ComplaintsforBark Technologies, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  08/26/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  My daughters brand new bark phone that arrived at our door today is not functioning right with ****** play store and some of its other bark functions. She has permission to use the app store with approved games. I tried chatting and it's all AI, no human contact. I called their line and I am on hold for an hour before it tells me no one is available and hang up. I left ****** reviews of one star and they are quick to comment on that but won't actually fix anything. I did everything on my end to fix these issues. At the point where I regret ever buying it. We want it fixed or I want a complete refund so that I can find a more reliable cell phone monitoring service for my 13 year Olds phone. I will not pay for their monthly phone service if I can't rely on them to do what they are paid to do.

  

  Business response

  08/27/2024

  Good morning, 

  I hope you are doing well today. I'm sorry to hear about your experience with the product, oftentimes if the phone was previously activated and then deactivated it can take some support from our team to ensure the features are functioning as they should be which is what it looks like happened in your case. It does also appear we've had quite a bit of back and forth with our support team over the last 24 hours and our billing team is reviewing your account and providing the return label you requested as well as the refund. 

  If there is anything else we can do to assist you at this time please don't hesitate to let us know and we would be more than happy to do so. 

   

  Warm regards, 

  Beka

  Customer response

  08/27/2024

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  

  The phone did not work right from the beginning of having received it as advertised. I had a very hard time reaching a human when i called during operational hours. I emailed them and the tech was unable to resolve the issue. Even when i followed his suggested steps. They wont admit to these issues and keep pestering me when i post reviews to ******* Poor customer service. However I have printed the shipping label and mailing the phone and it's charger cord back. It's brand new. 
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. Think before you buy this. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ********************* Hash

• Initial Complaint

  08/20/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I signed up for **** services and received the **** phone. Upon receiving the phone, I sent an email stating I was not going to use and how would I return it. They sent me questions asking why I wanted to return but no return label. I had a family illness/death shortly thereafter and during this time never received an email from them with a return label. The day of my family funeral, I was checking my account and noticed a charge from ****. I sent a email immediately to them stating what had happened and I need to return the phone and requested a refund. I have been told they would issue a refund for the monthly charge but not the phone, even though they now have the phone. I was sent a copy of their return policy and it states if the phone is returned with 10 or 30 days of receipt, a refund is issued with a small restocking fee substracted. I was told by a different agent I can't get a refund for the phone due to their policies changed in Oct 2023 which states the phone is leased now yet I was not sent that information but was sent the other information showing a return of the phone within a time frame stated a refund would be issued. I at this point do not know what is true and what isn't. If they had sent me the return label upon the original request, none of this would have happened and I believe I would have gotten my refund for the phone. This is has been a horrible experience with them and no one can give me a solid answer. I have all the responses in email. The attachments is the email I sent about returning the phone and their response. Also, on page 4 of their rules states this was updates Nov 2023 and states a refund will be issued if the phone is returned.

  

  Business response

  08/21/2024

  Good Morning,
  I hope this message finds you well.
  After thoroughly reviewing our previous email communications, Id like to clarify a few points. When you signed up for Bark, you were not charged for the Bark Phone itself. The phone is provided free of charge with the activation of a cellular service subscription through Bark. As a result, there are no charges related to the cost of the phone that would be eligible for a refund. However, I do see that we refunded one month of cellular service in consideration of the challenging circumstances your family was facing, which likely affected your ability to manage the cancellation and return of the phone.

  
  In your initial email on July 5th, there was an indication that you were considering returning the phone, but there was no specific request for a return label. Our team is trained to seek clear confirmation of intent before proceeding with cancellations and returns, especially when a customer's language suggests uncertainty. Since we did not receive a response to our request for confirmation until your follow-up email on July 18th, we processed the cancellation immediately upon receiving your confirmation and provided the return label at that time.
  

