Play by the rules and lose market share to those who do not. That is the uncomfortable reality European online marketplaces put to MEPs this week, at a hearing of Parliament’s Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee. Bol and Vinted argued that stricter enforcement on foreign rivals, not more rules for compliant platforms, is the only way to level the playing field.
The discussion happened during a hearing of the European Parliament’s Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee (IMCO) on Wednesday, 6 May, with representatives from Dutch-Belgian retailer Bol and Lithuanian second-hand platform Vinted. The session is part of Parliament’s broader inquiry into unsafe and illegal products sold online, following earlier hearings with Temu, SHEIN, and AliExpress.
“Our people, our businesses, invest in compliance; the others don’t. So who benefits? The others,” Dirk Gotink (EPP/NLD) remarked during the debate.
Customs pressure and the flood of parcels
European Commission representatives warned that the scale of e-commerce imports remains a major enforcement challenge. According to officials, low-value parcel imports into the EU increased by 26 per cent compared to 2024, with more than 95 per cent originating from China.
The Commission linked the discussion to its wider e-commerce and customs agenda. This includes the removal of the €150 customs duty exemption for low-value parcels and the planned introduction of a new handling fee for packages arriving from outside the EU.
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The debate also tied into several ongoing legislative initiatives, such as the forthcoming European Product Act. This aims to clarify liability when unsafe products are sold online and strengthen traceability requirements across supply chains.
Commission officials told MEPs that authorities are expanding coordinated enforcement actions between member states and increasingly relying on digital detection technologies, such as web crawlers, to identify non-compliant products online. “The principle is simple: a product sold in the EU must be safe and compliant, regardless of where it comes from, how it is sold, and whether it is new or second-hand”, they said.
Vinted defends second-hand model
Vinted argued during the hearing that lawmakers should not treat second-hand marketplaces the same way as traditional retailers or large import platforms. Jesse Dunham Mercer, Vice President for Corporate Affairs at Vinted, described the company as “a European second-hand marketplace” operating primarily as a peer-to-peer platform. According to the company, around 99 per cent of its users are private individuals selling goods already circulating in the EU market. “We do not introduce new products into the market,” she told lawmakers. “We help extend the life of goods that already exist.”
The company stressed that it does not sell products itself, set prices, hold inventory or manage high-volume imports. Instead, it acts as an intermediary between consumers.
Vinted warned against regulatory approaches that treat intermediary marketplaces in the same way as manufacturers or large-scale importers, arguing that such rules risk harming circular-economy activities. “Requirements that do not reflect this reality risk excluding legitimate second-hand goods from the market without improving safety outcomes,” the company argued.
The Commission also acknowledged distinctions between different marketplace models. While large global platforms dominate parcel flows into Europe, officials noted that EU marketplaces, particularly second-hand, can contribute to sustainability objectives, consumer welfare and “local economic resilience”.
Bol warns against enforcement imbalance
Bol, the Dutch-Belgian e-commerce platform, framed the issue primarily around competitiveness and accountability. Johan Ballam, the company’s Chief Legal Officer, argued that European platforms face growing pressure from foreign competitors benefiting from “global scale, deep capital and in some cases, an uneven playing field”.
According to the company, competitors that avoid similar obligations undercut platforms investing heavily in compliance. Bol highlighted its own compliance systems, including AI tools used to scan product listings, automatic blocking of products missing mandatory information, integration with EU Safety Gate alerts and human review procedures for flagged cases.
Environmental costs
Christel Schaldemose (S&D/DNK) argued that unsafe or non-compliant products imported from outside the EU eventually become part of local waste systems, creating costs for taxpayers and municipalities. Even if customs checks improve, she warned, millions of problematic products are already circulating within Europe. “People are buying goods online from China or other places. It still goes into our waste system, and it is costly for taxpayers in local communities”.
Our people, our businesses, invest in compliance; the others don’t. So who benefits? The others.
— Dirk Gotink (EPP/NLD)
Ms Schaldemose suggested lawmakers may eventually need to consider environmental cost mechanisms linked to imported goods to help address the burden. “It is not necessarily popular, but you could consider an environmental extra cost when you buy goods outside the EU?” she asked.
Ongoing scrutiny
The hearing forms part of IMCO’s broader inquiry. Recently, the Committee received representatives from Temu, SHEIN and AliExpress. The European Commission designated AliExpress as a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) in 2023 and formally opened proceedings against the company under the Digital Services Act in March 2024.
IMCO is expected to continue holding regular scrutiny sessions with online marketplaces and Commission officials as the EU advances customs reform and prepares additional product safety measures.
