Complaints

This profile includes complaints for NETGEAR's headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see Find Local Branches.

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  NETGEAR

  350 E Plumeria Dr San Jose, CA 95134-1911

• 

  NETGEAR

  PO Box 540009 El Paso, TX 88554

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. 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.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:03/01/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  On Jan 5th, Amazon sold me a NetGear product that was supposed to come with a LIFETIME WARRANTY as they clearly advertised on their website. (Please see attached LIFETIME WARRANTY - FALSE - 001.PNG). As soon as I received the product, I had problems with it and I called NetGear for the LIFETIME WARRANTY support but then, NetGear stated that whatever Amazon was advertising is FALSE. There is no warranty on the product and Amazon had no right to sell the item As-Is per NetGear. After days and then weeks of going back and forth with Amazon and NetGear Neither one of the companies is owning up to the Warranty which then places this problem in the category of FRAUD. One of these companies is lying. BBB.org can you please help me determine, prosecute, etc. which company (Amazon or NetGear) is liable and then take appropriate action since neither of the companies is denying accountability.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/13/2023

  Dear ******************,
  
  I hope this email finds you well! 
  
  My name is Draze and I am a ************* Advocate for ********************** I understand from your recent correspondence that you submitted a complaint regarding the guaranteed LIFETIME WARRANTY for your ProSAFE 24 Port Gigabit L2 Managed Switch(GSM7224v2).
  
  I would first like to thank you for your feedback. I will make every effort to ensure that your case with us is handled efficiently.
  
  I spent some time thoroughly reviewing your complaint and It appears that the ProSAFE 24 Port Gigabit L2 Managed Switch(GSM7224v2) was sold by Bayside Resale which is not an authorized NETGEAR reseller. Due to your product being purchased from an unauthorized reseller, your product is not eligible for warranty coverage, as stated in our Consumer Warranty Information:
  
  Our policy is to offer product warranties and to perform services only on products purchased from an authorized NETGEAR reseller and only accompanied by a receipt or proof of purchase. If you purchase a NETGEAR product from an unauthorized reseller or if the original factory serial number has been removed, defaced or altered, this NETGEAR warranty will not be valid.
  
  Unfortunately, there are some websites and dealers who claim to be authorized NETGEAR resellers but are not. Products sold on these websites or from these dealers do not carry a warranty from NETGEAR. When you purchase products from an unauthorized website or dealer, you are taking a risk because these products may be counterfeit, used, defective, or may not be designed for use in your country. Please protect yourself and your NETGEAR product by ensuring that you only purchase NETGEAR products from an authorized reseller. If you have any questions about authorized resellers, please visit our website.
  
  Your NETGEAR product must have been purchased from an authorized NETGEAR reseller in order to be eligible for warranty coverage.
  
  Hence the device is not covered by the lifetime warranty  
  
  We highly suggest that you contact your reseller for further assistance. Your feedback is much appreciated as this will allow us to further improve the quality of our service. 
  
  We have self-help documents and useful product articles available on our knowledge base ********************************************** that you may use as reference.
  
  For more information on the Consumer Warranty, please click on the following link: *****************************************************
  
  For more details on the Authorized Reseller information and listing, please click on the following link: *************************************************************
  Thank you for choosing NETGEAR.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  Draze C.
  ************* Advocate
  **********************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/13/2023

   
  Complaint: 19520015
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  

   

  I am really happy you stated that. But for clarity, are you stating that Amazon is "NOT" "AUTHORIZED" to sell NetGear products as you suggest above?

  Your "Yes" or "No" answer to that question above will resolve this problem very quickly in my eyes and probably in the eyes of the BBB & Amazon's eyes as well.

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

  Business Response

  Date: 03/14/2023

  Dear ******************,
  
  Thank you for your prompt response!
  
  I understand that you are very upset about this, I truly do apologize for any inconvenience this had brought you.
  
  As I mentioned in the previous email your ProSAFE 24 Port Gigabit L2 Managed Switch(GSM7224v2) was sold by Bayside Resale which is not an authorized NETGEAR reseller. Yes, AMAZON is indeed one of our partners in selling NETGEAR products. However, there are Resellers/Dealers from Amazon that are not authorized resellers. they claim to be authorized NETGEAR resellers but are not. Products sold on these websites or from these dealers do not carry a warranty from NETGEAR. When you purchase products from an unauthorized website or dealer, you are taking a risk because these products may be counterfeit, used, defective, or may not be designed for use in your country. Please protect yourself and your NETGEAR product by ensuring that you only purchase NETGEAR products from an authorized reseller. If you have any questions about authorized resellers, please visit our website.
  
  Due to your product being purchased from an unauthorized reseller, your product is not eligible for warranty coverage, as stated in our Consumer Warranty Information:
  
  Our policy is to offer product warranties and to perform services only on products purchased from an authorized NETGEAR reseller and only accompanied by a receipt or proof of purchase. If you purchase a NETGEAR product from an unauthorized reseller or if the original factory serial number has been removed, defaced or altered, this NETGEAR warranty will not be valid.
  
