Temu, the online shopping platform that has gained popularity for its heavily discounted products and flashy promotional campaigns, is facing growing criticism from Pakistani consumers. While the platform advertises itself as a reliable and affordable e-commerce solution, many users have taken to social media to express frustration over delivery issues, misleading promotions, and an unresponsive customer service system. As complaints continue to surface, it is becoming evident that Temu’s operations in Pakistan are far from smooth, leaving customers stranded with lost orders, undelivered parcels, and unresolved refund claims.
One of the most alarming concerns raised by Pakistani shoppers is the issue of fake delivery confirmations. Many customers have reported that their orders were marked as delivered even though they never received their parcels. In some cases, courier companies failed to notify recipients before delivery, while in others, they outright falsified delivery statuses. A frustrated customer shared their experience, saying, “My Temu order is marked as delivered but I didn’t receive it yet. It’s been 2 days. The courier company did not send me the message which they usually send when the parcel is out for delivery. The tracking ID shows that the order has been delivered. I am trying to contact them since 2 days but they are not receiving the call.”
The too-good-to-be-true pricing of the platform unfortunately has been leaving some customers disappointed upon receiving the products, which were of cheap quality or a result of misleading descriptions. Public News covered these growing experiences of a few such cases, which seem to be the tip of the iceberg of many such complaints of Pakistani online shoppers.
Aside from underwhelming products, Temu’s promotional campaigns have also come under scrutiny. One of the platform’s most widely advertised promotions is the “4 Free Gifts” campaign, which claims that users can win free products by collecting coins. Initially, customers are given generous bonuses, making it appear that winning is easy. However, as they get closer to the required 100 coins, the reward system suddenly slows down, making it increasingly difficult to accumulate the remaining points. A user voiced their frustration, writing, “Asking about Temu app! Do they really give 4 free gifts or is it just fraud? The criteria for winning these 4 gifts is to collect 100 coins and at the beginning they will give you a lot of bonuses and when it reaches to 98 coins then they ask for sharing with your friends to earn coins and get free gifts. After sharing with friends they are giving very minimum coins like 0.05 coins per referral. So I think this is just their advertisement thing, nothing else.”
For those who attempt to return items, Temu’s refund process has proven to be just as frustrating. Several Pakistani customers have complained about waiting for months without receiving their refunds. One shopper shared their experience, saying, “I have refunded my Temu parcel… they said we’ve issued the refund but it’s been 2 months and still I didn’t receive it. The payment was through SadaPay card… If anyone knows what to do with this kindly let me know please.”
To make matters worse, Temu’s customer support has done little to resolve these issues. Many shoppers have reported receiving nothing but automated responses when reaching out for help. Complaints are often met with generic replies, and in some cases, the support tickets are simply closed without a resolution. With no local customer service team in Pakistan, users are left with no direct way to escalate their concerns, making the overall shopping experience increasingly frustrating.
As complaints from Pakistani consumers rise, Temu’s reliability as an online shopping platform is under scrutiny. With e-commerce growing in Pakistan, shoppers need to stay vigilant when shopping from overseas platforms.
