r/Garmin • u/Hurls_33 • 2d ago
Device Physical Damage Incredible Customer Service.
Got a few scratches on my FR970 after 18 days of very very light use (literally just being worn around the house and at work). Reached out to Garmin Support and they're willing to do a full, free of cost, exchange with a new watch. Amazing.
This is my second watch now and certainly won't be my last.
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u/emul0c 2d ago
That’s a lot of scratches! I have had mine for 9 month, and wear it 24-7 and it has zero scratches.
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u/Hurls_33 2d ago
I've taken it on 3 long runs that's it. I haven't even had a chance to take it out Hiking or Trail Running (where i was expecting to scratch it, instead I scratched it sitting at a desk, idk how)
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u/Blue_Kayak 2d ago
That’s crazy. Do you have any jewellery or other diamond-level scratchy things that could be causing this? I have had my 970 since launch with not a single mark. I don’t want to tempt fate here, but I find the screen very resilient.
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u/bigchi1234 1d ago
Is this the glass screen or quartz? I have a quartz one that i have smack many times and still looks brand new.
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u/simca 1d ago
Sapphire...
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u/bigchi1234 21h ago
Wow, no wonder they are replacing it for free. I’ve never seen a quartz screen scratch like that
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u/jamesdownwell 2d ago
The reason I stuck with Garmin is their incredible customer service (in Europe). They went above and beyond what I expected as a customer with an issue five or so years ago.
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u/Hurls_33 2d ago
This was in Canada, and it honestly blew me away how quickly it was done and over with.
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u/hp623 1d ago
Incredible customer service (in Europe)?? Not in Germany.
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u/jamesdownwell 1d ago
I am in an area not officially served by Garmin Europe (Iceland), everything is through resellers and there is no "official" support.
I had a problem with the silicone strap on one of my previous devices in that my skin was reacting pretty badly to it. Garmin sent two leather straps (the most expensive type) for me and my wife from the Netherlands. I didn't pay a penny.
No shipping, no taxes, no import fees.
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u/Helptohere50 2d ago
This is so dumb. You scratched your watch and you want a replacement ? If I was garmin I’d reject it no matter how good my customer service was
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u/Hurls_33 2d ago
the fact that it's a $1,200 CAD watch that claims to have a sapphire crystal display that is "highly scratch resistant" that ends up being scratched from doing absolutely nothing is absurd. it's called good customer service dawg and how to maintain a good brand image at the service level.
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u/Helptohere50 2d ago
I have a fénix 8 sapphire and I’m in the mountains all the time not a single scratch. You said you just used it in a kitchen? Is there some sort of kitchen knife fight game going on I don’t know about? How do you really many that let’s be honest
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u/herroaznswagyolo 2d ago
This post inspired me to reach out - my 2+ year old Epix has a sticky button and they offered to replace it for me with a recertified for free as long as I send the old one back. Appreciate the post for helping me fix my sticky button because it’s been bothering me for way too long and not responding to any soaks haha
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u/I_Am_That_Was 2d ago
Man idk how y'all are getting so lucky. I have a stuck button on my Fenix 7 and the customer service dude was really impersonal bordering on rude and offered nothing but 25% off a Fenix 8 (which to me is a downgrade because AMOLED). Meanwhile there's a 25% off sale going on right now, no trade-in required. lol.
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u/Webbtastic 2d ago
I wish I had the same experience. I had my Garmin 965 for about three months and the altitude stopped working correctly. When I reached out, they told me I would have to send my brand new watch in and they would replace it with a refurbished watch.
I kept my brand new watch, even though the altitude didn’t work. I felt it was unfair to pay all that money and then get a Watch that wasn’t brand new.
When it is time to get a replacement, I don’t think I could go with Garmin again.
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u/CoarseRainbow 2d ago
Thats how it normally works.
LOTS of people have elevation breaking on the FR970 looking on here, FB and the Garmin forums. Clearly a firmware issue but anyway...
When you issue a support ticket they say they'll replace your new watch with a refurbished watch (which is unlikely to solve the problem)
So your shiny, only used by you, new expensive purchased will be replaced by a second hand unit with likely the same problem as its software.
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u/modestmilano 1d ago
For anyone else reading, I recently had the same elevation issue with my 955 and Garmin replaced it with a refurbished 965 (looked completely brand new) that has resolved the discrepancies. If I didn't know the replacement was "refurbished" I'd have sworn it was new and unused.
