The European consumer group BEUC has made a complaint to the European Commission and various national regulators about SHEIN for its use of deceptive techniques ('dark patterns') which are contrary to the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive. They say these push consumers into purchasing more than originally intended and fuel the environmental and societal problems caused by the fast fashion industry.
In February 2025, the Commission announced its own investigation into SHEIN's compliance with EU consumer law and in May urged SHEIN to respect EU consumer law and to stop using dark patterns like fake discount and pressure selling, for example, false purchase deadlines. It is also investigating SHEIN under the Digital Services Act.
BEUC's complaint calls on the Commission and European consumer protection authorities to request SHEIN to:
- Stop using deceptive techniques such as "confirm-shaming", toying with consumers' emotions, use of infinite scroll and "nagging", which, according to BEUC, constitute unfair commercial practices under the EU's Unfair Commercial Practices Directive.
- Provide substantiating evidence showing that customer testimonials or messages like "low stock" that are repeatedly displayed to consumers are genuine. If not, request SHEIN to stop using these practices.
If SHEIN does not take corrective action, BEUC says that authorities should intervene to prevent the risk of serious harm to consumers until it complies with EU consumer law.
According to research, dark patterns in fast fashion are an industry-wide problem, so BEUC is also calling on regulators to look into other traders using similar unfair practices.
In the UK, the CMA recently investigated green claims in the fashion industry and issued guidance on complying with consumer law in the fashion sector, but it hasn't looked at online choice architecture or dark patterns from the perspective of creating environmental harms themselves. In any event, we wonder where a regulator would draw the line. Advertising is, by its very nature, designed to persuade customers to buy products or services. It shouldn't be forgotten that OCA can be used to nudge consumers into making sustainable choices as well.
BEUC has also said that it hopes its evidence will help to shape the proposed EU Digital Fairness Act, which will specifically target dark patterns.
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