NEST Support Incompetent

[vtasean]

Long story short, I built a new home for my family (I'm a GC) and installed 4x Nest Gen 3 learning thermostats in the home as part of the HVAC package.  All units were brand new, and worked well for about a month.  A month in one started exhibiting the W5 error (wifi chip died, seemingly common).  Google replaced it after about another month without it being able to connect to any network, and the replacement that arrived had a completely dead battery.  Around this time, I had 2 more W5 errors.  I requested replacements for these devices as well, and they also came with fully dead batteries.

Well it turns out that without a chargeable battery, NEST Gen 3 Learning thermostats CANNOT function, even with a 24v power source.  So I now had 3 dead units (1 replacement, 2 new units) that were dead, so I started another return.  Sure as **bleep**, all 3 new units were also fully battery dead.  Did all the trouble shooting, charged for 2 days over a usb cord, etc.  Eventually pulled them apart and checked the batteries with a multi meter.  Yep, all 3 batteries were shot.  Must have been sitting on a shelf for a long time.  Google support made a lot of verification requests, got super confused in their system because of the multiple returns, and initially denied me.  After some wrangling and helping them un**bleep** their records,  I started another return, received 3 units, and lo and behold 2 were dead battery as well.  1 unit actually functioned, huzzah!

I was pretty pissed at this point, its the dead of winter and part of my brand new home is without heat.  Google failed 3x to replace thermostats.  I kept asking for new in the box units and was told they'd be brand new via support, however refurbs kept arriving (some branded NEST some branded GOOGLE, with the accompanying firmware).

Now this is where the absolutely miserable interactions with support started.  I spoke to several reps and was eventually told they would start a refund for all my units.  I was ditching the google thermostat ecosphere and moving back to something tried and true, ecobees.  I was assured a refund would be processed, so I went ahead and purchased the ecobees and started my replacements to the tune of a bit over $1000.  I was told google support was a little backed up, but a refund should be processed in 2 weeks.  I waited and waited.  I started pinging google, but just got "we're working on it, don't worry we'll make sure this is corrected" type of completely BS responses.  I kept waiting.  I ultimately waited for over 3 months to even get a response that didn't look like an automated system sent it.  And then I got a whammy "Senior management cannot process this refund as the amount is too high".  Holy **bleep** was I mad.  I kept responding and got another 6 weeks of BS auto-responses.  Then came one final "real" response - "Not our problem, take it back to the store you bought it from."  Keep in mind this is part of a NEW BUILD, purchased through an HVAC contractor.  Google has since not offered any kind of response to correct the situation, denied that it was going to provide a refund, and has very curtly tried to close the ticket several times.

This is the absolutely single worst customer service experience of my life.  I'm now out $1000 on equipment that didn't even last 30 days.  I was told I'd be refunded.  Then gaslighted.  Then denied.  We're now 6 months into this process, and google still has not even offered a resolution to their faulty products and failures to correct defective devices, as well as failed attempts to replace units.

Google Support - is this a typical response pattern?  Do you stand behind your products?  What is your stance on making sure your customers are supported appropriately and timely?

Anyone else with a horror story like this?  I'm honestly swearing off all google products and services after this.  You can have my ad dollars, but definitely never swiping a credit card for google again.

Note - I'm sure you might be thinking "why don't you just use your HVAC warranty."  To be frank, the HVAC company warned me multiple times to skip NESTs.  Swore them off and called them hot garbage.  I insisted because the family likes their aesthetic and controls.  I wasn't going to drop this hot mess back in their court after they very carefully and politely told me this was a bad idea and offered multiple other solutions at no cost to me.  Lesson learned.

[CoolingWizard]

@vtasean as a GC, you know how important it is to fully read all the instructions that are provided with systems and equipment that you’re going to be using.

The instructions of the Nest Learning  Thermostat 3rd Generation, recommends that you use a USB charger and charge the Nest Learning Thermostat display for 4 hours prior to installing. This is to ensure that the battery has a sufficient charge to complete the actual installation and configuration. The fact that you received brand new units which had not been fully charged at factory is not unusual. 