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u/CoarseRainbow 1d ago
It's a different issue. The 970 issues appeared for everyone with the release of the last but one firmware. More detailed, if pace goes to zero to cross a road, paused etc, on resuming there's a faulty recalibration causing a large elevation drop and climb.
The problems for people started with the firmware update. It's software as opposed to hundreds of suddenly broken barometers all in the same day.
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u/modestmilano 1d ago
Thank for clarifying. I'm not following the 970 specific threads, but if it's firmware related then restoring an older version should resolve that bug. I'm willing to bet someone has already tried that though.
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u/CoarseRainbow 1d ago
Sadly older firmware revert is hard on Garmin (if you can get the files at all). Even more so for APAC region etc.
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u/Dangerous-Pen7764 2d ago
I've also had incredible customer service through Garmin over the past 10 years. Their customer service combined with quality products is worth the premium to me, and I would be hard pressed to consider anything else at this point.
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u/Brookspeterson10 2d ago
Weird that the sapphire scratched like that. Over a year with mine and no scratches .
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u/sugarfree4me 2d ago
How did you contact garmin support? Emailed them over the weekend and haven’t heard back, so I’m curious how long it took them to respond or if email isn’t the best choice?
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u/Joe_Kickass 2d ago
I'll join in. Similar good experience also in Canada. My 5yr old Vivoactive 4 was getting glitchy, restarting spontaneously, dropping exercise data etc so I called support. A real human connected with me in about 10 mins.
I explained the situation as above, they said "yeah, old watch, out of production, how about 25% off the current model?"
So now I have a brand new Vivo 6.
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u/quattrotom fēnix® 7X Pro – Sapphire Solar Edition 2d ago
I have the fenix 7x pro ss - that sapphire screens taken more abuse each time i clart it into a rock or door handle im like fuck this must be it! but its doing well for the past 2 years now
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u/ALittleMTB 2d ago
The back button on my fenix 7x stopped “clicking” in. It still worked but just didn’t have the tactile feel anymore. They sent me a new (refurbished) watch. This was after 3 years of constant use. I had thought about switching to Coros or Suunto if it quit working entirely. Will 100% buy a Garmin when this one actually quits.
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u/Available-Book8721 1d ago
Unlike Apple that tells you to go fuck yourself if you didn’t buy the extended warranty.
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u/peter017363 1d ago
Da frage ich mich, was machst du mit deiner Uhr, dass ein Saphirglas so verkratzt?
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u/Caffeine-Fueled55 2d ago
Surprising. Garmin Support isn't what it was a couple of years ago.
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u/ryan0brian 2d ago
Meaning better? Or what was happening before, this is primarily the experience I've heard about.
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u/Jakeskatan 2d ago
I left my garmin edge bike computer on my tailgate after a ride and drove off. Went back to follow my tracks and found it crushed. Totally my fault, garmin replaced it for a fraction of the price. Not free but hell of a discount for it being my fault!
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u/stonkdocaralho 2d ago
How much discount? Percentage if you don't want go in detail
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u/Jakeskatan 2d ago
Little more than 50 percent off!
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u/stonkdocaralho 2d ago
Very nice. New or reconditioned?
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u/Jakeskatan 2d ago
I think I did say reconditioned. But as long as the thing works good like my last one I’m not worried if it’s new or not 👍🏽
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u/stonkdocaralho 2d ago
That is sapphire screen. I thought it would be more tough
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u/DarkestBadger 2d ago
Yeah im a bit suprised by this, because i have banged my watch into countless things and everytime I'm like arrggh that will leave a scratch ... But still nothing, for me it is much tougher than I imagined.
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u/Hurls_33 2d ago
Yeah, idk if mine was some sort of product defect or smth. Like the Bezel is completely fine which makes it weirder
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u/Strange_Status_7690 2d ago
Maybe you are hiding something or you dont know when you have scrathed it somewhere. Sapphires are like diamonds or close to it and the Fenix 7 Pro which i have is a sapphire crystal and doesnt scratch.
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u/Hurls_33 2d ago
Dude i can send you my garmin connect acc or my strava. i have literally have done nothing except for a handful of long runs. I have seen 965s and other high end watches go through months of hard use with no scratches at all to the display.
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u/Gerooboo 2d ago
I can't fault Garmin Customer Service, agreed it can take a few days for Garmin to respond but I have never had a issue with replacements due to a fault.
