Last week I was preparing to take my Phantom 3 Standard out for a flight. I was prompted to update to the latest firmware, which I did. The drone was flying fine for about five minutes before I was given a 'Signal Lost' warning on my phone and then the drone proceeded to freefall from the sky, shattering it to pieces, before I could even blink an eye. The drone was not 30 feet in the air when this happened and I was standing maybe 10 feet from where it crash landed.


I got in contact with DJI and they gave me an RMA number and a shipping label to have it shipped and repaired at their facility. I was told that the repair WOULD NOT COST ME A DIME but when my drone arrived at their facility I was promptly given an invoice of $150. I entered the After Sales Support online chat where I explained my situation and the only response I got was that I had to call the 1-800 number. I call the number sat in a queue of 33 people. When I finally got in contact with a live person I was put on hold and WAS KEPT ON HOLD UNTIL 5PM that day, after the hours of service had ceased, so my call ended. I then emailed DJI twice but have yet to get a response.


This is absolutely the worst customer service experience I have ever encountered. I read horror stories about their customer service prior to buying the Phantom 3 and now I see what everyone was talking about. Unreal.

Rocquet Man, could you please provide your RMA number so we will look into your case. Thank you!

I'm thinking of getting a Phantom 3 and I've emailed DJI a couple of times and used the online chat a couple of times as well and they don't fill me with confidence. That coupled with a few stories like this that I've read on the forums is really putting me off.

DJI need to realise that people spending hundreds on a device want a good level of support coupled with that spend, look at Apple, you spend hundreds on a phone or tablet and their support is second to none. My home button was sticking on my iphone, only very slightly but the apple store swapped it out there and then without any fuss.  Not responding to emails is unacceptable and leaving you on hold and simply cutting you off at closing time is a disgrace, what a waste of your time and money.

I hope you get somewhere with it. Hopefully DJI-Tim will make some progress. You shouldn't have to come on the forum and rant before you get a response though. If all else fails you could always start tweeting them, I think the public nature of Twitter has a way of shaming companies into action sometimes.

DJI-Tim Posted at 2016-4-17 23:24
Rocquet Man, could you please provide your RMA number so we will look into your case. Thank you!

Tim - I have the Repair Tracking Number if that helps: 160414VL7-P3C2018.

Never buy direct off Dji!, I know too many people bitten by them!. Buy elsewhere!. Their products are amazing but the clowns who deal with people need lining up and shooting.

Rocquet Man Posted at 2016-4-19 01:06
Tim - I have the Repair Tracking Number if that helps: 160414VL7-P3C2018.

Thank you! We are on it!

DJI-Tim Posted at 2016-4-18 19:50
Thank you! We are on it!

Tim.... I just received an email that I am only going to be given a 15% discount off of the repair bill because "the Return to home flight is an intelligent failsafe feature." If it is an intelligent failsafe feature then why did my drone end up in pieces? I wouldn't have shipped my drone in for repair if the above statement is true.

DJI-Tim Posted at 2016-4-18 19:50
Thank you! We are on it!

Once you guys fix my drone, and you will at no cost to me because THIS IS NOT MY FAULT, I will never be purchasing a DJI product again. This is ridiculous that you put your customers through this. We buy your products, we are supporting your business and this is how you thank us? We spend our hard earned money on your products and in turn we get treated like crap. I'm contacting the Better Busineas Bureau after this is over.EDITED FOR FOUL LANGUAGE

Rocquet Man Posted at 2016-4-20 14:10
Once you guys fix my drone, and you will at no cost to me because THIS IS NOT MY FAULT, I will nev ...

I understand your frustration... We will try our best to provide you better solution

Which Greek Isl Posted at 2016-4-18 07:07
I'm thinking of getting a Phantom 3 and I've emailed DJI a couple of times and used the online chat  ...

I just purchased a Phantom 4 and received a faulty one in the mail. When I finally got through to a Customer Service rep he told me I had to send it to them for repairs, they won't just send me a replacement remote controller. I have an expensive paper weight sitting on my desk. I WILL NOT BUY DJI products again.

