EU Fines Chinese Retailer Temu €200 Million for Selling Illegal and Dangerous Products

May 28, 2026

The European Commission fined Temu €200 million following a 19-month investigation into illegal and dangerous products including faulty chargers and unsafe baby toys. The penalty is the second and highest-ever under the EU's Digital Services Act. Temu serves 130 million consumers in the EU and must submit an action plan by August 28, 2026 detailing remediation measures.

Digital Services Act penalty

▪The European Commission issued a €120 million penalty to Elon Musk's X in December 2025 for deceptive verification badges and lack of transparency over advertising.
▪Temu has until August 28, 2026 to submit an action plan to the European Commission setting out how Temu intends to remedy the situation.
▪The EU's Digital Services Act has applied to the world's biggest tech companies since February 2024.
▪Under the EU's Digital Services Act, a company can be fined up to 6% of global turnover.
▪The European Commission fined Temu €200 million for failing to stop the sale of illegal and dangerous products.
▪Henna Virkkunen is the European Commission vice-president who leads on tech regulation.
▪The €200 million fine against Temu is the second and highest-ever penalty imposed under the EU's Digital Services Act.

Unsafe products sold

▪Consumer groups across Europe have reported dummy chains on Temu long enough that they could strangle a child.
▪An unpublished mystery shopping exercise carried out for the European Commission found a high percentage of unsafe baby products on Temu's platform.
▪Consumer groups across Europe have reported baby toys with loose parts presenting choking hazards on Temu.

Investigation findings

▪The European Commission is investigating the sale of illegal products on Temu, addictive design, and whether independent researchers have access to Temu's data.
▪The European Commission criticised Temu over inadequate controls on the design of Temu's website.
▪The European Commission conducted a 19-month investigation into Temu that found consumers were very likely to encounter illegal or unsafe products on Temu's website.
▪The European Commission found a particularly serious breach of the Digital Services Act related to an inadequate risk assessment on unsafe products that Temu carried out in 2024.

Temu market presence

▪Temu has 130 million consumers in the EU, almost a third of the EU population.
▪Temu's parent company PDD Holdings reported global revenues of $54 billion in 2024.
▪PDD Holdings' 2024 global revenues included income from another popular Chinese e-commerce site, Pinduoduo.

Company response

▪Temu has taken further steps to strengthen risk assessment, platform governance, and user protection since Temu's first Digital Services Act assessment in 2024.
▪Temu has the right to appeal against the €200 million fine.
▪Temu disagrees with the European Commission's decision and considers the €200 million fine to be disproportionate.

Perspective of Temu

▪Temu disagrees with the European Commission's decision and considers the €200 million fine to be disproportionate.
▪Temu has taken further steps to strengthen risk assessment, platform governance, and user protection since Temu's first Digital Services Act assessment in 2024.