The Omnibus Directive, a legal regulation introducing revolutionary changes to sales, both traditional and online, has been in force in Poland for over a year. Due to the broad scope of new obligations imposed on businesses, as well as the relatively short period since the regulations were implemented into Polish law, many e-commerce owners struggled with their proper application and compliance with all requirements, which resulted in interference from the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK).

The Omnibus Directive in practice

Currently, there's a downward trend in the number of incidents involving traders misrepresenting prices and reviews. This doesn't mean, however, that the problem has been completely eliminated. Polish consumers are increasingly using Asian trading platforms such as Aliexpress, Shein, and Temu. Consequently, despite operating outside the EU, these platforms are still subject to restrictive EU regulations. The August report by the Polish Consumer Federation highlighted numerous deficiencies in these platforms' compliance with consumer law – we've discussed the most important issues below.

As a reminder, the Omnibus Directive, officially known as Directive (EU) 2019/2161 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019, is a key element of the "New Deal for Consumers" package. The act introduces a number of rules that require sellers to be transparent, particularly regarding price history, consumer reviews, and reporting the lowest price in the last 30 days before the promotion.

Shein and Temu platforms

According to the FK report, Shein, the Chinese e-commerce giant, regularly violated the above directive by employing pricing practices that violate EU law. One of the main allegations is the lack of proper reference price labeling. According to regulations, the platform should display the lowest price of a product within the last 30 days before the discount. However, in many cases, the company used the initial price as the reference price, which is contrary to applicable regulations. Furthermore, Shein also employed unclear practices regarding "estimated price" and a lack of full information on the omnibus price during cross-selling, which was also addressed in the report. Consumers often have to take additional steps to obtain full price information, which contradicts legal requirements.

The Temu platform, like Shein, has been criticized for using prohibited commercial practices, specifically "dark patterns," manipulative techniques intended to pressure consumers into buying. One method involved displaying prices in formats that suggested a temporary price reduction, despite the lack of clear information about previous prices.
It's worth noting that the Temu platform's activities are already under scrutiny by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) and other European supervisory authorities. Under pressure from consumer organizations, the European Commission has designated Temu as a very large trading platform, which imposes additional obligations on it to mitigate the risk of selling illegal and dangerous products.

Summary

Cases of consumer law violations by Asian platforms highlight the crucial need to be aware of and comply with applicable regulations. In an era of globalization and the growing e-commerce market, companies—both those operating within the EU and beyond—must realize that complying with European requirements regarding price transparency and fair commercial practices is not an option, but a necessity. Ignoring these rules not only exposes consumers to unfair treatment but also risks losing their trust and serious financial penalties.

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