Broken Fitbits (and do replacement products come with guarantees?)

Howdy!

When a manufacturer replaces a faulty product with a new replacement, does the warranty on the new replacement start from the date of replacement or is the replacement only covered from the date of the purchase of the original (faulty) product?

In March 2020 I bought a Fitbit Versa 2. In September 2021 (18 months after purchase) it became faulty. Fitbit replaced it in September 2021. The replacement failed in November 2022 (14 months after Fitbit supplied it). This time Fitbit refused to replace it, stating that it is out of warranty because they were counting the warranty from the date of my purchase of the original product (i.e. from March 2020).

Is this correct? Was the second (replacement) Fitbit only covered by the remaining warranty of the original Fitbit, rather than by its own 2-year warranty (even though the replacement was supplied as a new product)? How does the 6-year limit under Irish law impact this situation?

What, if any, redress do I have with Fitbit? Ideally I would like them to replace the faulty replacement Fitbit.

(Note that in all my dealings with Fitbit they referred to 'warranty' not 'guarantee')

Timeline summary:

1. March 2020: Purchased Fitbit Versa 2 at a cost of €199.
2. Sept 2021: Fitbit Versa 2 failed (after 18 months, Mar 2020 - Sept 2021 ). I contacted Fitbit and they replaced my Fitbit in September 2021 under warranty, which, according to Fitbit's website, is 2 years in EEA.
3. Nov 2022: Replacement Fitbit Versa 2 fails (after 14 months, Sept 2021 - Nov 2022). Fitbit claim it is no longer in warranty because it was covered by warranty that started from the purchase of my original Fitbit Versa 2 in March 2020, not from when they supplied this Fitbit in September 2021.

Note this ain't my first rodeo with faulty Fitbits. Here's a summary of my previous history (they are NOT reliable products):

March 2017: Purchased Fitbit Charge 2 from DID for €139.00.
October, 2017: Fitbit Charge 2 failed (after 6 months (Mar - Oct 2017). I returned it to DID who refunded me. I opted to upgrade to a new Fitbit Versa which cost €199.
March 2020: Fitbit Versa failed (after 29 months, Oct 2017 - Mar 2020). (That's when I bought the Versa 2 above)

coolaboola said:

This time Fitbit refused to replace it, stating that it is out of warranty because they were counting the warranty from the date of my purchase of the original product (i.e. from March 2020).

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Seems reasonable. You effectively get a two year warranty. That is long enough from the original purchase.



Brendan

@coolaboola - I think the warranty is from the date of the original purchase. Something similar happened with a electrical device I bought in lidl / aldi a few years back - replacement was sent out to me, but it was stated that the warranty of the product ( 3 year warranty) was still from the original date and not the date of the replacement.

Re the fitbits - My wife has had to replace the straps a couple of times on one she had purchased around 18 / 24 months ago and also the charge on the initial one was failing, wouldn't last the day before it needed to be recharged. They were replaced under warranty at the time. Still using the replacement one at the moment, but again, I assume that the warranty would be from the original purchase date.

As above, warranty periods do not reset on receipt of a replacement product, the original date of purchase is paramount.

There is a bigger question here in terms of consumer rights though, which are not limited by manufacturer warranties. Is it reasonable that a device at those costs should only last 2 years? You have the option of the Small Claims Court if you feel the €25 cost is worth pursuing that line.

I've found Fitbit support very hit and miss.
They generally offer me something, and in a lot of cases it suits me to take their offer - but they do seem to push back on any claims from me of manufacturing defects.

I've had 3 Fitbits (Ionic, 2 Versa 2s and now a Sense) fail with with front screen adhesive fail since 2017, and once had a Fitbit Ionic fail with battery.

They did not want to offer me anything in replacement for the 2nd Ionic out of warranty, but I made the case that it was getting hot touch while I followed their diagnostic steps and they got a bit... anxious and offered me a free upgrade.
I took 50% discount to from Versa 2 to Sense, as it as out of warranty - but I repaired the Versa 2 myself with some smartphone glue and gifted this.
My first Sense is still working too with screen re-glue, despite it being a warranty replacement and them potentially remote disabling the device from pairing in future.

My impression is if I really pushed, they weren't going to give me an out of warranty replacement without a fight, and quoting consumer rights at them wasn't helping.
They blatantly have well known defects that exist from the factory, that aren't wear and tear. If you have one of these issues, I'd hope you would have straight forward case in Small claims court.

Sounds to me like there's a strong case here to stop buying them and find something more reliable.

Leo said:

As above, warranty periods do not reset on receipt of a replacement product, the original date of purchase is paramount.