I lost my P3P due to several issues analyzed by DJI. At the end, I had to buy a drone/battery set. I placed the order on April 4th and I was billed for it. Nevertheless, the set has not yet been dispatched. I contacted Sales Support several times and each time they respond with a new ship date promise that is not met.
DJI service has been the worse I ever experience. Poor communication. Poor information. Lots of irresponsibilities and disrespect for its customers.
A benchmark in the industry.

DJI-Tim Posted at 2016-4-20 03:04
I understand your frustration... We will try our best to provide you better solution

Tim - any update?

Rocquet Man Posted at 2016-4-24 06:21
Tim - any update?

Hello! our colleagues already sent you an e-mail 2016.4.22
Please check your inbox

Rocquet Man Posted at 2016-4-24 06:21
Tim - any update?

Did you get the email.
It looks like while in it's RTH, it ran into the power lines.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-4-25 08:42
Did you get the email.
It looks like while in it's RTH, it ran into the power lines.

I was standing not 10 feet away from the drone when the "intelligent" return to home feature came on without my acknowledgement. The drone lost signal and the return to home feature was activated. Again, I was standing not 10 feet from the drone and the drone was about 30 feet in the air when it happened. I can assure you that during my flight I did not run into any power lines under MY control. I made sure of it and was very careful not to. But as soon as the return to home feature was activated it may have run into a power line as it plummeted towards the earth. I was watching the drone with my own two eyes and I know that under MY control I did not hit any power lines.

Rocquet Man Posted at 2016-4-26 04:20
I was standing not 10 feet away from the drone when the "intelligent" return to home feature came  ...

I am sorry, a manager got involved and had email you stating that "The damaged was caused by a collision during an automatic return to home flight"
The final decision has been made, I see your email that you wrote and wait for a response.
I am sorry, my job here is tech support and not to be involved with customer service warranty/non-warranty items.

Wow! That's an interesting case! I have read that while you can control the drone while it's in the RTH mode (that's a VERY nice touch I missed big time on my Blade 350!) , you CANNOT until it initially reaches the RTH altitude. If signal was not lost, I can see canceling the RTH immediately by pressing the RTH button again, but with signal lost (probably because of presence of power lines?) I can see why this got ugly very quickly!!!
I guess that if for any reason flying does take place in the vicinity of power lines, or other such obstacles that we could be "under" it is very important to think through the flight plan and what happens if!
How durable is Phantom 3 when it comes to crashes? I understand "it depends", but taking into account it's weight and especially how fragile the gimbal and the cam are, I assume it's usually not a very happy outcome?
GT

gtokarsk Posted at 2016-4-26 06:20
Wow! That's an interesting case! I have read that while you can control the drone while it's in the  ...

how durable it is when it comes to crashes....  That's a hard question... How durable is a car when it comes  to crashes?  It really depends on situation...
Some time ago I've crashed phantom 2 from the 7th floor and didn't brake anything except the landing gear...
However drones are not meant to be smashed so you don't want to have too much expectations in terms of durability

Dear DJI Tim , I've emailed DJI EU Support yesterday regarding the lost signal at 20 metres but not heard back . I got a automated reply my  request is being reviewed . My ticket number is 199878

Just filled in the form . Awaiting a email for delivery address and case number .

I am having a really bad experience with DJI, I constantly had a weak RC connection signal when I flew the drone during my honeymoon in South Africa.
I sent the drone back to DJI and now they want to charge me 600 euros for the drone to be repaired, stating that the drone was wet (i flew the drone in summer time in South Africa! and I can't tell you that really took good care of this expensive toy)
They are lying and trying to find any argument not to pay for the mess in their technology, they are lying in every email they send. (when they decide to reply, can take several days)
This is an expensive product associated with the worst customer service I have ever experienced. You should be ashamed for that.
The customer service is now holding my drone (a Christmas present) and won't release it. I am liaising with other unsatisfied owners to go for a class actions.

I am going to open a case on weak signal, or perhaps my  misguided assumption of week signal.. Anyhow, when I do I will attach  the link here, so you guys can follow the progress. If there's anything to get to the bottom of, I certainly want to get to the bottom of it ;)
GT