{
  "id": 4775820,
  "title": "Shopee appliance seller sues customer over bad review – and loses",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/01/shopee-appliance-seller-sues-customer-over-bad-review-and-loses",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-01T03:34:16.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Business Times - Singapore",
    "slug": "the-business-times-singapore",
    "url": "https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/singapore/shopee-appliance-seller-sues-customer-over-bad-review-and-loses"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A Shopee seller that sued a customer for defamation after receiving a negative review has lost its case. The District Court ruled the review was not defamatory and ordered the retailer to pay the customer S$4,000 in costs. The customer, Chua Poh Hiok, had purchased a cooker hood from appliance retailer Asia Excel through Shopee and left a review expressing frustration over the seller's delivery and return policies. Asia Excel sued Chua over the review but failed to establish it was defamatory, as the review conveyed true information about the seller's practices and was a matter of public interest. The District Judge noted that online shopping leads to negative reviews and that the tort of defamation does not protect against every negative review.",
  "summary": "The court finds the customer’s comments are based on facts and are views a fair-minded person could hold",
  "key_points": [
    "Shopee seller sued customer for defamation after negative review",
    "District Court ruled review not defamatory, ordered S$4,000 in costs",
    "Asia Excel failed to prove review was false or malicious"
  ],
  "editors_take": "This ruling sets a precedent that online sellers cannot use defamation suits to silence customers from leaving honest reviews about their experiences with delivery and return policies.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Business Times - Companies & Markets",
        "title": "Shopee appliance seller sues customer over bad review – and loses",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/01/shopee-appliance-seller-sues-customer-over-bad-review-and-loses-4776311",
        "published": "2026-09-01T03:34:16.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}