Fitbit sued for misleading customers over refund policy on faulty devices

According to a statement released on Monday by Australia’s competition commission, legal action has been initiated against Fitbit LLC for allegedly making false or misleading promises to customers regarding their guarantee rights on malfunctioning devices.

According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), Fitbit’s claims that customers would not be eligible for a refund between May 2020 and February 2022 unless they returned a faulty product within 45 days of purchase or shipment are not by the Australian Consumer Law. Fitbit made these claims to customers between May 2020 and February 2022.

“Automatic consumer guarantee rights that cannot be omitted, restricted, or amended are available to each and every customer. In addition to any guarantees that manufacturers may provide, consumers have certain rights under the consumer guarantee law,” remarked Gina Cass-Gottlieb, Chairwoman of the ACCC.

According to the governing body, Australian Consumer Law does not mandate a return term of 45 days. It did not condition a consumer’s rights regarding faulty replacement products when the initial product was acquired.

ACCC alleged that once a customer received a replacement device for an initially faulty product, they were told by Fitbit that they were not entitled to a second replacement if the two-year ‘limited warranty period for the original device had passed. Fitbit was accused of making this statement to customers.

A request for comment from Reuters was not met with an instant response from the firm owned by Google (GOOGL.O).

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has said that their case contains 58 examples of consumers who were allegedly deceived by Fitbit when they complained about malfunctioning devices. The ACCC is seeking fines and injunctions about this matter.

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