A 2025 annual report on consumer complaints within the e-commerce sector reveals that customer service attitude was the most frequently cited problem. The platform received a total of 1,673,402 e-commerce-related complaints throughout the year, representing a 30.73% increase compared to 2024. Complaint volumes peaked during the major promotional periods of the 618 shopping festival and the Double Eleven event.
The highest monthly volume occurred in June, with 169,000 complaints. The single-day peak was recorded on September 9, when complaints surged by 112% to 8,343, primarily driven by dissatisfaction among fans over a publisher's failure to deliver promised benefits for an artist's magazine sold on a specific e-commerce platform.
The analysis identified several persistent issues. The foremost problem was poor after-sales service attitude, where consumers often received dismissive responses from客服. Many platforms made it difficult to reach a human agent, and AI客服 systems frequently failed to understand consumer requests, leading to significant time spent navigating menus. Other major issues included products not matching their online descriptions, poor quality—particularly when items received differed vastly from their appearance in livestreams due to filters and lighting—and confusing price labeling. This last issue was especially prominent during major sales events, with consumers reporting inconsistent discounts across different accounts and varying prices for the same item depending on the purchase path, followed by difficulties obtaining price protection refunds.
Complaints related to客服 attitude accounted for the largest share, exceeding 40% of all e-commerce complaints. Issues with product quality and discrepancies followed at approximately 22%. Difficulties with refunds, failure to ship items, and false advertising regarding promotions or product efficacy rounded out the top five complaint categories.
The year also saw several incidents involving specific products. In June, certain power bank models from multiple brands were recalled due to quality issues, yet many consumers reported not receiving effective退货,换货, or退款处理. In October, products from a specific brand were reported to contain unsafe ingredients, generating nearly 2,500 complaints against the selling platforms by year-end. In December, a popular muscle-building powder was found to contain maltodextrin, contrary to its advertising, leading to nearly 3,600 related complaints.
A recurring challenge for consumers was that product defects were often discovered after the standard after-sales service period had expired. Many reported that by the time issues were identified, the goods had been used up or the order was no longer eligible for售后 support, leaving them without effective recourse from brands or platforms. A separate issue emerged due to rising precious metal prices, as consumers attempting to sell gold jewelry or bars purchased online discovered purity or authenticity issues, only to find the original sellers had disappeared or refused responsibility citing expired售后 periods.
Consumers emphasized that some product problems are not immediately apparent and argued that售后 time limits should not absolve platforms and merchants of responsibility, calling for greater assistance in such scenarios.
The majority of complaints (84.2%) were directed at four major e-commerce platforms. The complaint volume for one platform's e-commerce business saw a significant increase of 151.2% year-over-year. Other platforms experienced slight growth or a minor decline. Response rates varied considerably among these major players, with one platform's overall response rate falling below 5%, and another's rate dropping from over 90% to below 35%.
Consumers aged 21 to 30 were the most vocal group, filing over 60% of all complaints, followed by the 31-40 age group at 29.01%. This indicates that younger demographics, being more accustomed to online shopping, also demonstrate stronger awareness of their rights.