Fitbit Alta Fell Off & Now Lost!

[RaymondJr]

I am Very Upset! My wife bought me a Fitbit Alta (Black/Large) for an early Father's Day present. I loved it! and was so happy to help me with getting fit.
Well today while out walking at Disneyland it fell off! I haven't even had it 10 days! The strap on this is terrible! If it comes off while walking & limited activity, how are you suppose to do increased activity? You would think there would be a clasp or some kind of lock to keep it from coming off! My wife is upset too since this was the gift she bought for me so she & I could challenge each other to stay active, now it's gone! $129+ for less than 10 days :-(...
Fitbit needs to improve this band!
I sure wouldn't recommend the Fitbit Alta to my friends or co-workers if it falls off that easily!

Moderator edit: format

[stephll1987]

I received my Alta as an early birthday gift in May and loved it and used it every day, until Friday, when I had taken my dog on a walk and returned home to discover that my Alta was not on my wrist. After using the bluetooth suggestions to try to locate it in my home and purchasing an Apple app to try to help me locate it and turning my home upside down, I came to the conclusion that it just fell off during my walk. I tried retracing my steps, and did not find it. When I called Fit Bit customer service today, they told me they could offer me a 25% off coupon to replace it on their website. I am so disappointed. Why would I spend another $130 to replace a clearly defective product? Based on many other post here, this is a very common problem. 

[carolyn9678]

Hi Lucy FitBit Moderator,
No luck finding it, but I did get a replacement, so I'm back to normal
again. I do wish a new catch would be designed because way too many of us
users have lost our Altas. That's just not right. I'm now wearing small
rubber bands on my strap to avoid losing it again .... but don't feel that
I should have to resort to that measure.

Thanks for your touching base with me.

Carolyn

Moderator Edit: Removed Personal Information

[KayGreen]

Mine has fallen off several times in the first couple weeks too. It really needs a watch band type buckle

[barbramana]

I hope that my situation with losing my fitbit alta will help others. 

Three days ago I went grocery shopping and when I came home I noticed that my fitbit was no longer on my wrist. I had only had my fitbit for two weeks and I wasn't even exercising when it fell off! I searched the forums and apparently, this is really common, which honestly is sad because it's exercise wear, so it should obviously be a lot tougher than that. I called fitbit and a women informed me that there was a 1 year warranty on my fitbit, but losing it wasn't covered. In most of the newer forums, people said that they weren't offering free replacements anymore, but merely 25% off. That's what she offered me so I complained and pushed a little further. I told her what happened and that it honestly shouldn't have happened. She put me on hold and then told me that they were going to make an exception (they better!) and replace my fitbit this one time. 

So all of you who get the whole "25% off because we don't cover lost fitbits" just make sure to push harder and complain more, because you'll (hopefully) get your fitbit replaced. You think by now they would have replaced the bracelet.

[LucyAP]

It's nice to have you on board @stephll1987! Thanks for sharing your experience with Fitbit Alta and Support. To further assistance with your lost tracker, please contact Support. Just please make sure that your are letting them know all the details on how you lost your Alta. I'm sure that they can always find a way to help. 😉 

Thanks for the update @carolyn9678! And thank you for your feedback, this will help a lot to keep improving our products. 

@KayGreen Many thanks for the suggestion, I think that would be a nice addition to the Fitbit Alta. The best place to make your voice heard, is the Feature Suggestions board. There, you can create your own idea or vote for a similar idea. The ideas with more votes are taken into consideration by our developers. 

I hope to see you around more often! 😉 

[kanikak]

This just seems ridiculous. How many of people have to loose their Alta because this flimsy strap comes undone on it's own before Fitbit changes the design. I lost my Alta the exact same way - just fell off my wrist for no reason at all. Customer support while sympathetic were not useful. I bought it in August and have used It every day since then only for it to fall off my wrist on its own. 

I feel so upset at having to replace the tracker after just 2.5 months for no fault of my own. I mean are we suppose to buy extra safety gear to secure the Alta, keep checking it every hour??? And if we are I would have liked to know that when I purchased this.

I am never recommending the Alta to anyone! Not only have I lost money, I lost time trying to find the thing for half a day, calling customer support to be told sorry nothing we can do and now more importantly my fitness tracking has come to a complete halt.

[hanna1776]

I've had a terrible experience with my alta as well. I knew it was susceptible to falling off but decided I'd give it a try (my first fitbit) and I purchased 3rd party silicon band things to keep my alta secure. Multiple times the band thing was the only thing keeping my fitbit on my wrist as the clasp kept coming undone. Finally, this weekend I was hiking with friends deep in the woods and noticed when I drove home that my alta was gone. Since it was a long trip and in the wilderness with no phone service, there was next to no chance of me getting near enough to my lost alta to find it, even if I had made the long trip back. I want to stay with fitbit but this was a pricy object to lose. I contacted customer service and they basically gave me tips on using bluetooth to locate it, but given my sitiuation I don't know why they think that could be a possibility. It shouldn't have fallen off in the first place, especially since it wasn't like I was swinging my arms around or anything. All I did was walk, and I even used additional measures to keep the alta on and that still wasn't enough. Definitely a disapointing first fitbit experience for me, I should have listened to reviews warning about this product.

