ComplaintsforFirst Alert

• Initial Complaint

  03/13/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Consumer Reports published a recall on First Alert smoke alarms, and I contacted First Alert based on the information in Consumer Reports. They requested all the information on the two i had purchased. they also requested that i take pictures of them installed in my house. and other seemingly unrelated information.Ater sending them everything they requested, i waited, and waited. no response. I Appreciate your consideration in helping me.Best regards;,***

  Business response

  03/16/2023

  Hello,

  We will reach out to ***************. I can't find any contact  information from him under name, phone number or email address in our system. It's possible a different phone number or email was provided to us when he contacted us.

  No mention of the model number was provided in this complaint, however, First Alert/BRK Brands has not had any recall on a smoke alarm since 2006.

   

  Best,

  ***************************

  Consumer Support Manager

• Initial Complaint

  01/31/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 10/12/2022, I first contacted First Alert to complain about (2) Carbon Monoxide and Smoke Detectors, that I purchased from a retailer, that the equipment is faulty and making an electronic static noise (not chirps) that emits from the detectors which is keeping my family up at night. I indicated that both detectors were installed at the same time and 1 month later the noise starts. After several attempts, First Alert agreed to replace the detectors which I received in December 2022 and now today (one month later) the same electronic noise issue has re-occurred and will not go away. At this point, since the issue is re-occurring and the equipment is faulty and not lasting the 10 years as advertised, I would like a refund of $69.99 which I paid for both detectors.

  Business response

  02/03/2023

  Hello,

  I have spoke with *****************. This is a very unusual complaint. We are sending a postage paid return label to *****************, for the return of his alarms.

  Once received, the alarms will be given to our engineering team for analysis.

  A check request for a refund of $119.96 has been started for ******************  We have agreed to this amount, as ***************** doesn't have his original purchase receipt. 

  The check request has also been started before we receive his alarms back. 

  Sincerely,

  ***************************

  Consumer Support Manager

   

• Initial Complaint

  01/21/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Failed smoke detector out of the box. Purchased 01/21/2023. First Alert BRK Model 7010B, Date of manufacture 2021 Sep 17 L12 on the unit. N04-3073-156021. Have rcpts and photos if needed.Purchased as replacement for 10 year old unit. Unit installed and tested fine. But within 1 hour returned to find strong electronic burning smell in the room. Found that the smoke detector itself was very hot to the touch and was the source of the smell, Struggled to get it out because it was so hot. I will return to purchase point, but I did call the manufacture's hot line. You would think a company that sold fire safety equipment would want the failed product back that could have caused a fire. The response was shockingly low key for what the problem was. My smoke detector could have caused a fire.

  Business response

  01/25/2023

  Hello,

  We have reached out to *************** and apologized for the way his original call was handled. We do take complaints regarding our products very seriously, and want to investigate this.

  We are placing an order for a replacement alarm for him. We will be sending *************** a postage paid return label for him to use to send the alarm, battery and wire harness into us. *************** advised that the battery was not hot, nor did he see any brown/dark spots on the alarm or the wire harness. Once we receive his return we will turn it over to our Quality and/or Engineering teas for analysis.

  We have advised that once the testing is completed, we will reach out to him with our findings.

  The original call has been reviewed with the agent that took the call, to ensure proper handling in the future.

  Again, our apologies for how his call was handled originally.

  Best,

  ***************************

  Consumer Support Mgr.

  First Alert

   

   

  Customer response

  01/26/2023

   
  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

  12/18/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I bought a First Alert smoke alarm on 2022-12-02 at ************************* Hardware based on the 10-year limited warranty stamp on the package. After I installed the alarm, I looked at the limited warranty statement inside the package, and it says the warranty is only 7 years. First Alert should correct those to be consistent. The bar code on the back of the package is 0 ***** ***** 5, and the package says "C16-159141-169219 Cat. *******".

