Charge 5 Replacement Request

[LaLaVee1963]

My Fitbit Charge 5 is less than a year old and has stopped working. Since it is still within its one year warranty period, I would like a replacement.
I bought my Fitbit Charge 5 on November 20, 2022, and it is no longer working. The problems started while I was on vacation during the first week of July 2023. First, the screen became unresponsive, now it won't hold a charge at all. The battery drains completely only 30 minutes after charging overnight to 100%. I have followed all of the recommended possible fixes multiple times, but nothing has worked. I learned from a news article that this is happening to many Fitbit Charge 5 owners since a recent software update. I have also been on the Fitbit forum and understand from many posts by extremely unhappy Charge 5 owners that Fitbit is offering a 35% discount on the purchase a new device for those under warranty. This is completely unacceptable because the warranty promised a year of coverage. Since the issues that occurred are because of actions on Fitbits part, and not damage by me, it is only right to expect Fitbit to honor its warranty and replace my Charge 5. Based on the posts on the Fitbit forum, it is also clear that Fitbit is unresponsive, making excuses, and declining to honor its warranty across the board. All of this makes me wonder if Fitbit thought this was a clever way to increase sales!
I hope not! Because their lack of concern for the customer has only served to drive people away from their product. If Fitbit won't replace my Charge 5, and I have to buy a new device, trust me regardless of a 35% discount, I won't be buying a Fitbit! I will not support a company that doesn't stand on their word!

[Purple_Monkey]

Just received a replacement Fitbit Charge 5 and it doesn’t record my steps or counts them then wipes them so I have no idea what to do.

[RiekoC]

Hello & welcome @LaLaVee1963 

Sorry to see that you are having problems with your Charge 5. 

I think you might have misread some of the recent posts about Fitbit warranty. I had a non-responsive screen on my 6 month old Charge 5 and contacted Fitbit support. Once they confirmed that the troubleshooting did not return my device back to normal operation, that it was still under warranty, and that I purchased it from an authorized seller, I received an offer to replace the tracker/device or a discount on a different device.

According to recent posts, Fitbit support is still providing these offers. However, users mention that they are being told replacement Charge 5 tracker/pebbles are currently backordered until August 4.  

The posts that mention receiving an offer for a 35% discount on a replacement were for those users whose Charge 5 was out of warranty. 

[RiekoC]

Hello & welcome @Purple_Monkey 

Sorry to read that you are having problems with your replacement Charge 5. 

The first troubleshooting step to try is restarting your Fitbit. You can restart from the Settings menu on the Charge 5 or by using the charging cable that came with your device and pressing the button 3 times. 

[Purple_Monkey]

Hi, I tried restarting the replacement Fitbit and it has not solved the problem. I have contacted customer services and they could not find my Fitbit account then hung up on me