I recently had a positive dealing with the Garmin Australia Team. I owned an Approach X40 watch for more than 4 years which had developed major grazing and chips on the small screen.
I rang their help line to ask if I could get the watch face replaced. The initial response was no, but they would be happy to send me a new watch for a special price. After a short wait their tech was back on the line to say that they could nor replace it as they no longer sold that model of watch. However, they would be happy to send me an equivalent watch for a reasonable price.
After further discussions we finally agreed on a Fenix S5 which did more than the old Approach X40 and actually looked like a watch and not a Fitbit. We then agreed on a price which was much less than I paid for the old watch and much less than the recommended retail price. I also agreed to send the old watch back at my cost, which I did the same day (Friday) at a cost of $13 Express post via AustPost.
The new watch arrived on the Wednesday by courier.
While I am still to test the golf feature all other facilities, including the connection to my Smartphone and computer by their app and the ability to change the watch face. Well done Garmin Australia.
That’s good service! I bought a Garmin Vivosmart 3 fitness band some years ago (at a bargain price as it was superseded) and apart from giving good service for years with only a few minor issues … the latest upgrade to Connect then failed to recognise it. That’s a big fail. All the data goes to my smart phone (Connect App) where I can compare etc.
I was ready to ditch it and upgrade to a new one, when someone (not me) contacted Garmin and that issue was resolved. I now have more years on my band. Can’t say the same thing about the smart phone - Google has blocked any Android upgrades and now finding some apps no longer work, or only in limited function. Thank you Garmin.
That was a better response than my TomTom experience with my TomTom GPS sports watch. On the one hand they did replace a broken watch strap outside of warranty at no cost and express speed but when at 18 months old the non replaceable battery started failing all they offered, after some communication back and forward, was a discount on a new watch, stating that it was out of warranty. I then mentioned Australian Consumer Law and the watch not being fit for purpose given the cost of item and they changed their position to offer a “one off” goodwill replacement. While I was grateful for that result it shouldn’t have been a fight to get a replacement or repair for a watch costing $350 which was less than two years old.
Another big thank you to Garmin - the Fenix S5 that was part of the earlier story had a problem with the two watch band keepers when both keepers broke on the same day. A phone call to Garmin resulted in not only two new keepers arriving in my letter box in a couple of days but they included another four in the envelope as well at no cost for any of the keepers or postage.
