems in products sold through Shein and Temu.
• Seoul inspectors found phthalates at 229 times the legal limit in Shein shoes and lead at 11 times the permitted threshold in Temu sandals.
• Shein and Temu say they check sellers, invest in safety measures and remove products that breach requirements.
• Twenty-four consumer organisations from 21 countries complained to the European Commission about Shein in February 2025.
• The EU is considering customs changes, handling fees, a central customs authority and greater legal responsibility for online marketplaces.
• Safety Gate recorded 4,137 alerts in 2024, with cosmetics accounting for more than a third.
• As of July 21, 2025, investigations and proposed reforms remained central to the European response.