  For more details on the Authorized Reseller information and listing, please click on the following link: *************************************************************
  
  Thank you for choosing NETGEAR.
  Sincerely,
  
  Draze C.
  Customer Care Advocate
  **********************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/28/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Bought a NEW Netgear Nighthawk router, and accidentally enabled the Netgear Armor subscription which is a terrible software. Tried to cancel the subscription via the app, web and even contacting their support. The app and Web version at ************************************** does not work on purpose!! Their support said they do not allow customers to disable this for security which is not true. I ended up calling their support waited for 4 hours and all I was told is that my case would be escalated. I also followed their KB ************************************************************************************************************ Still they did not resolve my issue and basically ignored my request. This is clearly a money grab scheme in which they do not allow the us as a customer to cancel unwanted subscriptions + they have disabled anyway of doing so, so that you have to contact them and they make it extremely painful to cancel. Additionally my service is enabled in TRIAL mode hence the subscription is not even live yet and they still will not cancel it. Their T&C state that one must contact them before the subscription kicks in to cancel the subscription which I did but still they simply won't cancel it. This is clearly intentional.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/05/2023

  Dear ****************,
  
  I hope this response finds you well! 
  
  My name is Draze and I am a ************* Advocate for ********************** I understand from your recent correspondence that you have submitted a complaint regarding your Armor Security - 1 Year contract as you claim that it has terrible software and you are now asking to cancel the subscription. 
  
  I would first like to thank you for your feedback. I will make every effort to ensure that your case with us is handled efficiently.
  
  I spent some time carefully reviewing your account and it appears that the Armor Security - 1 Year contract was already canceled on 3/1/2023, Please be advised that there's no charge in our system and I have already made sure that the auto-renewal is turned off to avoid future charges.
  
  Regarding your complaint about the options on your Orbi/ Nighthawk application wherein it was not allowing you to disable or even cancel the contract, rest assured that everything is well noted and documented here so our colleagues would know what to improve on the Orbi/Nighthawk application as well as the website. Your feedback is well important to us as this will allow us to further improve the quality of our service
  
  Please do not hesitate to contact us if further issue with the billing occurs. You can reach out to us at ************** or send email to ***********************************************************
  
  Additional support information can also be found on our Knowledge Base located at:
  **********************************************
  
  Thank you for contacting NETGEAR! please do not hesitate to reach out if you have other inquiries.
  
  Regards, 
  
  Draze C.
  ************* Advocate
  **********************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/05/2023

   
  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

  Date:02/24/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I purchased a NetGear Mesh system in December. A few weeks ago they released a firmware update, breaking my mesh system. Multiple tickets and multiple users later they got the router working but not the satellites and said the satellites were defective and needed to be replaced. They made me pay for the replacement despite this being an issue caused by them. When I finally received the replacement, the satellites connected for less than 24 hours before I once again had no internet. An hour and a half phone call later, the tech said my router was defective and that the satellites I had previously returned likely weren't defective because the router wasn't passing any IP address to the satellites. The tech was going to escalate to his tier 2 team and promised a call back the next day at 6:30pm. The tech never called and my internet went completely out again. I called NetGear and there were no notes from the tier 2 team and the new tech put me on hold to talk to them. New tech eventually hung up on me after I was on hold for several minutes. I called back and another tech had no information from the tier 2 team and tried to just get me to restart my router again despite that already having been done several times. I escalated to a supervisor who was incredibly rude, kept interrupting me, refused to answer questions, treated me condescendingly, and when I asked to be escalated to his supervisor, he hung up on me. The last tech I spoke to before the supervisor called me back and was the only person to ever call me back and setup a follow-up with the supervisors boss. The issue still has not been resolved and I still do not have reliable internet going on roughly 3 weeks now. Their firmware update ruined my system, they made me pay to fix something that was likely not broken and now I cannot get support to get the resolve the situation. They need to pay for the router replacement that they caused to be broken since I already paid for a fix that wasn't the issue.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/06/2023

  Dear ****************,
  
  I hope this email finds you well! 
  
  My name is Draze and I am a ************* Advocate for ********************** I understand from your recent correspondence that you submitted a complaint regarding the defective Mesh WiFi 6 Router(MR60) and after many troubleshooting attempts the issue still persists. 
  
  I would first like to thank you for your feedback. I will make every effort to ensure that your case with us is handled efficiently.
  
  I have personally taken the time to investigate your concern and Once again we do apologize for the inconvenience this had caused you. 
  upon further reviewing, I noticed that the last correspondence from our technical support was on 03/01/2023 indicating that the issue was already resolved and that the internet was already stable.
  
