Fitbit Australian warranty

[loopsideup]

Hi,

Has any have experience with getting warranty beyond the Fitbit 365 days policy in Australia?

My just shy of 2 year old surge has had battery issues over the last several months (I admit I should have contacted support sooner) and now the battery only lasts about a day on a full charge. I have spoken to 2 agents on the online support chat but they insisted that I am out of warranty after confirming there is some thing wrong with the tracker's battery from their end. They kept offering me expedite shipping on a new Fitbit device which I repeatedly declined. I was also told that I made an agreement to the warranty policy when I made the purchase which I find a bit dodgy.

I was under the impression that I am covered under the Australian Consumer Law's guarantee on "a reasonable time" and believed that 2 years is a reasonable time to expect my surge to perform without defect under normal use.

I also asked if there was a paid service to get the tracker serviced as I would be happy to do that but I was told there was no such thing which is quite disappointing.

Link to the relevant information on the ACCC website: https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/consumer-rights-guarantees/warranties

[YojanaFitbit]

Nice to see that you're digging into the Forums @loopsideup, let me give you a warm welcome to our Community. 

Thanks a million for your feedback! I've check your case with our team and the options that you were offered are based on the Warranty Policies for Australian Consumer Law. Sorry if you feel that this is not enough, but even we understand you've invested in the Fitbit Family; however, we as any other company have policies to follow through.  While customer satisfaction remains our number one goal, the demands of running a global business require that we enforce our warranty consistently.

Let me know if you have any other question!

[loopsideup]

---

Here's what it says on the page you linked me (for the 5th time from Fitbit):

IMPLIED WARRANTIES

EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT PROHIBITED BY APPLICABLE LAW, ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE) SHALL BE LIMITED IN DURATION TO THE DURATION OF THIS LIMITED WARRANTY. Some jurisdictions do not allow limitations on the duration of an implied warranty, so the above limitation may not apply to you.

Ok. It was my understanding that I am protected by consumer guarantees outlined here: https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/consumer-rights-guarantees/repair-replace-refund

which you guys are not having any.

I have also just found out that the VISA card that I used to purchase the tracker extends my warranty on the device. How would I go about using that?

[YojanaFitbit]

Hope you are doing great and enjoying some healthy activities @loopsideup! 

Sorry about the issues with your Surge! Thanks for the feedback, it's very important to us to have your thoughts in regards Fitbit product and Warranty Policies. Please keep an eye on your email inbox, we've contacted our Customer Support team to request a new case for you; so they can answer all your inquiries.

Have a nice day! 

[Stormfire]

I am in contact with fitbit at the moment about an extended warranty claim due to the band splitting. 

I am hoping they will honour the extended warranty as the damage started to appear just prior to the end of that warranty period.  Though my contact with then was about 9 days past the expiry date as I didn't realise that the band was splitting as it was so minor to start with.

I am hoping you also got looked after.

[YojanaFitbit]

Hi @Stormfire! Hope you're doing great! Thanks for giving a short explanation about your case! Our Team checks every case depending on the scenario and situation, I'm sure they will do what they can! I hope you can keep us posted on the resolution though!

Have a good one! 

[loopsideup]

Hi @Stormfire, Fitbit did end up trying to look after me as a one off thing after i escalated my case with their Twitter handle. They exchanged a few units with me because all the replacement units had some issues with the band rubber being slightly raised in the areas right above and below the display.

I gave up in the end and kept the last replacement as a compromise. It was better than a Surge that couldn't even last more than a day. The email support people were much more polite and reasonable to deal with.

Best of luck.

[Stormfire]

Hi

I will gladly say that I was on livechat with fitbit this morning and they have agreed to replace my charge hr.

Very good service and has definitely ensured I will remain a customer of fitbit when I need to upgrade my next one.

[YojanaFitbit]

Hi back @Stormfire and @loopsideup! Thanks for the feedback guys! Good to know that you'll be back on track very soon @Stormfire. It's always good to check possible options, as mentioned before they check each case scenario! If you have more questions I'll be around.

Have a good one! 

[LVSteve]

I found their customer service to be pretty good. They gave me the fair choice between upgrading to an Ionic (or another tracker for that matter) at a good discount or having a new Surge sent. I chose the former and ordered my Ionic.