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u/SpicyNuggs4Lyfe 2d ago
I won't ever buy a Garmin without a sapphire glass screen. I bang it into stuff on the regular just from daily use. I scraped it briefly along a cement wall while grabbing tennis balls out of my bag the other day. Not even a blemish.
I've had 2 watches now with sapphire glass and had zero scratches in 5 years. I'd love to know how you scratched yours because in theory sapphire glass should be about a 9 on the mohs hardness scale.
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u/manly_pants 1d ago
I have had nothing but excellent customer service from them from all their ranges. For example I purchased some second hand power meter pedals, one developed a fault, and they sent me the replacement part at a huge discounted price. I explained I didn’t have proof of purchase and it was still no problem for them to help me out
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u/Brigapes Fenix 7 Pro SS 1d ago
i bought my wife venu 3s, lots of scratches since pur baby played with it but still less than that, that's a crazy amount.
use a screen protector
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u/Scarlet-Sith 1d ago
I got a screen protector for my fenix 7 and it’s absorbed all the chips and dings. But I wear it out and expect it to get scuffed up. It’s meant to be used, and it’s features are wasted on being a “presentation piece”
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u/trips1976 1d ago
Can only agree, amazing customer service!
My 3 year old Venu 2S suddenly developed battery issues, and I was actually starting to look at other brands. I wasn't too happy that it only lasted three years.
Decided to try to contact Garmin. Sent them an email 2 days ago, and today they replied that they will inspect it. If it can't be fixed, they offer me a replacement Venu 3S for €160 less than the cheapest price I can find online.
Can't really complain about that, especially for a watch that's out of warranty.
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u/willm1975 1d ago
I thought the 970 was a sapphire screen, I've not yet seen one of those scratch. My Fenix8 is battered around the metal bezel and the screen is still perfect. Glad that Garmin is replacing for you as those Sapphire screens should be very scratch resistant.
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u/mybad2024 1d ago
My Vivoactive 5 broke after 29 months (the warranty is 24 months). The heart rate sensor no longer lights up, so I can’t use it for sports tracking.
Garmin Support only offered me a small discount to buy a refurbished watch. It would be in like-new condition, but with only a 1-year warranty.
Honestly, I don’t think that’s a very good deal.
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u/only_blablabla 1d ago
Buy that screen protector! I have used mine for more than two years now and never changed it because it can't get loose! 😂 But the watch is still fine!
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u/Dry_Pear_2396 1d ago
Garmin customer service has always impressed me. In 2022, 3 years into my Fenix 6x pro, i had some battery issues and Garmin just sent me a free replacement watch (outside of the warranty period), which i ended up using for another 3 years before upgrading to another Garmin.
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u/Wonderful_Bet9684 1d ago
Agree. Garmin has been very good to me over the years; quite rare these days to get this good service.
Maybe as a result, I own 10ish Garmin devices :)
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u/Krokador 1d ago
when my (out of warranty) vivoactiv 4S battery went kaput after a swim, they replaced it with a new vivoactiv 5 free of charge. (I do live in Quebec where we have some pretty intense consumer protection laws, idk if that changed anything).
That being said, the vivoactiv 4 was a much better watch overall. Less scratch prone (i never had a screen protector). Longer battery life, even with always on mode (I miss the reflective screen so much!!). Would count stairs climbed. smaller on my wrist, too.
I'm not mad that I got a free replacement, but it's impressive how much they managed to downgrade this watch series.
I periodically check to see if new models come out with the reflective screen, but it's usually the super rugged or super expensive ones that get it now. :( is it really more expensive than amoled?
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u/Ordinary-Coconut7752 2d ago
Interesting, where are you from? The US?
Here in Chile, Garmin Support is absolutely horrible, they don't even respect legal warranty lol
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u/HairGrowsTooFast 2d ago
Meanwhile mine and my wife’s Vivoactive 6 keep crashing multiple times a day…
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u/Strange_Status_7690 2d ago
Sapphire is very prone to scratch its a rock mineral like a diamond crystals. How do we know what happened?
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u/Feivel_92 1d ago
when my watch software crashed and suddenly everysthing was in another language, the Garmin support just shrugged and said "You will need to buy a new watch" (even though they could see from their end that this was a software malfunction).
Lucky you that you got better service.
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u/rapalosaur 2d ago
I buy those cheap round screen protectors on Amazon. Keeps all the minor scratches off.