Like many here I experienced a flyaway and now find myself experiencing the absolute worst customer service ever.  I regret buying my I1 and should have listened to others here prior to purchasing.   Don't make the same mistake I did.  Here is my story.

My I1 was delivered back to dji on july 14th.  After waiting for over two weeks with no word from dji I called and requested a refund since I  had the craft for less than seven days before the malfunction occurred.  the next day it was checked in, 7/30.   They sent me the exchange refund form,  I filled it out and submitted it. They denied to honor it because I did not purchase it directly from them but from  one of their authorized dealers.   Is that a joke or what?   So I went back to the dealer and they tried on my behalf but dji would not budge.     

I feel like I have been taken to the tune of ~$4K and I am not happy!  I either want my money back or an exchange.  The craft malfunctioned which they acknowledged when I initially sent them the back story and flights logs.  So why should I have to wait for over three months (they now estimate eight weeks for repair) to receive my craft back?   This is totally unacceptable.  

DJI only cares about your money.  Once they have it you mean nothing to them.   DJI needs some formidable competition; competition that truly knows the value of happy customers!!  

People need to know about the short comings of DJI products, their terrible service and their questionable business practices.  I will be doing my part to spread the word.  

You have a contract with the dealer where you bought it not DJI. Did you pay the money to the dealer or DJI ?

I dont know US legislation but in EU you could YOUR CHOICE a) ask for a replacement b) ask for repair and set a common reasonable date for this like 14 days. If the dealer fails you can ask money back. But only from the dealer not the manufacturer.

Machoman Posted at 2015-8-5 07:53
You have a contract with the dealer where you bought it not DJI. Did you pay the money to the dealer ...

Thanks for the info.

look up their Corporate info in your State and sue them in Small Claims ...

If you bought it from a dealer then you need to ask for a refund from the dealer.

Are you saying the dealer asked DJI to give you a refund?   That doesn't really make sense.

They are the ones who owe you a refund and the ones to take to court.   

jimhare Posted at 2015-8-5 11:29
If you bought it from a dealer then you need to ask for a refund from the dealer.

Are you saying t ...

It sounds like the problem is he shipped the bird to DJI instead of returning it to the dealer for a refund.  Now it's in DJI's system and he can't get it back to return it.

PeteGould Posted at 2015-8-5 11:42
It sounds like the problem is he shipped the bird to DJI instead of returning it to the dealer for ...

Still, any reputable dealer would fill in the gap.  Give the customer a new one and then deal with DJI themselves.

jimhare Posted at 2015-8-5 11:59
Still, any reputable dealer would fill in the gap.  Give the customer a new one and then deal with  ...

I agree they should, but here in the U.S. dealers may not be quite as customer focused as you may be accustomed to Down Under.  Here, for the most part, if you want a refund from a dealer, you have to be able to hand them the item.  Most dealers are pretty up front about telling you NOT to send something to the manufacturer during the return period but instead to return it to the dealer for refund/exchange.  This is not unique to the Inspire but covers pretty much everything.

PeteGould Posted at 2015-8-5 12:07
I agree they should, but here in the U.S. dealers may not be quite as customer focused as you may  ...

Yeah, I know exactly what you mean.   

But still, if you have a relationship with your distributor these things are easy to work out.   "customer mistakenly sent it to you, how about you refurbish it and I'll give him a new one from stock and we'll resolve on the next invoice."   

Done and done or should I say drone and drone.

I'm sorry to hear of your dilemma, My Inspire has been at DJI since June 3rd - Signed confirmation via USPS. (Officially entered their system June 15th) Haven't heard a word since then But I figure I will wait until mid August before I send a concerned email.

jimhare Posted at 2015-8-5 19:18
Yeah, I know exactly what you mean.   

But still, if you have a relationship with your distributor ...

EXACTLY how it should work.  

jimhare Posted at 2015-8-5 19:18
Yeah, I know exactly what you mean.   

But still, if you have a relationship with your distributor ...

unfortunately Jim, the dealer is the meat in the sandwich. DJI have stated that a complete refund is out of the question. Even in Oz with our consumer laws, DJI do not give 2 hoots!

I got mine Feb 13th and had uncontrolled flyaway March 11th.....sen to DJI for repair even though there was not much left of it after hitting a tree at full power

Repaired under warranty and returned May 29th........ and then got GPS failure June 30. DJI said send back for further repair.

Have had the inspire 8 weeks out of 6 months now!

DJI will not authorise fix here and want bird sent back for repair.........EE hobbies who is the importer don't want to return to DJI as they get stuck with the freight charges that DJI apparently do not reimburse and they dont want to be out of pocket. I have a good relationship with the place of purchase but they won't refund as they will lose out too.

This leaves me in the middle of this nightmare with my stuffed inspire waiting for someone to blink first.

Great machine though for the 8 weeks I have enjoyed it.....just wish I had got one that didn't have all the issues.

Thanks for the headache DJI, PLEASE get your shit together and back your product when things fail!

My inspire was checked in 8 weeks ago today.  I was told 8 weeks ago to expect 6 weeks.  I was told last week in a spam type email I should expect 8 weeks.  Well today is 8 weeks and nothing.  In my last email from them they apologized and said they moved into a new facility and this was the reason for the delay.  Either way 8 weeks is just way too long.  I hope they figure out they need to outsource repair or I along with others will have a difficult time staying positive.  It's just not acceptable to have it take this long.  

Wolfman Posted at 2015-8-6 20:36
unfortunately Jim, the dealer is the meat in the sandwich. DJI have stated that a complete refund  ...

What a mess!

Can certainly understand DJI wanting to maintain control, especially when determining whether it was a legitimate flyaway or a first time pilot just flying into the ground, but the system needs to be streamlined and made fair and reasonable for the customer.  

For anyone living in Australia, Rise Above Aerials are now authorised DJI Repair Agents. Click Here for Link
Hopefully a faster turnaround and better service than sending it to DJI!

Thats very unfortunate and I hate to say it but most fly away issues are due to pilot error, interference when calibrating the compass or not having it stationary on a level surface during imu calibration as well as powering up the unit and then moving it while its going through the power on self test spinning the camera gimble will cause a problem every time.  It must remain stationary during this test as it calibrates the sensors to a stationary position and any movement will result in erratic flight behavior.

the dealer is not responsible for malfunction errors, especially with fly aways or the product was physically damaged.

This is not just some product like a moped where you can return it,  if you cant even find the product in some cases (such as mine) then how can the dealer be responsible when the manufacture shipped a defected product with zero user end issues?

I am been told that France plans to ban drones from flying more then 30m high everywhere soon, its more less about drones with long distance ability disappearing and putting the public in danger.