What they did not say, nor offer any alternatives to, is that they take two weeks to ship something from Indianapolis to Las Vegas?! That means that they have chosen to pay someone to hold onto the device rather than ship it! There are no 2 points in the US that take 2 weeks with modern shipping, and for a major company shipping should be just a pass-through cost, not a profit center.

But at any rate, none of that was even an option! They just took my credit card (and charged it immediately--fair) and a couple of days later told me the Ionic would be there in 2 weeks?! Amazon can get any product (including FitBits...) anywhere in 2 days, and often faster. 2-week delivery for your flagship product is absolutely, ridiculously, unacceptable. FitBit absolutely can, and absolutely should fix that.

[YojanaFitbit]

Hi @LVSteve, welcome and thanks for stopping by! It's great to see your participation in the forums!

I'm glad to hear that you chose the Fitbit Ionic, you will love it once you start using it! Thanks for sharing your feedback with us, please know that we provide feedback to our team based on community posts and we are always working on improving our devices and overall environment based on what you share here. 

Thank you for your understanding.

[Paul_p]

I just read about this ACCC ruling. I had a chargeHR replaced under warranty after only nine months ownership and then the replacement literally fell to pieces after only another nine months but fitbit refused to replace it as it was outside the 12 month warranty of the original unit. Does this mean it should have been replaced by law?

[YojanaFitbit]

Hi @Paul_p thanks for getting back! 

I noticed that you have a case open for this issue, I'd advise to get back with our support team since they have all details about Australian warranty. You can also read more about it here:  Return Policy and Warranty (AU). You can reply to the last email that they sent you or you can let me know and I will be more than glad to ask a ticket for you.

Let me know if you have questions. 

[Jewlzzz]

ACCC ruling stated that Fitbit should offer a 2 year warranty to Australia, yet even with the updated text (last week it was "last updated 2016" and now it is "17 July 2018") on the warranty page, it shows 1 year except for the EEA? How can that be?

shows 1 year except for the EEA? How can that be?

LIMITED PRODUCT WARRANTY

Fitbit warrants to the original purchaser that your Fitbit-branded device and Fitbit-branded device accessories (collectively, the "Product") shall be free from defects in materials and workmanship under normal use for a period of one (1) year from the date of purchase, except that if you reside in the European Economic Area (EEA) and you purchased your Fitbit product in the EEA, the warranty period is two (2) years from the date of purchase (the "Warranty Period").

[YojanaFitbit]

Hey there, @Jewlzzz! Welcome to the Family! 

Thanks a million for your feedback! I was of great help. You can check the latest information about Fitbit warranty here: Return Policy and Warranty AU.

Let me know if you have more questions about it.

[cdavidrun]

Hi Guys,

My reading of the Australian Consumer Law is that the manufacturer can play all of the usual games with warranties but it is the retailer that the law holds accountable. If you take the faulty product back to the retailer, even if the warranty period is over, then they have to repair or replace based on what is reasonable to expect from that item. If a fitbit is under three years old and is no longer fit for purpose then you probably have a good chance regardless of the warranty.The key is it is the retailer not the manufacturer.

I didn't bother in the end and went for a competitor product which I am very happy with

[YojanaFitbit]

Thanks for sharing your experience @cdavidrun! User experience is really important for us to improve our services and overall environment. 

Thanks for being part of the Forums!

[highon2str]

Fitbits now have a 2 year warranty -

Moderator edit: Word choice.

[YojanaFitbit]

Thanks a million for your comment @highon2str.

It's really important to have all details about the Fitbit warranty since if you reside in the European Economic Area (EEA) and you purchased your Fitbit product in the EEA, the warranty period is two (2) years from the date of purchase (the "Warranty Period"). For more details you can check our Return Policy and Warranty.

Let me know if you have questions about it.

[Dinuka]

Yes take it back to the retailer. Thats what i did when my charge 2 started draining charge rapidly and they straight up gave me a refund no questions asked. I had past 1 year but not 2. I didnt bother with customer service but by the looks of things they may not all be aware of the local situation. Or they are playing games as already mentioned.