  Business response

  12/19/2022

  Hello-

  We apologize for the mix-up with the packaging and the manual warranty. 

  The warranty on the P1200 (*******) alarm is 10yrs. The correct manual is available on the www.brkelectronics.com website.

  I have taken the information that has been provided and forwarded it to our Marketing Team and our Website team for review and corrective action.

  I have also created an internal case for *****************- citing the complaint and documenting the date of purchase of the alarm and that he has 10yr warranty on the alarms- should he have any issues with it.

  Thank you for taking the time to bring this to our attention.

  Best,

  ***************************

  Consumer Support MGR

  Customer response

  12/20/2022

   
  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

  10/06/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Dear BBB staff,We have six First Alert Smoke detectors 9120B, which are malfunctioning before the expiration date. Starting in June/July, five of them start to chirp once every minute. In early October, the sixth one exhibited the same symptom. We did everything we could to trouble shoot, in several times in the middle of the night, e.g., putting in brand-new batteries, detaching from the hardwire, reset by holding the reset button, re-connect it et al. **** of these was helpful. The customer service insisted it I had to use certain brands of battery and re-do everything over the phone so she could listen to the sound, which is a complete repetitive work and a waste of time for both ends. I would like to request replacements of these devices by First Alert. Thank you for any help you may kindly provide.****,*****.

  Business response

  10/12/2022

  I have reached out to ********* via phone and email in an effort to assist with resolution of this complaint.

  She has reached out via email and advised that her husband will be reaching out to me.

  I fully believe that we will be able to resolve this with them. 

  Sincerely,

  ***************************

  Consumer Support Mgr

  First Alert

  Customer response

  10/12/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  

  Thank you. We will work together and hope to resolve this soon.
  

  Sincerely,
  
  *****************

• Initial Complaint

  09/27/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  First Alert would not honor their 10 year warranty for a SA520 series smoke detector. The fire department came out twice, replaced the backup batteries and verified that the unit was defective at a rental unit. It was part of a whole house one-link system also connected to a voice activiated CO2 detector system and **** said that connection was not possible. He basically was calling us a liar. It has worked for over 6 years just fine and the fire department checked and approved of the various onelink componenets it as part of a big remodel project. . I offered to send him the amazon receipt so he could see all the one link units and the fire dpearmtnet reports. . I got the idea **** was paid to make by customers requesting warranty work jump through hoops and answer so many questions that they just give up on warranty. We repeatedly asked to talk to his supervisor and he flat out refused. We did ask for permission to record the call to post on social media because it became just outrageous. At one point he said we should have called First Alert for troubleshooting instead of the fire department. That is putting the public in danger. **** the customer service rep was extremely argumentative and had a long list of questions. After a 30-minute-long conversation, he would not accept the fire department's report of the defective unit and insisted that I recreate the situation so HE could hear the chirp. **** refused to transfer us to the warranty department. At first he said he was just tech support and then later he said he was tech and the warranty department. This company is not trustworthy and the public should be aware of them reneging on their warranties. Shame on them.

  Business response

  10/06/2022

  Hello,

  I have contacted ******************, after listening to the recorded call that she made to us. 

  Our apologies were given as to the call handling and the lack of resolution that we provided.

  I explained that it sounded like her renters were actually receiving an end-of-life chirp notification on the two SCO501CN that she has. Those were installed in 2014 and have a 7yr warranty and life.

  Since she purchased new alarms, we are providing her a refund for the five other alarms. We will also be sending a postage paid return label to her, for the return of her alarms.

