Voluntary Safety Recall of Fitbit Ionic Smartwatches

[FitbitCommunity]

Fitbit, in conjunction with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), announced a voluntary recall of Fitbit Ionic smartwatches, which the company introduced in 2017 and stopped producing in 2020. The battery in the Ionic smartwatch can overheat, posing a burn hazard.

The health and safety of Fitbit users is our highest priority. We are taking this action out of an abundance of caution for our users. We will offer a refund to Fitbit Ionic customers.

This voluntary recall is specific to Fitbit Ionic devices. It does not impact any other Fitbit smartwatches or trackers.

If you have an impacted Fitbit Ionic device, please stop using it and visit our webpage where you’ll find:

• Answers to common questions
• Information on how to receive a refund 
• Access to a special discount on select Fitbit devices, bands, and services, if available in your region, for a limited time.

[Tjayy]

That explains a lot ! 

[nachisdak]

Hello. Can anyone confirm how long it took for people in UK to get a refund to paypal? I filled a claim and got confirmation of refund on same day, that was 7+ weeks ago. Thanks!

[nachisdak]

I meant confirmation that refund will be sent in 3-6 weeks* but I still haven't received it to my paypal though 7+ weeks have passed.

[Alan1973]

I started my claim on the 4th  March  you will get fed up of ringing  them amazing  I've had the  same lady answer phone  on a number  of  occasions  

[Tjayy]

It seems to be as follows. 

Register for the refund and select either pre paid Mastercard or PayPal as your refund method. 

They then brick the device within 24 hours. Mine was deactivated in about an hour. 

You then get sent a discount code that's good for 90 days. 

You then get an email tell you your refund will be given in 3 - 6 weeks. 

Regarding the refund, it seems to be a lot of people have got the refund but can't use it. Some have been waiting seemingly months. I'm currently 4 weeks in with no refund. 

I wish you the best of luck with yours. 

[maureen.b]

Thank you so much for that. I wish I’d asked beforehand. I’d never have consented to them deactivating. My watch seems still to be working but my phone is reverting back to reporting almost nothing in the app. What a pain. I’m so disappointed. There was nothing wrong with my device. I feel conned. 

[mwalker200]

Hi, I have had the same experience with returning a second device and not receiving the discount code for this second recall.  I sent my first recall in and received the refund and discount code and then purchased a Sense.  I sent the second recall in and received the refund but no discount.  I have contacted via chat, email and phone and I have been told that it is internal policy that one discount code is given out per account and not per device.  I asked if he could show me where the document was as I must have missed it but was informed it is internal and not for consumers to see.  The last statement from Fitbit support is we apologize for this issue and thank you for your understanding.  The problem is I don't understand because if this was stated to the consumer at the time of the recall I would have bought both replacement devices with the first discount code and everything would have been fine.

[Hammeroo]

@mwalker200. I could be wrong but I seem to recall that Fitbit only allowed one device purchase per discount code (along with the extra band and 12 months Fitbit Premium). So it would not have been fine for you. Perhaps somebody else could confirm that from their own recollection. 

[Tjayy]

The refund was 40% off for you and 3 family members. Irrespective of what the refund is, I don't have it yet, and have a broken watch. 

[Tjayy]

I think a large part of what the problem is, is people caught on to the refund and were buying the watches on ebay for much less than the refund amount. But I could be wrong. 

[JasonInMelbourn]

I got my Fitbit Ionic Recall Account Verification email 6 weeks ago to the day and still no refund. I chose the PayPal option and when I rang the number for Australian inquiries just before 11am Australian EST I got a very groggy sounding lady with a UK accent answering the phone. She could only verify the the refund was still being processed. When I asked how much longer I should wait since it's now 6 weeks and she said "Just keep checking" 🙄

[Kevin-fh]

I completed the refund instructions in March, received the discount code, purchased a new device to replace the Ionic which I am very happy with, BUT I have never received the refund?? I live in New Zealand and the number to call always has the same message I'm calling outside normal hours, whether I phone evenings, mornings or days. I have chatted online with support and been told to make contact with the Ionic Support line which is a UK number giving me the mentioned messages.

Is there any other way I can follow up on this matter, and has anyone else had problems getting their refunds? Is there an email I can communicate through to a real person?

Cheers Kevin from New Zealand.