  Kindly let us know if you still face the same issues and if you need any further technical assistance, kindly create an email inquiry on: ************************************************************* or contact our NETGEAR support at ******************************************************* or call ************** and press 1 for technical support.
  
  We deeply value your feedback as this will help us improve the quality of our service, So If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know.
  
  Thank you for contacting NETGEAR!
  
  Yours in Service,
  
  Draze C.
  ************* Advocate
  **********************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/06/2023

   
  Complaint: 19495711
  
  I am rejecting this response because: it completely disregarded the horrid customer service I received and especially the behavior of a supervisor who refuses to help and hangs up on customers instead. This entire support experience was the antithesis of customer support.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *********************

  Business Response

  Date: 03/13/2023

  Dear ****************,
  
  Good day!
  
  Were really sorry that the customer service and support you were expecting from ** didnt turn out as you were expecting.
  
  We take full responsibility for not making enough effort to provide you our usual high service standards.
  
  In order to make this up to you. We will make sure that we would  further examine what happened, conduct phone call reviews, and leave any appropriate comments for the supervisor who hung up on you
  
  Hopefully, this will address your problem. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have any additional feedback.
  
  Kindly let us know if you still face the same issues and if you need any further technical assistance, kindly create an email inquiry on: ************************************************************* or contact our NETGEAR support at ******************************************************* or call ************** and press 1 for technical support.
  
  We deeply value your feedback as this will help us improve the quality of our service, So If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know.
  
  Thank you for contacting NETGEAR!
  
  Yours in Service,
  
  Draze C.
  Customer Care Advocate
  **********************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/24/2023

  Type:Delivery Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  The date of purchase is 2/14/23 The amount of the order is $1529.49 for a Orbi Mesh WiFi 6E System - AXE11000 - 3 pack - Black (RBKE963B), , hi-res i have not received my product the product order number is ******* I have called day after day continuously also emailing providing proof of purchase.. I have been given serval case numbers, the lastest being ******** Netgear states that the case is under investigation and to give them 24 to 48 hours, which i have done so since 2/14 with no updates and no responses.The account name is ***************************. The account email is ******************** The order number that is ALSO on the account login page, "which says order shipped and order created on 2/14/23", is *******..

  Business Response

  Date: 03/04/2023

  Dear ****************,
  
  I hope this response finds you well! 
  
  My name is Draze and I am a ************* Advocate for ********************** I understand from your recent correspondence that you have submitted a complaint regarding your most recent purchase with the order number: 0372861.
  
  I would first like to thank you for your feedback. I will make every effort to ensure that your case with us is handled efficiently.
  
  I have spent some time thoroughly investigating your complaint and According to our ****************** the payment with affirm cannot be located in the system, Hence we could not pull up the order. There might have been a system error when the email confirmation from NETGEAR was sent as we validated the payment and it appears that the Affirm loan was not successfully processed.
  
  Kindly please contact Affirm to re-evaluate the payment as it did not go through the billing system with NETGEAR
  
  Please visit my.netgear.com account, under the support tab then click on cases for any further inquiries. 
  We have self-help documents and useful product articles available on: *****************************************
  
  Thank you for contacting NETGEAR! please do not hesitate to reach out if you have other inquiries.
  
  Regards, 
  
  Draze C.
  ************* Advocate
  **********************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/05/2023

   
  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

  Date:02/23/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I bought one of their hotspot devices and the Ethernet port wasnt working. The product was only a few weeks new so it fell into the 90 day warranty period. They started a standard rma replacement for the defective device and I was told within ten business days I would receive the replacement device. They received the defective device on January 23, 2023 through the tracking number I thankfully had *** do for me. It has now officially been one month since they received my device but yet they have not sent the replacement device. Ive called them 12 times during this one month period to ask why the havent shipped the replacement device. Every time I call they tell me it has been marked as urgent and within ***** hours I will receive confirmation of the device being shipped. I was told that on five separate occasions. I paid for a device that I dont even physically have because they told me to send it to them and now I have been without internet at my house for a full month.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/10/2023

  Dear Mr./****************,
  
  I hope you are well. My name is ****** of NETGEAR ************* Team.  I understand that from your recent correspondence that you have submitted a complaint regarding your replacement that is still not provided. I would first like to thank you for your feedback. I will make every effort to ensure that your case with us is handled efficiently.

  I have personally taken the time to review your account and I can see that the RMA 3739489 has the defective unit that you sent. The main reason why the replacement unit has not yet released it is because the device that you have (AT&T Nighthawk M6 ********** Router(MR6500 (AT&T) is locked by your *** (AT&T). This specific units/models designed for ***'s, and in case that the product is defective customer's will need to contact the *** directly for them to have it replaced. However, there's an ongoing discussion between our warehouse and concerned teams what we will do in order to get this resolved. We already sent a follow up with them and now we are awaiting for their response.

  I can provide an update directly to your support case#******** once I have this. