Google’s Fitbit Ionic recall doesn’t go far enough, lawsuit says

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

In March of this year, it was announced that the company was voluntarily recalling 1.7 million of the devices. A recently filed lawsuit claims that the same defect affects all of the devices made by the company.

According to the court documents, all of the fitness trackers have the same defect, which causes burns or creates fire hazard. The complaint says that the recall doesn't adequately compensate the owners of the Ionics.

The complaint reads, "Reasonable consumers, purchase the Products to burn calories, not their skin, and to safely pursue a healthy lifestyle with the aid of a smartwatch."

The two people in the case bought devices from the Versa lineup, but not the Ionic. There are photos of burns from users who had other devices in the complaint. Multiple accounts of Fitbit owners are being ghosted by the company.

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

The crux of the lawsuit is an allegation that, despite the fact that they may burn users, the company hasn't done anything to recall other devices. Customers may not know that they are carrying a fire hazard. The case stokes fears that customers might wear a watch on a flight without knowing that the battery may be malfunctioning. The company is dragging its feet when it comes to issuing refunds, even though it offered full refunds to Ionic owners.

Call me at victoria.song@theverge.com. You can also reach me on social media by using a service such as SecureDrop or Signal.

I am terribly surprised to see these allegations. I've never experienced the issue while reviewing the devices, but I've seen many complaints on social media about the products burning users' skin. Many of the accounts mentioned that Fitbit took months to issue refunds or even respond.

The court documents show that customers were frustrated with the customer service they received when trying to get refunds for the recently recalled Ionic. We have heard from a person that the recall process has been slow.

A request for comment was not immediately responded to.