Smartwatch failed out of warranty - no repair or refund available.

RTD2020

DullGreyGuy said:

Which customer service have you been contacting and getting offers from? Amazon or the Manufacturer?

I have been contacting Withings, as I was happy to pay for a battery replacement, but apparently the watches are totally unserviceable.

After reading the helpful comments on here I have now contacted Amazon customer support, initially they said it's out of warranty so they couldn't do anything, after suggesting I would make a Section 75 claim they have now escalated it to their legal department.

If they offer me a 50% Amazon credit I will take it.

Thanks for all the useful advice.

Aylesbury_Duck

RTD2020 said:

I purchased a Withings Smartwatch in October 2021 from Amazon, paying by credit card.

One of the reasons I bought it rather than a FitBit, Apple watch etc is because you only have to charge it every couple of months.

I didn't use it for a couple of weeks and it was completely dead when I tried to charge it. I contacted customer service, and after trying various things they suggested I left it on charge permanently and after a couple of days it sprang into life. However, it will now only hold charge for around 12 hours before needing recharging, rather than the couple of months as beforehand.

When I contacted customer service they said that the warranty was only for 2 years (so expired October 2023) and they offered me a voucher for a discount of 25% on a new one. I asked for the cost of repairing the watch by replacing the battery, and they said the battery could not be replaced. I said that this was unacceptable for a £280 watch, and that I did not feel that the item was of merchantable quality, and asked for a refund or repair under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

They then offered a voucher for a 50% discount off a new watch, even after I threatened to take them to the smalls claim court.

Is it worth the effort making a claim with the smalls claim court, and does anybody think that I have a good case and reasonable chance of succeeding?

Looking on various forums this seems a common problem with the watch just dying like this.

I have not heard of any other similarly priced devices where the battery cannot be replaced.

Any advice gratefully accepted, as I've never used the small claims court.

Just to note:  You wouldn't have got anywhere taking Withings to court, because you didn't purchase from them.

Let's hope Amazon come back with a decent offer.

DullGreyGuy

RTD2020 said:

DullGreyGuy said:

Which customer service have you been contacting and getting offers from? Amazon or the Manufacturer?

I have been contacting Withings, as I was happy to pay for a battery replacement, but apparently the watches are totally unserviceable.

After reading the helpful comments on here I have now contacted Amazon customer support, initially they said it's out of warranty so they couldn't do anything, after suggesting I would make a Section 75 claim they have now escalated it to their legal department.

If they offer me a 50% Amazon credit I will take it.

Thanks for all the useful advice.

S75 is paid by your credit card company so really Amazon's Legal team should be telling you to go do that as it means it won't cost them anything at all but your bank will almost certainly want an engineers report on the watch before doing anything material. 

Threatening small claims court is the better way to get action out of them because thats their pocket and court costs on top that are being considered.

RTD2020

DullGreyGuy said:

Threatening small claims court is the better way to get action out of them because thats their pocket and court costs on top that are being considered.

I hadn't thought of that, thanks. When they get back to me I'll tell them that's the way I will be going.

Grumpy_chap

My experience with smart watches / fitness trackers is that they only really last 2 or 3 years before the battery life deteriorates.
The OP seems to have had expected life from their watch so the 50% off a new watch seem to be a generous offer.

Vectis

I'd just add a warning that if you threaten to take Amazon to Court, they'll very probably close your account.

That may not be a concern to you, but it's something to be aware might happen.

lisyloo

Small claims court comes at a cost.
Section 75 is free although they will ask what you've done to resolve with the retailer.

You'd need the report in both cases.

In your position I'd do some research on the expected life of such an item as a lot seems to hinge on that and also know "faults" if there is evidence of that.

RTD2020

Vectis said:

I'd just add a warning that if you threaten to take Amazon to Court, they'll very probably close your account.

That may not be a concern to you, but it's something to be aware might happen.

I did worry about that. I've been ordering from them since 1995 (from the US initially), so would they not consider that I have been a good customer for nearly 30 years?

lisyloo

For low value items there is anecdotal evidence that Amazon give good customers the benefit of the doubt.
For this I think it comes down to the facts and the nub is how long should an items of this type last.
I can't answer that without research.