Fitbit Force users began complaining of skin irritation issues a bit earlier in the year. There seemed to be a fair amount of complaints, but we do have to remember that the most vocal are often the ones having issues. Fitbit was responsive to the complaints and issued a voluntary recall as well as halted new sales.
At the time there was mention of how this affected 1.7 percent of users and that it was basically an allergic reaction to the band. Or more specifically, to some of the materials used to make the band. More recently though, it seems the US Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued an official recall notice.
The notice, which was posted on the CPSC.gov website also touched on some numbers. And this time we are seeing more than the 1.7 percent mention. It looks like this affected roughly 10,000 users.
“The firm has received about 9,900 reports of the wristband causing skin irritation and about 250 reports of blistering.”
There was also mention of Fitbit having sold “about” 1 million in the US, and another 28,000 in Canada. Simply put, while it is refreshing to see Fitbit step up, and the CPSC also get in on the recall notifications, this truly did affect a small number of Force users.
The CPSC recall notice mentions how customers should look towards Fitbit for a full refund. This is also what we heard from Fitbit when they originally issued the voluntary recall. To make the process as easy as possible, Fitbit has a recall page setup that will guide you through the process. You can find that page here.
VIA: CNET
How stupidly lame. I had wanted to get one, but now cannot because a minority of users experienced an irritation. I wish they had just offered 100% refunds to those affected, continued to offer refunds to future purchases if they caused irritation, and allowed people to continue purchasing the product.
This is such an old story at this point. I sent mine back two weeks ago and am awaiting for my check to come in the mail.