My experience with Charge 5 replacement and Customer Service

[bdc98]

My device was bought in May 2023 and died pretty much when everyone else's started dying.

I waited and tried all of the troubleshooting advice available with no luck.  My Charge 5 bit the dust hard.  It initially just acted glitchy, but eventually the screen stopped working despite the lights still working, then the lights stopped, and then all it would do is buzz once when connected to the charger.

Contacted Support through chat, and was surprised to see I wasn't given a major runaround or hassle.  I explained the troubleshooting I did, and attempted one or two other things suggested but they didn't work.  So I was given a warranty return after proving my purchase (and yes it was from Amazon)

Support created and sent me a FedEx return label and said to send it back, which I did.  I wasn't ever told what to send back, so I sent all items back in the original package.

I received my replacement about two weeks later, but it was literally just the device... no charger, no bands.  I contacted support again, and was told "We only replaced the device because we determined only the device was the issue" 😑

Stated I was never told what to send back to them until *after* they received the device... and once Support checked with the warehouse they did confirm I returned a band but apparently still didn't want to replace the charger.... fine.  I've got an extra from another dead Charge 5 that was out of warranty anyway. 🙄

So now I'm waiting for the band to be shipped.  The experience with Support was initially good, but there is clearly some failing in the Customer Support process that I can't explain.  

Also of note:  My new device is on some 182 version of the firmware, and right away one major thing I noticed is that while my old Charge 5 on the newer 188 firmware took a short bit to pick up my heart rate, the new device with the old firmware starts measuring my HR immediately after I put it on.  So, something really does seem bad about the two latest firmware releases and I'll be avoiding all updates as long as I can.

My advice to anyone who has to contact Support for their Charge 5:  Be polite, be courteous, be patient, but don't let them tell you "No" because they can and will be wrong about what they're telling you.

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject & Formatting

[MarreFitbit]

Hello there, @bdc98. Thanks for stopping by in the Fitbit Community Forums. We‘re taking your comments and sentiments in regards to our products and services into consideration. 

Even though I truly appreciate that you've taken the time to come here and share your experience, please note for this kind of inquiries/cases/process, there's no so much we here in the forums can do for you as this is something that our Support Team handles based on our policies. Nevertheless, please feel free to reach out to them again if you need further assistance or clarification regarding the outcome of your case. 

For more information about our warranty, see fitbit.com/legal/returns-and-warranty or please feel free to contact our team back so they can clarify any doubt. 

[bdc98]

Then their Customer Support should tell people, up front, what to return.  When I returned my Charge 5, I got the RMA number and shipping label with no further communication.  *AFTER* they received the device, they sent me an email saying basically "Oh yeah, don't send us the bands or charger" which was already too late.

After I contact them, they claimed I never sent them the charger OR band despite an earlier email stating "we received your Charge 5 device with band".  After pressing them, they said in a nutshell that they did indeed receive the band, but claimed I never returned a charger to them.

What started out a decent customer service experience quickly deteriorated.  I talked to Support via chat again, asking for a status update after replying to the ticket and STILL not getting a reply, and the Chat support person said to basically "wait until they reply to you".

I've been waiting TWO BUSINESS WEEKS for a simple acknowledgment that someone's taking action to replace the band they didn't tell me to keep and almost refused to replace.

TERRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE.

[bdc98]

Fitbit's bad firmware caused my three month old Charge 5 to die.  Their Customer Service was poorly trained or incompetent and didn't tell me to not send certain items back to them.  Fitbit then denied I returned the charger and band, after admitting they received a band.  Provided them shipping information *they already had previously on the ticket* and it's been two weeks since I've had any update on this company replacing the bands they kept and then tried to force me to replace with another purchase.

What does it take to get a straight answer out of this horrible Customer Service team?  Why does it take OVER TWO WEEKS to forward a request to a warehouse to ship a band to a customer to fix the company's mistake?

I'm pissed. 

[Odyssey13]

Hi @bdc98    you still need to get with customer support to resolve this.

here are the support contacts I've gleaned over the years on the forums.

when there is someone available, chat is an option. Phone or X/Twitter works well, too.

https://myhelp.fitbit.com/s/support?language=en_US 

Support is limited by the number of representatives available at a given time and the hours of operation. Chat lines are open when they have live help.
USA: call (877) 623-4997
UK: call 0800 069 8505
INDIA: call 000 800 050 1057
IRELAND: call 01 691 7502 (country prefix: +353)
Other contact options:

USA: click

Canada: click for options