Feedback about warranty on Charge 5

[Carpedmm]

My battery was working with all of the features enabled for approximately one charge per week … until yesterday. This seems to be true for several others. Although I purchased the watch on Amazon in August 2022, Fitbit claims Amazon is an “unauthorized retailer” and refused to resolve my issue. 

To me, this clearly appears as a product defect and should be resolved by Fitbit, not any retailer.

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[STLBeachbum]

I ordered my FITBIT from Amazon in June 21, 2022.  Unfortunately my FITBIT ceased to work (it displayed the blue diamond screen of death) April 24, 2023.  FITBIT refused to honor their ONE YEAR WARRANTY “Because your product was purchased through an unauthorized reseller (The Amazon account is not an authorized reseller, for it to be authorized it needs to say: Soldby Amazon), it’s not covered by our warranty. For the details of our return policy, visit www.fitbit.com/returns
The warranty covers Fitbit products purchased directly from fitbit.com or an authorized retailer.” 

How was I, as a consumer, supposed to know this?  My order was directly with Amazon, it was they who directed my order to one of their vendors.  Amazon has refused to be of any assistance on this as well.

Moderator Edit: Word choice

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi there, @Carpedmm. Welcome to the forums, @STLBeachbum.

Thanks for the detailed information and the time taken in contacting our Support team. Let me explain that it's recommended to acquire a Fitbit product directly from our official website, or through our authorized retailers. However, if it's from a reseller we cannot ensure that you'll you get a genuine product tested by our team. This is also described in the Warranty Policy.

I'm sorry for this inconveneince and my best advice is to get in touch with Amazon, or directly with the reseller so they can help you out.

[Carpedmm]

Then do not sell your product to resellers!
Selling your product to resellers reeks of evasion of responsibility for your products.

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi there, @Carpedmm.

Thanks for getting back and let me clarify that we go through an authorization process to provide our products to select retailers that are in compliance with our policies, this to ensure that all our members will receive legit products. However, we don't have control on other sources that might have received the devices without our authorization. My best advice is to always get in touch with our Support team to confirm if your product meets the warranty conditions.

[tjcolorado]

I received a legit product from an unautorized seller. Your software update killed my Charge 5. Was it just kill all the unauthorized sellers? Obviously the software update was not tested very well. Are there other testing issues with your products? Fitbit has major quality issues! What was I thinking buying another poor quality watch? Never again!

[LizzyFitbit]

Welcome to the forums, @tjcolorado.

Thanks for sharing these details, and I'm sorry for this inconvenience. As you may know, every Fitbit product is covered by our warranty as long as it's purchased from an authorized retailer, as this ensures that your device is a device tested by our team. If after exhausting our troubleshooting the Charge 5 is still not responding, my best advice is to get in touch with the retailer in order to receive assistance.

Your feedback is appreciated and we'll keep working to improve our devices, as well as the experience with them.

[MAH62]

@tjcolorado,

I know it is little consolation, but I bought mine directly from Fitbit and they trashed mine with their update a month out of warranty and would not do anything other than offer the 35% off the full price not the current price... I just purchase a Mi Band 7 for a 1/3 the price of a Charge 5 and don't need the premium subscription to use all the features like you need with the Fitbit.  

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi there, @MAH62.

Thanks for joining this thread and sharing your feedback about your Charge 5. Fitbit strives to improve our devices and their performance, and feedback like yours helps to evaluate, work and make that happen. Please know you're always welcome back to the Fitbit family.

[stanhilliard2]

Carpedmm in the post above said about Fitbit:
"Fitbit claims Amazon is an “unauthorized retailer” and refused to resolve my issue."

Also:
STLBeachbum in the post below says FITBIT refused to honor their ONE YEAR WARRANTY “Because your product was purchased through an unauthorized reseller (The Amazon account is not an authorized reseller, for it to be authorized it needs to say: Soldby Amazon), it’s not covered by our warranty. For the details of our return policy."

Actually, Amazon is an authorized reseller of the Charge 5. Go to:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09BXQ4HMB?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

Look on the right side of that page, under "Buy Now" and you should see:
"Sold by Amazon.com"

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi there, @stanhilliard2.

Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts on this matter. As mentioned before, every product that is purchased from an authorized retailer is covered by our warranty. However, the product must be sold directly by them and not by a third-party so we can be assured that you received a legit device tested by our team, without being altered in any way by another party.

For anyone that purchased a device from an unauthorized retailer, please get in touch with the seller so they can evaluate your options.