A Singapore household appliance retailer sued a customer for defamation over a negative review on Shopee over its delivery and refund policy, but lost the suit and has to pay costs of S$4,000 (US$3,145) to the customer.
In a judgment published on Monday (Aug 31), a judge said that ratings and reviews are part and parcel of e-commerce platforms, and that not every negative review is defamatory.In this case, not only was the review not defamatory, the gist of it was true and the defence of justification applies.
The customer, Ms Chua Poh Hiok, had purchased a cooker hood from a retailer called Asia Excel on Shopee, an online shopping platform, in 2024.
On Nov 13, 2024, she posted a review on Asia Excel’s listing page advising others: “please do not buy from this seller”.
She said the retailer would call and keep saying that once the product was delivered, if there was no damage to the exterior, that meant the product could not later be returned or refunded.
“On top of it, they insist and insist you must wait at home for delivery and make sure you sign (the) delivery, once signed, no refund/return. Now, what if after installation, it is faulty? How to receive and make sure immediately it is not faulty?”
Ms Chua added that it was “very frustrating that they (and) their delivery man will keep reminding you, once acknowledged receipt means everything is acceptable and cannot return”.
CNA
