Online Marketplace Research – Summary Report

This research, conducted by Talan in collaboration with Electrical Safety First, investigates the prevalence of likely non-compliant electrical products sold through selected major UK online marketplaces.

The largest generalist marketplaces in the UK are reported to be Amazon, eBay, AliExpress, Very, Tesco and Temu.

The analysis is based solely on the information presented to consumers at the point of purchase, including product descriptions, technical specifications, customer reviews and product images.

Using publicly available listing information, the study assesses whether products advertised as meeting UK electrical safety standards are likely to meet those standards.

Importantly, the analysis relies on basic product data and imagery that online marketplaces already collect and manage as part of their normal operations, rather than specialist testing or information unavailable to platforms.

The study highlights systemic safety risks and regulatory gaps in platform-based commerce, particularly concerning consumer assumptions about product safety and marketplace accountability.

They show that consumers’ reasonable assumptions about product safety are not being reliably met and that current marketplace practices and voluntary safeguards are insufficient to prevent likely non-compliant products from being listed, promoted and sold to UK consumers.