My boAt/Redgear Nightmare: A Warranty Saga

December 5, 2024 - Day 1

Bill of Invoice

They said they didn’t have the model anymore, that it was discontinued, and they wanted to give me a Redgear Cloak. It’s worth around ₹800 or something. So I said NO NO NO, I want my product or any other product worth close to ₹2000. They said, "Okay, then you will have to wait," and I said I could wait.

December 30, 2024 - Day 25

Stage 1 of Grief - Denial

After some time (more than three weeks 😭), they eventually sent me this (attached images below) on…

Obviously, I was really disappointed with what they sent me, but I wasn’t mad or anything (foreshadowing ☠️). So I called their customer care, and that person told me to send an email, and I was like, "Bet." Then I sent a very polite email explaining my issue.

Then they requested more images. No idea what the criteria are, but oh well, I followed their instructions like a good boy 😆.

They were apologetic (robotic) and told me they would replace the replacement 👀. So I agreed because I didn’t know what else to say. They were owning up to their mistake and helping me out too, what more could I ask for?

January 7, 2025 - Day 33

Stage 2 of Grief - Anger

Oh boy, here we are, January 7, 2025, new year, new me, same boAt company, sadly 🥲. Today I received the replacement for my replacement, and you know what? See for yourself.

To say the least, I was really mad and furious at this point. I even tweeted something on my personal account, which I hadn’t logged into for a long time.

So again, I sent them an email with the video attached.

And guess what? A multi-million dollar company can’t open a link 😅. Who would have thought?

So I compressed the videos and sent them via email 😭. Keep in mind, I am wasting my time here (foreshadowing).

Here we go, another robotic ChatGPT AI masterpiece of a reply, requesting more images of the freaking BOX 😭😭😭😭😭. I was really lost and tired at this point, but still, I managed to send them the images like a good boy 😫😪.

Stage 3 of Grief - Bargaining

I added another email with the images.

And guess what? No one could guess. They again said they would send a replacement for my replacement’s replacement. We are now at Replacementception. Can it even get any better (worse) (foreshadowing)? 😫😫😫

January 17, 2025 - Day 43

Stage 4 of Grief - Depression

I am too lazy to write here, quoting my own email:

And what do they have to reply to that email?

OMG, it’s Christmas again in January, and they are sending me a replacement for the replacement’s replacement’s replacement. We are now fully in this mess. Christopher Nolan, who? We are deep in the ocean with a sinking boat (ba-dum-tss).

January 30, 2025 - Day 56

Stage 5 of Grief - Acceptance

Nothing new here, guys. They again sent me a damaged product, though it wasn’t that damaged. Still, speaking from experience, it was going to deteriorate in a week or two. But that thing was dirty for a reason, like a used one.

They again sent me the boilerplate script email, acknowledging that they would send a replacement for the replacement’s replacement’s replacement’s replacement. 👍

February 13, 2025 - Day 70

Stage 6 of Grief - Done with Everything (I made this stage up 🙏)

I received other damaged goods. Please see below the unboxing and images.

So again, I followed my routine of sending an email.

But this time, things took a turn for the worse.

Apparently, they can now stop providing me with a replacement, as they have provided me multiple times. But wait a minute, so they keep sending me damaged goods and also waste my time, and now I don’t even get service anymore? I was intrigued, so I sent an email to confirm whether what I was hearing was true or not.

Their reply is another repetition of the mail above.

Just to be double-confirmed, I asked them again for the sake of it.

Here is their reply, again, the same things repeated.

Conclusion

This is what I just experienced with India’s No. 1 wearable company or whatever it is. They just outright denied me service for something they should have been careful about, which is making a good product. Oops, I meant importing good quality products. I don’t think they really care about their customers. If they really did, they would have listened to my issues properly and served me with a good quality product, which was not already busted up when I opened the package. As an Indian, I have the right to demand justice, and so I will. I will file a case in consumer court. I don’t know if that will matter at all, going against a multi-million dollar company, but I believe in justice.

I understand that ₹2000 is a measly amount for many, but it’s not about the ₹2000, it’s about consumer rights and my honor. I feel cheated by boAt and Redgear. I have several products from both companies, and I never felt this much betrayed by them before. But this time it really struck a nerve in me. And I have decided to boycott any boAt or its subsidiary companies" products moving forward.

I don’t have any ill will against the company itself or how it handles its business. They can be the best of the best, but if they undermine my rights, I won’t ever forgive them.

February 17, 2025 - Day 74 Update

Today I registered a consumer complaint in INGRAM

I registered the complaint in the morning, somewhere near 10 AM, and by 3 PM, I did get a call back from the boAt HQ. The negotiator was extremely sorry for that and was profusely apologizing. I guess she is doing her job properly and better than the customer service agents. I did let her know that it's unethical for a company to deny service for the mistakes they make. And she said they are able to provide me a refund of 60%—that's like 1200 Rs—and the other option is a replacement for the nth time. Obviously, I wasn't gonna give away my 800 Rs just like that. So I asked her, can I record the conversation where she is saying they are able to deliver a proper, undamaged product to me? She said, wait and hold on for some time, she will confirm with the warehouse and call me back. I am writing this on 18th Feb 2025 at 11:54 PM. I haven't been called yet, so I guess it will take another week for them to resolve a 2000 Rs warranty case.

I was wondering, how were they able to deny me service earlier, but when I filed a complaint, they instantly could refund and also send another replacement? Is this a ruse? Did they expect the customer to forget about the product and move on? I am blessed to be able to fight back because I have the information and support, but for a common man, he would just forget and move on rather than meddle with a giant corporation.
I hope this is not the case. If it's not the case, then some manager is probably pissed off at me for bringing up this issue and instructed other agents to ignore me.

The saga continues...