- Report: #1492519
Complaint Review: Otterbox - Fort Collins CO
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Otterbox
Fort Collins, CO, United States
Phone:
1-855-688-7269
Web:
www.otterbox.com
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Otterbox Otterbox.com Warranty Almost Useless -- Offered a $10 non-waterproof case for $50 waterproof case Fort Collins CO
This is simple consumer fraud. The packaging says, "Lifetime Warranty." There is an asteris which says to read the warranty. The warranty is inside the packaging and it's clear it's only for 7 years so you can't read that before purchase.
My wife and I bought two waterproof Armor Otterboxes for our new iPhone SEs about 4 years ago. Both were great for 3.5+ years but then her seal around the power button started falling apart. Luckily, she noticed it before she was out in the rain, dropped it in the sink, etc. Mine failed a little after that. The "door" to the power port just came off in my hand when I opened it for a charge. You can still put the door back into the power port but it's probably not waterproof and it looks awful with the part of the case that broke hanging off the side.
I call to enforce the warranty. First, they don't make the Armor anymore and don't have any in stock for people trying to enforce the warranty. They offered us two Preserver cases which are not waterproof or even water-resistent. (To be fair, I had one before and it is a solid case which is great if you drop it and it has a heavy-duty built in screen perserver.) The Preserver is selling on eBay for $10-$12, unopened in a new box. So our $100 investment in phone protection is now worth $20-$24.
To try to deal with this inequitable situation, I asked if I could have a Preserver for an iPhone 11 or 12 (~$25 on eBay) so I could sell them and get $50 back. No, you have to get the case for the particular phone you bought. That would be fine if they actually had any Armor cases (~$25-$30 on eBay) to replace the faulty Armor cases we bought. But, instead, they only have non-waterproof Preserver cases. I feel I have been ripped-off for about $25 or more.
Additionally, they don't make any waterproof cases any longer. I can see why because, to bundle the phone up water tight, it is doubtful the water seals can stand up to ordinary use. They used to make great waterproof cases but they've stopped doing that, I guess, because the warranty costs were too high.
I'd have recommended Otterbox to anybody a few days ago even though are two Armor boxes failed -- but I thought they'd stand behind their product. Given these facts, you are better off with a $10-$15 no-name waterproof case from eBay. The only warranty is that it will test waterproof when you test it after your purchase -- which is good enough for me, given the way Otterbox treats their customers.