[JasonInMelbourn]

If you're not having any luck getting through, my only suggestion is to call during UK business hours. I think I must've woken the lady up because when I checked what time it was in the UK it was just before 2am when I called.

[Jaffadutch]

Same position as me, I’m also (NZ) I didn’t get a code though

[ProfMax]

This is my exact experience with the Fitbit Ionic refund process. They had received my device and the telephone number (888-240-2819) used to get status is useless.  They have escalated my inquiry three times but they cannot give me the escalation department's contact information. I have begun to doubt it is a real place associated with Fitbit as it appears to be a personal residence.

I don't think I ever get a refund.

[SunsetRunner]

@nachisdak 

Let’s say I’m on week 17 and still no further forward with no help forthcoming so keep your hopes & chin up. 🤞🏼

[ErnieV]

All we can do now is keep up our hope. Maybe someday Fitbit will make all
this right. I empathize with you. I am in almost week 15. I quit calling
Fitbit it's a waste of time.

ErnieV

[Kukekuningas]

Wise decision!

R

[TomDuke]

Hello all.  US Fitbit customer here and this is my experience thus far.  I had three Ionics, registered them all the day the recall was announced, 2 March, and received return kits for each the following week.  Sent them in the same day via UPS and they arrived 14 & 15 March.  On 2 March I  also received the email with the discount code and access code for the Ionic Recall Web Store and ordered two Sense watches and a 'free' band for each, but declined the free Premium subscription.  Received the Sense watches and one of the two straps in a week, the second band remains on backorder to this day.

I received confirmation email from Sedwick in April for two of the Ionics about a week apart stating they were eligible for the refund and that I should get my money via PayPal in 10 working days which I did.  

Ionic #3 has had a different journey.  Even though it was sent the same day as the other two and received by Sedgwick on 15 March I heard nothing further.  Calling the Ionic Recall line on 27 April they confirmed that the watch was received and was being processed and all I could do was wait.  I gave them a call a few days ago since it had been two months without an update and they advised me that my watch was processed on 8 June and eligible for refund and that I should receive payment in 3-6 weeks.  As of today I have not gotten the email from Sedgwick telling me this and needless to say, no money as yet.  Still, I have hope.  This process certainly has been a trial for so many people but I've learned that patience is key.  Good luck everyone.

[shivabattula]

Hi All,

A quick update to all. I received the refund into my Payoneer account and now pending for local bank transaction. I am from India.

Compared to all the cases, mine seems to be resolved very quickly. I give the summary of my followup here for all your reference.

On 27th June, when I tried to sync my device, It was not happening, so I randomly searching on google for troubleshooting and noticed there is a recall for this device.

Immediately I opened my Fitibit portal and followed the instructions to recall/refund process. It prompted me to disable the device and proceed for recall.

Immediately received an Autotomated email with an URL from FitbitSupport to click and register the Payoneer account with the same name as FitBit email ID which I eventually completed and entered my local bank details with KYC done. 

Payoneer protal sent an email that my account is approved to receive the funds from Fitbit Payments.

Then started searching all the information about recall/refund process on google and various platforms including twitter and this forum.

Almost everywhere there is negative news about recall/refund process. Then I was bit skeptical and searching for dialing to the given UK numbers which I failed to dial. But later some how dialed during UK time and could not get proper update due to missing information of my recall/reference reference which I didnt get via email or I failed to note it down during my registration process. UK help line said that they dont find any details on my recall/refund in my fitbit account. I could not find any data on my Fitbit account eitehr due to disable the device and lost all the sync data about this device. But when I tried to reach the Chat helpdesk they assured me that I m ​​successfully registered for Fitbit recall so I have to wait and see as it may take 3-6 weeks turn around time on avg. 

But today on 2nd July withn just 6 days, i received an email from Paynoeer portal that i recevend 305.10USD and pending for local bank transfer which will be done within 24 hours and will be receiving another confirmation. Till then i was not able to see any kind of transactions on my payoneer portal but now able to see that its approved for 305.10USD bank transfer. 

Somehow I feel lucky when I see this email notification from Payoneer portal which just happened within 6 days of my recall/refund registration. There are no emails about device return too may be its not required for India as they dont have proper collection centers here. 

Thanks for Fitbit for handling this recall/refund process without keeping me wait for unknown period. Hope for the best, I think they are doing their due diligence but seems there are some issues with their processes and communication gap.  

All the best..

Thanks,

Surya