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Just need to vent. Horrible CS

tpop24

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I purchased the Mavic recently to capture footage of the numerous Mardi Gras parades and events this season. I had contacted numerous parading associations and had worked out a deal to provide exclusive coverage of their parades and had coordinated with local law enforcement to do this safely and legally. There are over 20 parades and events that I had planned to cover. These events began last week and continue for another week. I have already missed two parades and will miss 4 more this weekend if I do not get a working aircraft by Saturday morning.

On Friday, January 13th, I had a 20ft discrepancy in altitude during a WP mission and clipped a treetop with my Mavic. I was not really happy with the inaccurate altitude reading. Flight logs show an altitude of 100ft when I hit a 75ft tree. The gimbal was trashed along with bent arms, a broken battery and multiple errors so I had to send my MP into DJI for repairs.

My MP was received, evaluated and I received a quote quickly for $999 or I could use my refresh. In the interest of saving time I did not dispute and I paid my replacement fee immediately expecting a quick return of a new MP but it got held up for days in repair and testing which I don’t quite understand because it was to be replaced under refresh not repaired. Then it went through QC. I finally received my replacement on February 8th. It was not packaged well. They just stuck another MP in the box i sent them with none of the extra protective packageing. The whole unit was somewhat dirty with none of the protective stickers and looked well used. The controller battery was completely dead. After charging the controller I turned it on. The gimble wouldn't initialize and showed motor overload error. The settings still had someone else's name and flight data. I did all the calibrations and updates with no improvement.

I do not understand why I received a broken used Mavic. When I received a quote for repair, the invoice said the cost was $999.00 which is the retail price for a new aircraft with new battery (mine was damaged in crash) and controller. It was not an invoice for a refurbished unit or a new aircraft by itself, it was an invoice for a complete new Mavic at $999 (I guess mine was totalled)
I did not receive a new aircraft as the invoice indicated that I would, nor did I receive an aircraft that was tested and working even though it was supposedly repaired, tested and checked by QC according to their site.

I got on chat to explain the situation to the rep who was very nice. They apologized and said they would open an escalated case and stated they would email me a 2day Air return label within 2 days. A glimmer of hope, but 2 days later nothing. I got back on chat and received the label during the chat session after complaining. I also called and spoke with DJI and stressed the importance of having a working MP before the 19th. He said the case was already accelerated and he would make a note that I needed it by the 17th. I Had it to UPS within 30min. Because of the weekend, it took 4 days. It was delivered there Tuesday morning at 9:25am and was not "received" until late Wednesday after I got back on chat and asked why it was taking so long. What is the use of a 2day priority shipment if you let it sit for 2 days before opening it? Last night I received another email from DJI saying that the damage has been assessed and that I could expect an invoice in two to three days. An invoice? For what? DJI sent me a broken drone! And why will it take 2 or 3 days? I thought escalating a claim meant something.

I was initially happy that the rep escalated the claim and I had high hopes of getting it back in time but after the slow processing of the label, it just sitting there for two days waiting to be received and now being expected to wait 2-3 more days before anything else is done, I am becoming disheartened and my hopes are dwindling. I spent a lot of time effort and money setting these shoots up. I have already missed 2 parades and it looks like I'm going to miss them all. Is this typical accelerated service? I love DJI products and was going to use the revenue from this series of shoots to purchase an Inspire2 but I am very unhappy with the service so far and am now rethinking my plans.

I emailed support this morning again stressing the bad position they placed me in and have not heard anything. They could have done the right thing and overnighted me a new MP but nothing but silence! I will be glad when other companies catch up on technology and offer us some choices.

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Dammm... i'm sorry to hear this.. I've heard nothing but horror stories when it came to DJI and customer service..

Thats exactly why I didnt get the DJI refresh. I got insurance incase of damage. I really hope you receive it in time and get it up in the air.

As for other companies - I had high hopes for the Go-Pro Karma until the recall... Yuneec wont catch.. 3DR is as good as dead with their 3DR Solo...

It's going to be awhile before DJI have some kind of competition.. They know this and that's why they can treat us like this... smh....
 
I'm confused. You agreed to pay $1000 (the price of a new Mavic, controller, charger and battery) for a replacement Mavic and nothing else? Why not just buy a brand new, entire package from DJI for the same price?
 
I didn't pay that price. That was the amount on the invoice. It applied my refresh payment of $79 and had a total balance due of $0. All I paid was $79. The chat Rep said that I should have received a new MP when asked.

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I'm confused. You agreed to pay $1000 (the price of a new Mavic, controller, charger and battery) for a replacement Mavic and nothing else? Why not just buy a brand new, entire package from DJI for the same price?
When he said he paid for his replacement fee, I took that to mean $79 as per Refresh conditions.
 
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I didn't pay that price. That was the amount on the invoice. It applied my refresh payment of $79 and had a total balance due of $0. All I paid was $79. The chat Rep said that I should have received a new MP when asked.

Sent from my SM-G920V using MavicPilots mobile app
Of course you should have, and you have a lawsuit case. It's only a matter of time till they're hit with a Class Action for simply being the selohssa they are.
 
