London, United Kingdom – The sale of unsafe electric heaters on social media platforms TikTok and Temu has raised concerns among consumer organization Which? after testing found that many of these heaters posed serious safety hazards.
Which? tested eight electric heaters purchased from TikTok Shop and Temu and found that six of them were electrically unsafe, with some posing risks of explosion, fire, and electric shocks. Some of the heaters purchased as part of the test were found to have been improperly assembled, with easily accessible live parts, increasing the risk of electric shock.
The consumer group also found that several influencers with millions of followers were promoting these unsafe heaters, leading to a significant number of sales through these social media platforms. The videos promoting these heaters, marked as “paid partnership” or “commission paid”, had collectively garnered over 100,000 views.
Both TikTok and Temu have since removed the unsafe heaters from their platforms, but Which? has reported that similar listings have since reappeared. The consumer organization has called for online marketplaces to take greater legal responsibility for the safety of products sold through their platforms.
Recent research by Which? revealed that millions of UK consumers made purchases through TikTok and Temu in 2023, highlighting the potential impact of unsafe products being sold through these popular social media platforms.
Responding to the concerns raised, Temu stated that all identified unsafe heaters had been removed from their platform and that they operate a marketplace for third-party sellers who must adhere to strict compliance and legal standards. TikTok also emphasized their use of technology and manual moderation to enforce their policies for TikTok Shop.
The charity Electrical Safety First expressed concern over the influx of dangerous products on new shopping platforms and urged for urgent legal changes to regulate these platforms and protect consumers. The Department for Business and Trade stated that the Office for Product Safety and Standards continues to take action against unsafe products being sold online.
Overall, the issue of unsafe electric heaters being sold on social media platforms points to the need for greater regulation and oversight of online marketplaces to ensure the safety of consumers.