Refund Process

[Abkelle]

Forewarning, if you're going to buy a Fitbit (which I would not recommend anymore) I would definitely not recommend buying it from their official website. I loved my teal charge HR, however in just one week it got extremely dirty and nothing cleans the dirt off the device. The cleaning instructions they provide on their site simply does not work. They have been aware of this issue since they created the flex; however Fitbit has not improved the quality of the bands even a few generations of devices later. Nor have they created a cleaning solution that properly cleans the bands. With that being said, a week after owning my Fitbit and reading all the negative reviews, I opted to return the device as it was not aesthetically pleasing to walk around with a grimy Fitbit around my wrist.

First, I emailed customer service, to which I received no reply. So, the next few days I decided to call customer service, after waiting 10 minutes to speak with someone I got the ball rolling on returning the device. The customer service rep talked me through the refund process and proceeded to send me emails. He first sends me an email stating what I had to do to return the device, then sent another email with the RMA details. So, I pay to ship the product back to Fitbit costing me $13.28 and afterwards send them the information regarding the tracking number, as the email said to do. After e-mailing the tracking number, they send an email back telling me to provide them with all the information they already have in regards to my name, product, and etc. Almost a week later they send me an email saying my replacement is on its way, however I was not in the process of getting a replacement, just a refund on the purchase of my charge HR. Needless to say, I had to call customer service again to whom I could hardly understand. He said the product has already been shipped, so I would have to ship it back, but this time they would pay for the shipping (which they should've done the first time). So it'll probably be another 3 weeks or more until I receive my refund, simply because this company is not organized and does not run their refund policy in a smooth and efficient manner. 

So I had to pay $9.00 in taxes when I initially bought the product, and $13.28 to ship the product back and they only want to refund me 149.00 (which I still haven't received, plus I have no product), so I'm already in the hole $23 from buying this product. Highly dissatisfied with this company and their product! I had high hopes and was getting all my friends/family to buy them, now I'm telling everyone to just be smart and buy an apple watch!

Side note, the email regarding my replacement said to throw away my defective device when I receive a new one which makes no sense because you have to return your old one in order to receive a new product. 

Point blank, the product is bad, the customer service is poor, and the refund process is atrocious.

Moderator edit: format and edited title for clarity

[ErickFitbit]

@Abkelle Sorry to hear about the miscommunication. I am confident in our Support Team and have reached out so someone can follow-up with you by end of day today to provide you with further assistance to get this resolved. Hope to hear some good news from you soon. 

[Abkelle]

After writing this,

The next day customer service got back with me. They apologized for how this process went, as well as confirming they will send me a refund for $158.95 and if I could prove that spent $13.28 on shipping, they would refund me that money back with a refund check. I will keep the forum posted as to how this process continues! 

[emili]

@ErickFitbit- thanks for stepping in and helping- its good to know you guys are on top of things that are posted here- the good, bad and ugly.

@Abkelle- stinks that you had to go through that. double stinks that you did not enjoy your fitbit. I hope someday you give it another chance and come join the fun. Take care, E.

[Abkelle]

Please to say, Fitbit refunded the money in my account by the 26th of January, also they sent me an email stating that a check would be arriving for the 13.28$.

Unfortunately, things didn't start out that great, but I am glad they corrected their mishaps and in a very professional manner.

However, since the mishap did occur, I still have a Fitbit in-transit to my house, which I will have to email my mother the label information and she'll have to find a place to print the label off and then take the Fitbit to a drop off location, as I'm currently back at college for the Spring semester. The situation has caused a lot of inconveniences, but at the end of the day I'm glad the manner got handle correctly and appropriately.

Initially I was highly dissatisfied with Fitbit, however I'm much more pleased with them at this time in regards to the refund process.

[ErickFitbit]

@Abkelle I'm glad to hear that we were able to improve your experience, and again, apologize for any inconvenience. Hope that you can give Fitbit another opportunity soon.

[jaymacel]

I am going through torture with company. I informed them that the rubber was comming off the strap, this is the third watch with this problem. They said return it and would replace it.But it would take some time. I said i need my fitbit so they said they would refund the cost if full. I purchased an other watch and a stainless steel strap. Having sent the faulty one back I waited ages, then was told that the refund was in the form of a fitual mastercard. Told them I was not happy about that, they said that was all they could do. The card never arrived. After many emails saying I have not received it, canceling the card and reissuing it. They said my email server was stopping it and asked me to give them an other email address. Seems like I am having all the pain. After many weeks I got this thing, it was a nightmare tring to set this thing up and I actualy started to think this was a scam. I told them I wanted the money sent to my bank. I produced and artical from a UK newspaper where a man had the same sort of problem and the end got a bank transfer. They finaly agreed to transfer the money. They now tell me it will take 6 to 7 weeks to transfer tthe money. 6 to 7 weeks in this day of age  when money transfers are almost instant. This is the worst company service I have ever had.