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I don't know why people expect good customer service from a company based out of China......They don't care, plain and simple
 
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I don't know why people expect good customer service from a company based out of China......They don't care, plain and simple
That's just ignorant and you should ashamed of yourself for posting such ****.

I bought mine from digitalrev and when it arrived broken in transit they were absolutely superb with a return.

Sent from my D6603 using MavicPilots mobile app
 
Well, despite the fact that I've returned 2 of these things to finally get a jewel rather than a lemon, I've been more than happy with the service from DJI. There's two sides to every story.


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Bummer of a story. I think the whole "height of tree vs. elevation" may warrant a different thread.
 
Well, despite the fact that I've returned 2 of these things to finally get a jewel rather than a lemon, I've been more than happy with the service from DJI. There's two sides to every story.


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Really? What's the side of the story that explains why a refused $68 shipment can't be refunded in ten weeks?
 
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I didn't pay that price. That was the amount on the invoice. It applied my refresh payment of $79 and had a total balance due of $0. All I paid was $79. The chat Rep said that I should have received a new MP when asked.

That is kind of what I thought. Thanks.

They told you (per the invoice) that the "repair" required and entire replacement but when they realized that you were going to proceed under the DJI Care option, this was changed to a used unit.

First, the whole situation sucks.

My 2 cents. Unfortunately I'm petty sure they can offer a used Mavic under the Care program. It just looks a little bad when they initially tell you that a normal "repair". My _guess_ is that they have very few used units at this time. As such, pretty much any "repair" outside of Care is simply going to be them wanting $1000 for a unit (i.e. they don't want to repair anything on their own... they just want to replace it at full retail). This is why you were sent the invoice for $1000. I don't see that DJI would be under any obligation to make repairs outside of the warranty or Care program. So they could come up with any repair cost amount.

Once you used Care, the terms of that policy applied. That means DJI can replace with a used product.

As mentioned, I think it kind of looks bad but I don't see that DJI did anything wrong in that regard.

Yes, they should have sent you a working Mavic in good condition, which they did not do.
 
I don't know why people expect good customer service from a company based out of China......They don't care, plain and simple

Not sure where the company is based should make any difference. If the OP is in the US, the Mavic would have been sent to CA and the entire process would have been handled in CA.
 
Really? What's the side of the story that explains why a refused $68 shipment can't be refunded in ten weeks?

No, what I meant is, there's some sweeping generalisations being made about DJI CS based on some admittedly bad experiences. I am merely trying to demonstrate that not everyone gets treated badly. Perhaps service levels aren't consistent throughout the Regions?


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I've had good luck with other foreign companies. I do want to say that everyone that I've dealt with have been very nice and helpful. The first time through it did take a while but I would have been happy if I had gotten back a working drone. It's just that there seems to be a complete disconnect between support and service. Support says one thing and service does nothing. Did they know it was broke when they sent it but sent it anyway to stall till they get more?

Sent from my SM-G920V using MavicPilots mobile app
 
That's just ignorant and you should ashamed of yourself for posting such ****.

I bought mine from digitalrev and when it arrived broken in transit they were absolutely superb with a return.

Sent from my D6603 using MavicPilots mobile app
Ashamed of what? Do some research DJI isn't the only company that's like this. They operate under different ethics, morals, business practices whatever you want to call them. They don't have the same culture as us to boot. Why are there so many horror stories about companies like this? Am I the one who should be ashamed or are the 100000 complaints about the same thing also ignorant. Open your eyes, and ok yes they have a hub in cali, doesn't mean they're an American company, guaranteed that's just a centralized location to cut down on the lead times for service. Common sense.

As someone who deals with China and companies based in China daily I've personally seen enough to make the justification they operate on a totally different wavelength then other foreign entities I've dealt with.

Did I say I won't deal with them? No I buy the product just like you. But do I expect the same customer service when I call tech support and we don't speak the same language versus someone who understand me? No, maybe it's my fault since I don't speak Chinese. But hey like I said I buy the product and hope it never breaks and I never need to use them. If I do, I end up posting like OP and complaining to people like you.
 
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I'm in the middle of a very similar situation with DJI repair...it took 4 days for them to issue me a UPS label...once they received it, it took 3 days before they acknowledged they had the package...another 2 days for them to assess the damage...and one more day to send the invoice. I have DJI Care Refresh and elected to pay the $79 for a new Mavic. I paid via PayPal and it took another day and a half before they could find the confirmation of my payment.

That was yesterday, and I was just told it could take another 5-7 business days before the replacement is mailed...What?!
I hope they don't send me a used, broken Mavic like yours.

I've been on the phone and chat with customer service multiple times a day since this process began. I feel like my package would still be sitting unopened in their mailroom if I wasn't constantly prodding them for information. They seem very unorganized and disjointed. The call center is in the Philippines and it seems to be staffed by people who are very new and confused by the process. Their answer to everything is that they'll "mark my case as expedited and get back to me in 24-48 hours"... When I don't hear anything, I call them back and have to start over explaining the whole situation to someone new.

BTW... the "VIP Service" that we were told would come with DJI Care Refresh is total BS...
Wish us luck...
 
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Good god I sent one of my mavics in cause 1/4 of the screen was blurry and the rest clear. Never crashed been that way from out of the box. I wonder what my bill will be.... and if I get a piece of **** back ugh


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