  ***************** agreed to this resolution.

  Sincerely, 

  ***************************

  Consumer Support Mgr

• Initial Complaint

  09/26/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  The smoke detector(First Alert Model No. 7010B) in my bedroom keeps chirping after battery change. So I called First Alert on 09/02. They sent me a new one. But the new one still keeps chirping. So I called First Alert again on 09/16. The representative told me to try to cut the power of the room before installing it. It shouldn't be so troublesome to just install a smoke detector. Anyway, I still tried her method. However, it still keeps chirping. Then I called First Alert again. Ms. ******* said I should call an electrician to inspect the wiring of my home. I expressed my doubt. She said she's been doing this for years.I was about to spend $139 to call an electrician to come over. Fortunately, I noticed that I have another smoke detector in my living room. It's the same model 7010B. So I took it off and installed it in my bedroom. It's working fine. I believe that proves my bedroom wiring has nothing wrong. Had I listened to Ms. ********* I would have wasted $139 on an electrician inspection. Would First Alert reimburse me the $139? I doubt it.Just send me a working one, please.

  Business response

  10/07/2022

  We have reached out to ********* via his phone number that was provided in this report.

  I have left him a ** with my direct phone number and email address. In the ** I advised that a replacement order had been placed and that we would be sending a Postage paid return label. As a responsible manufacturer of life safety products, we would like the opportunity to review the alarm and determine what could be causing it to give a low battery chirp.

  We apologize for his experience and look forward to the opportunity to investigate further.

   

  Sincerely,

  ***************************

  Consumer Support Mgr

  First Alert

  Customer response

  10/07/2022

   
  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

  03/03/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Date of Purchase: April 12, 2020 Date of Incident: ********************: $172.99 Merchant: Amazon.com Order #***-5101656-4149842 Product: Onelink ************ by First Alert Issue: Business is selling products with internal batteries that cannot be replaced by the consumer. This results in an otherwise fine device requiring immediate replacement of the electronic device even while still in warranty. Manufacture states that they will not replace devices with defective batteries, even while under warranty. First Alert has effectively schemed to plan the obsolescence of consumer devices and in my case that obsolescence occurs before the expected end of life of the device. This specific device is a fire alarm, an expensive one at that. Fire Alarms typically last well over the 2 years this device did while cost 1/3 the price.I would like a replacement of the device or refund. ********************'s lack of foresight and consumer friendly business model is appalling.

  Business response

  03/04/2022

  ************* contacted us yesterday, March 3,2022.

  We responded to his email a little while later asking some questions and his phone number so we could call him and get more information in order to troubleshoot his alarm. We did not receive a response from him.

  We reached out to him again today via email. He responded that he wanted the alarm replaced. We placed an order for a new alarm and are sending a paid return label for the return of the alarm for testing purposes.

  We always honor our warranty and stand behind our products. We have done so with *************.

  Best,

  ***************************

  Consumer Support Mgr

  First Alert-BRK Brands., Inc.

   

   

  Customer response

  03/07/2022

   
  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

  10/06/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Breach of warranty contract.I have a warranty on smoke detector/carbon monoxide detectors for 10 years. My home has 4 detectors. One detector has malfunctioned. I called the BRK electronics First Alert office October 2021 to get a replacement for one detector since it has only been 7 years since the original 4 detectors were installed. I was told they would not honor the 10 year warranty but they would send me a courtesy detector to replace the one detector. I offered to send them a copy of my documentation as evidentiary support for my claim. I was told they didn't want it. I asked for there dispute address to file a formal complaint. I was told they didn't have one. I am writing to get assistance in the matter and let people know about the service of this company.

  Business response

  10/07/2021

  Hello-

  The warranty on this unit depends on the date of purchase and/or the date of manufacture on the back of the alarm.

  *************** did call us and said she had 1 unit that was giving the audible signal to replace. She could not advise us of the date of manufacture on the back of the unit.

  She said it was installed in 10/2014. The units manufactured in 2014 had a 7 yr warranty.

   

  I apologize on behalf of the company that she was advised it was out of warranty. Technically it was still in warranty. I will review this case with the technical support person that assisted ***************.

  An order has been placed for her at no cost, on 10/6/2021. It should ship out in the next few days.

   

  Regards,

  ***************************

  Consumer Support Mgr

*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. ↩