There is a bigger question here in terms of consumer rights though, which are not limited by manufacturer warranties. Is it reasonable that a device at those costs should only last 2 years? You have the option of the Small Claims Court if you feel the €25 cost is worth pursuing that line.

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As Leo said the warranty is from the original purchase date but you have extra rights of up to six years with the sales of goods act but a lot depends on the item, the nature of the problem, the age, the cost and believe it or not the value of usage you got before the item becamyfaulty. Unfortunately you have to deal with the place you purchased the item from as they are who you have a sales contract with, if you bought direct from the manufacturer then it's them you contact if from a shop like Harvey Norman then then but if you bought on adverts from a third party I don't think you have any additional rights outside of the manufacturer warranty and even then they might choose to deny the claim.
Have a read of the sales of goods act and contact citizens information for more info

Thanks for your feedback folks. I agree that the most important lesson from this sorry saga is that I should probably avoid Fitbit.

I have already moved to another brand (Ticwatch E3). While it's OK, I find it too bulky (even the smaller size) compared to Fitbits. And the battery life just doesn't compare (the Ticwatch lasts a max of 2 days (even with various battery-saving adjustments) compared to 6+ days for the Fitbit).

It's a pity. Fitbits are great (features, form factor, battery life)... except that, based on my experience, they seem to be reliably unreliable. And what looks like a great price for a smartwatch with their features isn't great value at all if it fails, on average, within two years.

I'm not sure I'm willing to invest the time and effort to pursue Fitbit at this stage (even though I'm sorely tempted to on a point of principle) I hope my experience helps anyone who happens to be in the market for a smartwatch or tracker.

coolaboola said:

Thanks for your feedback folks. I agree that the most important lesson from this sorry saga is that I should probably avoid Fitbit.

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In my experience, Garmin fitness trackers are no different. They're all essentially early-stage tech gadgets, with all the long-term unreliability that entails.

T McGibney said:

In my experience, Garmin fitness trackers are no different. They're all essentially early-stage tech gadgets, with all the long-term unreliability that entails.

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Good to know. You'd think the technology would be maturing by now though. Makes you wonder whether it's not as much a case of planned obsolescence as immature tech. As their tech is more widely adopted (and fails more widely), will consumers' patience run out eventually? These are not cheap devices (especially if they fail every couple of years)

On a related note, has anyone attempted to repair a Fitbit? Since mine are write-offs anyway, I wonder is it worth seeing it I could squeeze any more life from them.

coolaboola said:

Thanks for your feedback folks. I agree that the most important lesson from this sorry saga is that I should probably avoid Fitbit.

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I have the same Apple Watch for the past four years, it still gets firmware updates, the battery lasts all day (and beyond) and works as well as the day it was purchased.

Buy cheap, buy twice couldn't be more apt in this case.

True @tallpaul! Though I haven't found a watch with the same feature set as Fitbit at any price (especially battery life ... I want multi-day battery life, not daily charging. It's annoying me that I have to charge my Ticwatch every 2 days or so!)

tallpaul said:

I have the same Apple Watch for the past four years, it still gets firmware updates, the battery lasts all day (and beyond) and works as well as the day it was purchased.

Buy cheap, buy twice couldn't be more apt in this case.

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Apple watch requires a iPhone. Current iPhone is €1000 sim free. Cheapest Apple Watch is €300. That's quite the up spend, especially across a family. I know the ecosystem argument.

That said I've never loved fitbit, I've had to support a few in the family. While the owners loved them, I moved them to other devices when I could, as found them troublesome devices compared to other brands.

I also prefer a watch with better battery life. I can use mine with the always on display and get many days out of it. But I get that daily charging is sufficient for most people.

Many Samsungs will last a week some and Garmins last a month. I don't think fitbit stand out on battery life. Loved the Pebble concept. Fitbit have a nice ecosystem with other fitbit users and even child accounts etc.

tallpaul said:

I have the same Apple Watch for the past four years, it still gets firmware updates, the battery lasts all day (and beyond) and works as well as the day it was purchased.

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Snap, a Series 4, Nov 2018. All I've changed is the bracelet as the silicon strap drove me nuts, I bought a 3rd-party black steel one.

I think all of our fitbits were 2018/2019. Still working the same as they always did. Just now passed down to others in the family.

Nothing lost in following the process.

Apple have had their history and issues with warranties same as everyone else.

AlbacoreA said:

I also prefer a watch with better battery life. I can use mine with the always on display and get many days out of it. But I get that daily charging is sufficient for most people.

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@AlbacoreA What watch do you have that you get multiple days battery?

The big 46mm Samsung. Had a Garmin before it also would last a good few days.