Since as you stated you used a HVAC subcontractor, is it not the HVAC subcontractor’s responsibility to correct?

To many people buy Google Nest products from retailers and expect Goggle to refund the money that, in your case, the HVAC supplier spent. 

• Whom choose the HVAC equipment and the thermostat to be installed
• What entity purchased the equipment including the Nest Learning Thermostat?

If you as the GC you purchased the four Nest Learning Thermostats then indeed you should have taken defective units back to whatever retailer you purchased them from.  

To get all upset a post a detailed statement here is for what purpose? Did you suffer the loss or did your HVAC subcontractor?

When you purchase a DeWalt hammer drill from say Home Depot and it is defective in materials and/or manufacturing. Do you call up Black and Decker and demand a refund or do you take it back to the Home Depot? 

AC Cooling Wizard

[vtasean]

There's some serious blame deflection going on here.  Here are the instructions for the Nest 3rd gen thermostat, right from the website:  https://nest.com/support/images/misc-nest-thermostat/nest-thermostat-gen3-install-guide-US.pdf

There's absolutely nothing in here about pre-charging the battery.  So no, there's zero recommendation in the installation instructions referencing anything you just said.  I did however do exactly what you said.  Many times.  For many different devices that were sent as refurbs.  It was not that the batteries were not fully charged, it was that they would not accept a charge out of the box, either via USB or hardwired.  They were fully dead, and verified by multimeter and a 27 step process required by google support for each and every single one.

Seeing that you're an owner of an HVAC Service company, you must understand that when you sell a product to a customer, the customer now owns it.  You may warranty it for a period of time, either in lieu of or in addition to the individual warranties of the component parts of the system or you may not, but one warranty does not override or circumvent the other.  What does it matter if the HVAC supplier bought it and then sold it to me?  It's now mine.  I provided a receipt for the system as requested by google.  I now hold the warranty (as expressly allowed in section 1 of the nest warranty).  Which also means: because I own the device, I therefore suffered the loss.  Not sure how that logic doesn't translate.  A google device failed within the warranty period.  It's googles responsibility to rectify the situation.  Whether or not they rectify the situation to me directly (the owner of the device), or through my subcontract indirectly is complete irrelevant.

Your example of a Dewalt hammer drills is hilarious.  If it's within the retailer's return period, I absolutely will return it and get it replaced.  If however, like my scenario above, the tool fails AFTER the return period BUT BEFORE the warranty period ends, Dewalt will replace or refund me without hesitation.  I've been sent many refurbs over the years, but never received a lemon refurb.  If they sent me 3 lemons in a row, I would expect a full refund from Dewalt as well.  Why is Google not trying to make this right any more?  Especially after CONFIRMING they were processing a refund?

[CoolingWizard]

@vtasean I am a Google Pro and a Nest Pro. I purchase my google products through a special web interface for us Google Pros. I am also a Cisco CCIE engineer so I know how to install and configure IOT devices.  
When I install a google Nest Thermostat the customer gets a 3-year product warranty from Google.  I have installed hundreds of these thermostat every year. None of them have failed or required a warranty.  Because I am totally focused on exceeding customer expectations, I keep these thermostats in stock and of one were ever to fail, I would replace it at zero cost to my customer. 

I wish you the best.

AC Cooling Wizard 

[vtasean]

Does anyone have a way to lodge a formal complaint with google directly?  Going through these outsourced foreign farms is infuriating.  I've been denied a refund I was promised, but I've now asked 4x in a row what google is going to do to rectify my warranty claim, but i swear the people on the other end don't seem to comprehend.

[John777]

Hi,

I also have exactly same issue going on. Too frustrated. Now thinking what to do.

[vtasean]

I’ve now sent 4 requests over the past month requesting Googles plan to rectify their product failure and am being ignored (zero response).  I’ve also requested through two different avenues for the formal process to lodge a complaint and not received a response to those either.  Google support is a **bleep**ing joke.