Online marketplaces such as Amazon and eBay should be liable for any faulty and unsafe goods they sell, claimed the EU’s biggest consumer group, as Brussels prepares to overhaul its rules for internet platforms, reported the Financial Times.
The EU consumers’ organization (Beuc), which represents consumer bodies across 32 countries, accused online platforms of selling a wide range of goods that do not comply with EU safety standards.
In a test in February of 250 electrical goods, toys, cosmetics, and other products from Amazon, AliExpress, eBay, and Wish, two-thirds failed European safety laws. “The consequences for consumers, including children, of buying such failing products could range from electric shock, to fire or suffocation,” stated Beuc.
Platforms also needed to take more responsibility during the coronavirus crisis for the “numerous products with untenable health claims being marketed online.” Maryant Fernández, senior digital policy officer at Beuc, said the pandemic illustrated perfectly “the power and influence that online platforms can have on our society and our economy.”
“E-commerce shops have become more relevant than ever during the pandemic and we need to hold them accountable,” she said. “It cannot continue to be the case that it’s very easy for a platform to make money from illegal online sales, but that it’s very difficult to put an end to them.”
Full Content: Financial Times
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