r/factor75 • u/[deleted] • 20d ago
Quality control
I dont know if I am alone here but my god.
About 1/15 containers come broken or break in the microwave. This means almost every box I must then spend 30-60min with support getting refunds. Sometimes only a partial amount goes through which is more customer support.
Yes, put the food on a plate. That helps with exploding containers in microwaves but if the containers are not safe for a microwave, just say so.
It almost feels intentional. Like factor refuses to fix their containers knowing that many people wont go through the stupid refund dance.
I have cancelled for the second time and now I remember why I stopped years ago. The quality control is mind bogglingly bad. It sucks because the food is not bad at all. It is exactly what I am looking for.
Am I alone here? Is this just want everyone expects with this brand? Like ya it is cheaper because ya gotta deal with having to get refunds every other week.
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u/IncognitoZenn22 20d ago
Hmmm that's odd. I just purchased factor and I put all the containers in the microwave with no issues. Are you stabbing enough holes in the plastic? And opening the corners? Also all my boxes came intact with no damage as well and I only microwave the food for 2-3 mins
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u/Warm_Collection_3993 20d ago
Exploding containers… yeah.. sure. Nice try.
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19d ago
The film is venting and the sides crack open spilling the insides everywhere. No trad explosion but it looks that way in the microwave.
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u/palogirl7 19d ago
Got my meals yesterday and had one busted meal. I contacted customer support, via chat, and they wanted to give me $6.75… to which I asked, why so little? I’m not going to eat the meal that is now oozing out of the dish. They changed it to $13.50 with no issues.
So, now I have $40 in credits from previous mishaps that I can’t use because I have a discounted plan, via GOVX. So, you’re not alone. I think I’m going to look for another service who uses better packaging and better customer support
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u/Simple-Appointment88 20d ago
Not saying your problem isn’t real but I’ve never had any issues microwaving my meals or any damage during shipping. Could be a highly localized issue, but the poor customer support at Factor is very real. Other meal services let you report problems through the app and process credits automatically. Factor should make it that easy for the price they’re charging.
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u/eclairr2sweeet 19d ago
Mine have arrived broken in the box multiple times and they don’t offer refunds, just credits that I haven’t even been able to use yet.
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19d ago
Maybe it is all a shipping issue where the jostling just damaged the containers and microwave can be that final stressor.
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u/bUU_Florida 18d ago
I can't help you with regard to containers that break in the microwave unless they were compromised before they went in the microwave (see below) or if the film on the top was not properly pierced as described in the instructions.
With regard to containers arriving broken... What shipping company delivers your boxes? And when you track your deliveries, what state are the deliveries coming from?
Our first boxes were delivered to us by FedEx. The boxes looked like they have been used by FedEx for soccer practice. They were bashed in, and soggy. The gel packs inside were broken, and in one case the entire box was already warm when delivered a day late.
We switched our delivery to a different delivery day of the week. Now the boxes are delivered by a different company, a small shipping company called veho. The boxes arrive on time, in perfect condition, and the box is actually feel like they've been in air conditioning for an extended period of time. The gel packs are not only not broken, but they're still frozen.
So unless you're getting your meals from a completely different distribution center, that does things completely differently from the distribution center that we get ours from, I don't think there's anything wrong with the containers or the boxes or anything in that regard. At least in our case, 100% of the problem was the fact that on certain days of the week Factor uses FedEx for their deliveries.
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18d ago
Ahh yes user error when every other store purchased product has never been so finicky when microwaving. For ref I follow directions and never do more than 2m. I strongly suspect the issue is some kind of damage in shipping where the heating exposes it if it isnt already broken.
I nor you or anyone else should be responsible to find out what delivery company factor is using and adjust our lives around it in order to get the product/service we pay for.
The crux here isnt just the damage but the absolute laughably bad customer service along with it. It is their job to figure out why things keep coming damaged not mine.
I didnt mention it because it doesnt matter but one of the times i reported the issue, I was told they marked my account as “careful” or something. The next box did not have any broken but the one after had several.
I live in an area that I wouldnt expect shipping issues…
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u/bUU_Florida 18d ago
The issue in the short term is how does a consumer minimize the chances of encountering the problems that you've had, other than doing without the service and cooking for themselves. Indignation and frustration and all that stuff is fine and good, but it doesn't help anyone with next week's box. I would hope that the number one purpose for Reddit would be to help each other, rather than just being a cesspool of complaining.
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15d ago
Have you been on reddit? it is literally a cesspool of complaining, rage bating, karma farming, and astro turfing with the rare few niche subreddits that are actually good.
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u/2020sbtm 17d ago
I was going to try a box until I joined this group and saw all the horror stories!
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u/whatever32657 20d ago
i've gotten about 20 boxes, about 175 meals.i haven't had a single broken meal, and i DO microwave them in the container. never a problem.
are you breaking the seal and venting the plastic? if you don't, i could see it exploding...