The Austrian Retail Association (Handelsverband Österreich) has filed a twelve-page complaint against Temu with the Austrian Federal Competition Authority (BWB). The complaint alleges deceptive business practices and calls on the authorities to “ensure fair competition on the Austrian market”.
According to the trade association, the online marketplace violates several provisions of the Unfair Competition Act (UWG), resulting in millions in lost sales.
The violations include engaging in misleading business practices and advancing false claims about limited product availability and price reductions, according to Handelsverband.
In particular, the complaint highlights concerns over Temu’s alleged use of arbitrary recommended retail prices (RRP), which Handelsverband claims are presented as significantly lower than the appropriate sale prices.
The association also claims Temu engages in practices intended to urge consumers to make rash purchasing decisions, with displays of information alleging limited availability and purposely designed to tempt them to buy under supposed time pressure.
“On Temu’s website, claims such as ‘last day’ and ‘special sale’ with a countdown give the impression that the product in question can only be purchased for a few hours at the supposedly lower price shown,” the association said in a statement.
“Temu ‘often’ advertises products as supposed ‘special offers’, but after the ‘special offer’ has expired, they can still be purchased for just one cent more,” it added.
“In many cases Temu falsely claims a shortage of goods that does not really exist,” the association also said.
The Austrian retail association said that “more than 30,000 parcels from Asian online platforms arrive in Austria daily,” many of which “fail to comply with local regulations.”
At the end of June, the European Commission, based on the newly introduced EU Digital Services Act, requested more information from Chinese retailers Temu and Shein regarding their efforts to avoid illegal products and prevent consumer manipulation.