[AlessFitbit]

@jaymacel I'm really sorry to hear about the experience you've had thus far. I checked in with our Support team and can assure you your refund is being processed and expedited. In general, international wire transfers do take some time to process, which is why you were given that timeframe. We appreciate your continued patience. Please let me know if I can help you out with anything else in the meantime. 

[jaymacel]

Thats what your team say. What I want to know is why it takes so long. Could it be you have so many fefunds to make, do you need more staff to cope with the amout of rejects? All you had to do was replace the strap. As I have had three watches with the same fault, I can only assume you have thousands more per year. 5 to 7 weeks to arrange a refund is just silly.

[Pijot]

After more than a month replying and try to sort out a replacement unit for my Fitbit Charge2 (which 2 times they tried to Fedex it, but it never gone through) they agreed to give me a full refund via Virtual Mastercard too. I do understand the international wire transfer will takes a few days to process, what I can't understand is why it tooks until 2-3 business weeks to issue the Virtual Mastercard?

[Suzanne82]

Hi there did ur virtual MasterCard work? I registered mine and tried to do 3 online payments now and not one has worked! I’m so angry this has been ongoing for 3 weeks now! 

[Suzanne82]

Hi there

i received my refund via virtual MasterCard on the 19th January. I have registered the card and viewed funds and details and tried to do 3 online payments using it and all have failed!?!?! Can I please know why. This refund whole process has been going on over 3 weeks now! 😞 

[valerieval]

Fitbit refund.. so frustrating, i have been trying to get my refund for a very long time too.. eventually an email with a virtual mastercard. I cannot get it to work at all.. after a long email train they said to get in touch with Mastercard. I have just done this and mastercard are asking me questions about issuing banks and other stuff i am unable to answer because i cant log on... So frustrating.. i think they want people to give up! why cant they just issue a refund! 

[valerieval]

same here!

[CHEEKYSQUIRREL]

I to was issued a Digital Mastercard. Then I'm told how I have to use the money and that it will appear in American Dollars. 

Fitbit can't even tell me how much it is in Australian Dollars so I don't even know how much it's worth!

I have to guess an amount in order to make the purchase however each time I've tried so far it has been declined! A lot of companies have since explained they cannot accept payment made in foreign currencies! It's just insane to think that this companies refund policy is not user-friendly but rather really stressful and frustrating, to say the least! 

[GraceGFitbit]

Hi, @CHEEKYSQUIRREL  thanks for stopping by. Welcome to the Fitbit Forums @valerieval. 

Many thanks for the feedback provided about this. I will pass it to our team. I'm really sorry to hear about these inconveniences you're experiencing with the refund and I thank you for the time you took to share your thoughts with us. I recommend you to keep the assistance with the Support Team as they can provide you more detailed information. 

Please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any more questions, comments, or concerns.

[CHEEKYSQUIRREL]

I have spoken to the support team. 

There is no help there.

Fitbit needs to change the refund policy! It's just that simple! 

It's just ludicrous to be still trying to get a refund after almost half a year of trying! 

[Yrs-katie]

I returned my watch about 10 days plus ago and now I’m reading these articles and there making me worried. I’m second guessing if I should’ve returned it because Fitbit customer service is terrible and takes forever!

[valerieval]

They do reply eventually, but agree it takes too long and is extremely time
consuming. Sometimes it’s easier to actually talk to people not email.

[CHEEKYSQUIRREL]

Yet another failed attempt to use the card!

This is just one response: 

Unfortunately your order ************** placed on 16 May 2019 has not passed our verification process so it has been cancelled. We apologise for the inconvenience.

Some things that can influence cancellation can include (but aren't limited to): - a request from you to cancel your order before it was processed and confirmed  - incorrectly completed name or address fields  - your country of origin or IP Address  - the country of issue for your Credit Card  - your email domain  No payment has been processed for this order but a pre-authorisation may have been taken by your bank or financial institution. If they have, pre-authorisation funds will be released back to you within 2-5 business days.  Order cancellations are performed in accordance with section 6 of our terms and conditions (refer to clause 6.9).  So as you can see... Fitbit refunds DO NOT WORK!!!!  Now to take this to the Ombudsman!