Stylish clothes and elegant footwear in the pictures, but very poor-quality products in reality. Instead of a straightforward return process, consumers face a lack of contact, rejected complaints or demands to send goods back to Asia. The European Consumer Centre in Poland (ECC Poland) warns about the growing problem of fraudulent online shops that pose as Polish boutiques, provide a registered business address in an EU country, most often the Netherlands, but are in fact operated by traders based outside Europe.
ECC Netherlands can help, but contact the trader first
ECC Poland receives a significant number of enquiries concerning this type of problem. Following consultations with the European Consumer Centre in the Netherlands, we ask consumers to contact the trader again as a first step and provide them with the following arguments.
Ready-to-send message to the trader:
Pursuant to Article 7:17 of the Dutch Civil Code, as the seller, you are liable for any lack of conformity of the goods with the contract that exists at the time of delivery and becomes apparent within two years of that date.
Furthermore, for goods to conform to the sales contract, they must, among other things, correspond to the description, type, quantity and quality specified in the offer.
If I withdraw from the sales contract as a remedy for the lack of conformity of the goods with the contract, I am required to return the goods at your expense. Moreover, according to the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (Autoriteit Consument & Markt), if an online shop is registered in the Netherlands, the return address should also be located in the Netherlands.
Therefore, I do not accept your proposed solution of returning the goods to an address outside the Netherlands or receiving only a partial refund. As mentioned above, you, as the seller, are responsible for the lack of conformity of the goods with the contract.
I demand a full refund for the non-conforming product. I agree to return the goods, provided that you supply me with a return label allowing me to send them back free of charge within the Netherlands.
If the trader refuses to resolve the issue or fails to respond within 30 days, please contact ECC Poland again. A copy of the complaint correspondence containing the above arguments is required for us to proceed with the case.
ECC can only handle a case if the trader’s identity can be established
ECC Poland, followed by ECC Netherlands, can only handle a case if the entity responsible for the sale can be clearly identified and its full details established.
In particular, information such as the VAT number and company registration number is required. For a trader based in the Netherlands, this includes the KVK number, while in Poland, relevant identifiers include the REGON or KRS numbers.
Some websites provide fictitious addresses or details that cannot be linked to a specific registered company. In such cases, ECC cannot handle the complaint because the entity responsible for the sale cannot be identified.
Before clicking “Buy and Pay”, remember these 3 key steps:
- Check the terms and conditions, not just the “Contact” section: Look for the company’s full legal name, registration number (NIP/KRS or their foreign equivalents) and physical address. A contact form alone is not sufficient.
- Check the returns policy: If a shop claims to be based in Poland but its terms and conditions require returns to an address in Asia, do not provide a return address or require you to cover disproportionate courier costs, think twice before making a purchase.
- Look for reviews outside the shop’s website: Reviews published on the seller’s own website may be fake. Search for the shop’s name using a search engine or an AI tool. The complete absence of reviews may also be a warning sign, as it could mean the shop has no track record yet.
For more information on what to look out for, which warning signs to watch for, how to avoid scams and what you should know when shopping online, read the guide “Shopping from Asia?”.
Blocked online shops
Recently, thanks to the efforts of CERT Polska, a number of fraudulent websites of this kind have been blocked. These include:
- gunbprojektydomow.pl
- hanna-krakow.pl
- modaperla.com
- zavikabutik.com
- zosia-warszawa.com
- eliza-wroclaw.com
- boutique-warszawa.com
- lewandowski-moda.com
- chicova.pl
- oliwia-krakow.pl
- stylnowy.pl
Come across a suspicious online shop? Take action! If you come across an online shop that raises concerns while browsing the internet (for example, because it lacks clear contact details, offers suspiciously low prices or contains unusual language errors), report it directly to CERT Polska. A prompt response can help get the website blocked and protect other internet users from losing their money.