  I apologize if any part of this process was unclear. If there is anything further we can do to address your concerns, please feel free to reach out in our most recent email thread.
  Warm regards,
  Beka

• Initial Complaint

  08/20/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  This company over promises customer support. Its a phone designed to protect young people. Like many parents of children with substance abuse problems, I chose Bark . just as one example, I have been on the phone on hold with them three times in the last 24 hours, with wait times ranging from 15 to 40 minutes. There is no answer, literally no one answers the customer service line. Their chat feature is a bot. This is completely unacceptable. I want a fix for customer service that allows me to actually reach a human being on the phone.

  

  Business response

  08/21/2024

  Good morning,

  I hope you are well. I wanted to follow up regarding our recent communications. Our records show that we had a successful call with you yesterday, August 20th, at 1:02 PM. Additionally, I see that youve had four other successful calls with our team earlier this month.

  
  I apologize for the longer-than-usual hold times you experienced yesterday morning. Were actively working to reduce wait times by expanding our staff, and we truly appreciate your patience during this process. For faster assistance in the future, you can request to speak directly with a human agent through our chatbot, which will promptly connect you to our team, as it did with your ticket yesterday.
  

  If you have any further questions or need additional assistance following your recent call, please dont hesitate to reach out via our last email thread. Im more than happy to assist with any concerns.
  Warm regards,
  Beka

• Initial Complaint

  08/07/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Hi,The client charged $99 hidden fees when they alleged the phone I sent back was damage. It was not damaged. Also, if I kept the phone for one extra month (which would only cost me $50), I would have been able to kept the phone. They are trying to squeeze additional money out of this by misleading with their T&Cs.

  

  Business response

  08/12/2024

  Good morning, 

  I have reviewed your case again and the associated photos with your phone and they were found to have significant damage. We would be happy to discuss this and send the photos of the damaged phone with identification number for your review in the previous ticket we had open discussing the phone. 

  I am sorry that the fees caught you off guard, that is certainly never our intent. In our terms of service it indicates that if the phone is returned significantly damaged during the lease period (90 days) that the customer will be responsible for the repair. 

  If there is anything else I can do to assist you please don't hesitate to reach out via our email thread and we would be happy to discuss it further. 

  Warm regards

  Beka

• Initial Complaint

  08/07/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  My son has a Bark phone and I need access to the information on the phone, but every time I go to my parental account, I'm greeted by a screen that asks me for my credit card information and when I'd like to submit my order. I want to monitor what my child is doing in the account he already has, not order another phone!Customer service is complete garbage. There is no customer service phone number and the ** that replies to complaints is completely useless.

  

  Business response

  08/12/2024

  Good morning, 

   

  I hope you are doing well today. We attempted to reach you via phone and email this past week and have not heard any response. We would be more than happy to help you access your account and locate your Bark Phone information. Please search for our email by looking both in your normal inbox and your spam inbox for an email from Bark or ************. 

   

  Warm regards, 

  Beka

   

  Customer response

  08/12/2024

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

• Initial Complaint

  07/14/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I placed an order for two Bark Phones and cases on June 17 2024. I was charged $145.92 for the cases and first month of service for the two phones. I powered on and began the process of connecting my child's current apps/games and approving tracking for Bark on said apps. An absolutely daunting task. I was under the impression that I would be able to sign into the device with my child's existing ******* and ****** accounts then simply grant ********** for Bark to track the device and apps in one. Considering that is not the case, I decided to return both devices and never even opened the second device. After weeks of back and forth with the company I've yet to receive a response as to why at least one of the devices can't be refunded since it was never even removed from the box. Instead, they've chosen to flood my inbox requesting I do surveys on my customer service experience to earn an entry into a $100 Amazon gift card drawing. No thank you.

  

  Business response

  07/16/2024

  Good morning, 

   

  The amount has been fully refunded by our Billing manager. If there is anything further we can do to assist you please don't hesitate to let us know. 