[ErickFitbit]

@kanikak @hanna1776 Thank you for the candid feedback! I was able to check in on your support case with our team and was happy to hear that they were able to help get you back on track with a replacement. I will pass along the feedback to the appropriate team. Thanks for your update.

[hanna1776]

@ErickFitbit Thank you, I actually planned on updating my post. Fitbit customer service was great and has offered to send a replacement. They will keep me as a customer!

[kanikak]

@ErikFitbit thank you for checking up on this issue. The second time around fitbit has offered to send me a replacement. I am really happy to be able to get my fitness back on track without having to re-purchase...so thank you to the entire fitbit team. However, I hope the design for the band is updated based on all this feedback.

[soccermum]

After a few follow-ups Fitbit agreed to send me a replacement Alta - which was great.  However I didn't want to risk another loss so I took the replacement back to the retailer where I made my original purchase and explained what happened and they were happy to exchange the Alta for an HR2 with a traditional buckle wrist band.

[bostonjosie]

To all the Alta Fitbit owners who may want a buckle-type closure, you can find them at Amazon.com.  For less than $10 you can get a leather wristband with a buckle (Hunputa brand).  I have attached a couple of pics.  Also, you can see from one of the pics, I have added an ID label on the underside of my Alta, just in case it does fall off, anyone who finds it will hopefully call me.  That label was made with a cheap Brother labeler and has been in place for 2 months without showing any signs of wear.  I have also added a pic of my "double duty" silicone fasteners.  I always use two fasteners at a time with one fastener actually resting over the snap enclosure to hold it tightly.  Best wishes with your Altas!  I love mine!   

  

[ErickFitbit]

@hanna1776 @kanikak @soccermum Thank you for the status update. I'm happy to hear that you're back on track. If you need any assistance in the future, our Support Team is always available to help.

[Gatesgang]

Excellent idea

[Minkah]

Hello, I am stunned they replaced your lost Alta. Can you tell me how you convinced them?? My 6 month old Alta battery is dying in a couple data and despite agreeing it is failing Fitbit wants me to send them the tracker and sit around waiting for them to process a warranty replacement. I have many issues with that and I won't bore you with them, but I'd love to hear from you how you got yours replaced, thanks!

[carolyn9678]

Hi Minkah,
Basically, I told the rep that I had been having issues with the band
since my Alta was brand new. First, the holes were so tight that I had
difficulty putting it on by myself. After only a short while, the holes had
stretched to the point that it would pop open. One day I looked at my
wrist and my Alta was missing. When I called, the rep had me download a
BlueTooth tracker app & I went everywhere I had been that day (after the
time of the last sync), searching for my lost Alta. But no luck. Since I
had problems with the band, I gently told the rep that I didn't think it
was fair that they were offering me only a discount on replacement. After
awhile, the rep agreed to send the replacement at no charge to me.
I'm coming up on 6 months, so I'm wondering if I'll have the same
battery issues that you are experiencing. That seems like an awfully short
battery life. I wish you the best in resolving your Alta issues!
Carolyn

Moderator Edit: Removed Personal Info

[Minkah]

Thanks for your response! I'm glad you had a good experience. I'm still sorely disappointed how fitbit is handling my battery issue. I've got my tracker and they can have it, I will even send pics if asked, but I want the warranty replacement first. Plus it's not fair or consistent that I've heard/read other member posts, like you, who got a replacement without a hassle. I've bought 2 Flex trackers and 3 Altas since 2014. I bought my second Flex bc I lost the first one just like you lost yours - the bands are terrible design so you are bound to lose it at some point unless you get the silicone safety rings (available on Amazon). Then I bought Alta for the new features and bc my Flex battery also began to die fast (seems to be a common issue). When I upgraded to the Alta I even got my Mom and sister Altas too! If the support is going down the tubes and they dodge their warranty it's not worth it to stay loyal, and they obviously don't treat customers the same. I really do hope you have better luck with the tracker than I did. Thanks again for sharing!

[carolyn9678]

Wow, I'm sorry to hear about the issues you have had, Minkah. You
certainly have been a loyal FitBit customer. My phone call with the rep
lasted an hour and forty minutes, so I worked very hard to get my
replacement. It really wasn't easy, but I did get the free replacement by
staying friendly and persistent. Good luck with your issues.
Carolyn

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[Minkah]

Thank again @carolyn9678, hearing ot took you a very long support call maybe I'll try again. If I succeed I'll update you. And, if you didn't get a safety catch yet for your Alta, I really do recommend those silicone rings. I've got some on Amazon and Ebay and they work like a charm. Best of luck to you have a very Happy Thanksgiving!!

[carolyn9678]

It's definitely worth another try, Minkah. I do wish you the best of luck
... just have patience. I've been using a hair elastic wrapped around 4
times as a safety for my strap. Seems to have been working so far.
Wishing you a wonderful Thanksgiving, too!
Carolyn



Carolyn Yost
Certified AVON Training Leader

Moderator edit: personal info