Versa screen cracked

[SunriseRun417]

Newer fitbit user here. Just want to get this cautionary tale out.

tl;dr Do NOT get the Versa.

My girlfriend got me the Versa about 3 months ago at Christmas. All the poor reviews and issues found on this forum are true indicator of the poor quality of this watch.

So three months in, I noticed that my screen is cracked. Figured, no big deal. It will be covered under the warranty. I contacted the customer support team with this issue via chat.

Two issue with her attempt at resolution. First go-around, she tried to deny my claim by stating that it is a cosmetic damage of the screen itself. Which it is not. It is a cracked screen which would affect the water resistance feature of the watch. Then she goes on to say that it is not covered because it fell outside the warranty period. Moral of this first interaction, in one chat, a Fitbit representative has lied to me twice. I can attach the chat transcript if people are interested.

Then I tried to call in this issue at the call center. At this point, I asked him about the warranty and he assured me that he will try to resolve this issue. After reviewing the chat transcript, he came up with another brilliant answer for why the cracked screen is not covered. It is because it is a Versa and Versa screens are not covered by their limited warranty. At this point, I asked him to direct me to the warranty exclusion and he was not able to do so. 

At this point, the advocate directed me to his supervisor. After explaining the situation to her, she assured me and reiterated that Fitbit does not cover Versa screen defects because there is an exclusion policy in place and she confidently told me where it was. Under the Warranty Statement, in the third paragraph of the Exclusion policy where it states:

"This warranty does not apply to a Product or part of a Product that has been serviced, altered, refurbished, or modified by anyone who is not authorized by Fitbit, nor does it apply to any cosmetic damage such as scratches and dents. In addition, this Limited Product Warranty does not apply to damage or defects caused by (a) use with non-Fitbit products; (b) accident, abuse, misuse, mishandling, flood, fire, earthquake or other external causes; (c) normal wear and tear or aging of the Product such as discoloration or stretching; or (d) operating the Product (i) outside the permitted or intended uses described by Fitbit, (ii) not in accordance with instructions provided by Fitbit, or (iii) with improper voltage or power supply."

Surprise. Another Fitbit representative has lied about their warranty offerings. At this point, she tried to backtrack her statement just to tell me that even though the warranty does not preclude the cracked Versa screen it is still not covered under their warranty because it is not covered.

My girlfriend and her family were one of the first few adopters (that I know of) of the Fitbit device. They have raved up and down about their warranty and how they stand by their product. That has not been my experience in the least.

It seems to me that Fitbit shift from its consumer base towards its bottom line will continue to alienate customers new and old alike. Hopefully they are able to right this ship before it sinks.

Moderator edit: subject for clarity

[Odyssey13]

Hello and welcome to the forums @SunriseRun417 

I've notified a moderator about your post, so they will be here to address your concerns. Thanks for coming to the forums.

[AlejandraFitbit]

A warm welcome to the Community @SunriseRun417 and @Odyssey13 thanks for the input.

I am sorry to hear about what happened to your Versa display and understand your frustration.

As mentioned previously from our support team, Fitbit don't cover accidental damages. For more information about this you can check our warranty policy which is what the support team follows to provide a resolution.

Let me know if you need anything else. 

[SunriseRun417]

This is not an accidental damage. It was not struck against any surface. 

Also, why did Edson, a moderator feel the need to change my username? My username was UnhappyVersa before Edson changed my username without permission. In his PM, he tried to justify it by saying that it violates the community guidelines. Nowhere do I see that I am not allowed to be unhappy with your product offerings.. Please change my username back.

[SunriseRun417]

Alejandra. Please refrain from editing my posts without reason moving forward. You have edited my post and redacted information that I deemed relevant to the issue for no reason.

[Odyssey13]

@SunriseRun417   the terms of service for these forums can be found here see #5 about editing posts.

[SunriseRun417]

I'm assuming you are referring to the catch-all at the end.

"Fitbit may, in its sole discretion, alter, remove, or refuse to display any of Your Content, and may forbid you from posting, uploading, storing, sharing, sending, or displaying Your Content to and via the Fitbit Service."

If that's the reason Alejandra changed my post, just because it was at her discretion. That's fine but it again is terrible user experience.

[Slatyer]

Hey @SunriseRun417, @Odyssey13, @AlejandraFitbit i was worried about my Fitbit getting scratched on the screen, i went and bought a screen case for my versa. I know this wont really help but if you do get a new one you should buy a case from ebay for it.

[Odyssey13]

Hi @Slatyer  I've never used a screen protector for my Fitbits. The one you got was a case and not just a film that goes over the screen? Might need to consider trying one if I change from my Alta HR.

[SunriseRun417]

Hey @Slatyer , thanks for the suggestion. But what I have is not a scratch. It's a honest to god crack in the screen. I don't think a screen protector can protect agaisnt a manufacturing defect where the screen just cracks on its own. 

[SunriseRun417]

Is there no resolution?