  Best, 

  Beka

   

• Initial Complaint

  07/12/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I had gotten a Bark phone for my son after a few months he didn't like it so I canceled the service then after it was canceled for a month bark took 194 out of my checking account I reached out to them about that and they said that is was because they hadn't gotten their phone back if I returned the phone they would return my money I sent back the phone put they have not returned my money I reached out to them they said they had to check the phone to make sure it works which it does I have reached out to them several times since with no response I just want my money refunded

  

  Business response

  07/12/2024

  Good morning, 

  I hope you are doing well today. Our team reached out this morning via email at 8:45am EST sharing that your refund had been processed. Depending on your financial institution, it should post to your account within 5-7 business days. 

   

  Please let us know if there is anything else we can do to assist you. 

  Warm regards,

  Beka

   

• Initial Complaint

  07/09/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I decided to get a Bark Phone for my child. Paid $89/month for the service. They sent a very cheap android phone that in less than 2 months the power button stopped working. When trying to get it replaced, it was going to take a long time, and I decided to return the phone and cancel the service. I returned the defective phone which should have been covered under some sort of warranty. I am being charged $199 for a defective phone that I had for less than 2 months. I want a refund.

  

  Business response

  07/12/2024

  Hi *******, 

  We tried to reach out via our support system and would be happy to discuss this further. We are also more than happy to process a warranty claim, but it looks like previously you were not wanting to do so. The warranty claim would allow us to go through a process to better assess the damage to the phone. 

  We are unable to process a refund given there was external damage done to the phone. We would be happy to discuss additional options in the open ticket we sent over this week. 

  Warm regards, 

  Beka

   

• Initial Complaint

  07/04/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I signed for my child. Was unable to even setup due to errors with phone. No task person to speak with, no help available. I want a full refund as it was not easy to setup and use as advertised. I should not have to pay any fee or a restocking fee due to inept service and phone that won't setup and there's no help for these issues.

  

  Business response

  07/08/2024

  Good morning, 

  I hope you are doing well. I am incredibly sorry to hear you've encountered trouble setting up your Bark Phone with ****** Family Link. The Bark Phone is incompatible with Family Link as it contains all the necessary controls to replace that particular feature set from ******. 

  We would be more than happy to work through what you are experiencing and determine the best steps forward. It looks like a manager called and emailed this past Friday to attempt to resolve. Our phone support is open from 8:30a-8P EST Mon-Friday and we would be more than happy to schedule time with you via email if those times do not work for your family schedule. 

  You are able to send the Bark Phone back at no additional cost if you would prefer, just cancel the account and we will send you a free shipping label to return the device. 

  Warm regards, 

  Beka

• Initial Complaint

  06/02/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Bark has taken ****** off my debit card without my consent at all. I'm low income and on a budget for one and for two you don't know someone's situation to just decide to take money off their card without their consent! That would be consider stealing! We wasn't able to afford service anyways which I emailed before trial had ended to cancel service and other issues I . was having with phone anyways . I'm a single mother I can't work due to my son's disabilities so I get state assistance once a month. I have bills rent,utilities,renters insurance, things for my home household needs and things my kids need I only get funds once a month! I am now in a hole for my rent especially that is due TOMORROW ! THE Reasoning FOR This Is BECAUSE OF BARK taking my bill money without ABSOLUTELY WITHOUT MY CONSENT MOR ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ! I WANT MY MONEY PLACED Back on my card please this is definetly not AND I MEAN NOT OKAY AT ALL!

  

  Business response

  06/04/2024

  Good morning, 

   

  I am incredibly sorry for the distress this situation has caused you and your family. We are more than happy to refund the amount. It is important to note that we can refund the non-return fee as soon as the item has been received. The shipping label and confirmation that the refund can be processed was sent in our email communications earlier this week. If there is anything else we can do to assist you please let us know. In the meantime, as soon as the label registers in our system as having been dropped off at ***** we would be happy to refund the amount to get it back to you quickly. 

  I apologize also if it caught you off guard. We do send email communications both when canceling and prior to your account being charged a fee for not having returned the leased product but it sounds like those may not have landed in your primary email inbox. 

  Again, if there is anything else we can do to assist you please let us know in our active email thread. 

  Warm regards, 

  Beka

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