SuppliedA mother whose three-year-old girl’s hair was ripped out by an electric cleaning brush says the internet giant Temu “does not care about the safety of people”.
Amy, 36, from Norwich, bought the brush online for £4 to “make life easier” with housework, but it caught in her daughter’s hair when the child took it out of the box.
She reported the item as it appeared on the shopping site to Norfolk Trading Standards, who said Temu had now removed it from sale in the UK.
A spokesperson for the Chinese-owned site told the : “We are deeply concerned to hear about this incident and wish the child a full and speedy recovery.”
They added: “The safety and well-being of our customers are always our top priority, and our customer service team is in contact with the family to offer assistance.”
Amy said that when the brush arrived, her daughter picked it up and “it just came on, the brush flew off.. and just sucked her hair in”.
“I didn’t realise how bad it was at first,” she said.
“Then I see the hair attached to it and my husband just lifted her hair up and there was a massive bald patch.
“I was distraught.
“She was upset. it wasn’t until later on and the pain really hit her. She said ‘my head hurt, my head hurt'”.
Amy said that, a month on, the hair had still not started growing back.
“I don’t want any other child to go through what she’s been through.”
Founded in 2022, Temu is an e-commerce website and app that connects shoppers externally with third-party sellers, rather than offering its own products.
Sellers are largely based in China, and many items are shipped directly from there.
Norfolk Trading Standards contacted Temu, and said the company told them the product had been removed from sale in Britain at the manufacturer’s decision.
A spokesperson for trading standards said Temu’s UK representative “voluntarily withdrew” the product to conduct a review of the appliance in line with legal requirements, particularly in relation to warnings and instructions.
Norfolk Trading Standards also listed the product on the Product Safety Database, which is the notification system used by local authorities to report unsafe products.
Amy said she was offered a “£1,500 PayPal solution” from the site when she reported what happened – but said she would not accept it.
SuppliedA spokesperson for Temu added: “The product in question was removed from our platform in August, and we have since taken down similar products as a precautionary measure.
“Temu operates as a third-party marketplace connecting independent sellers with consumers. We require all merchants to comply with applicable laws, regulations, and safety standards, and we maintain a comprehensive quality control system to prevent, detect, and remove non-compliant products.
“We also collaborate with leading global testing organizations to help ensure that products sold by sellers meet relevant safety requirements.”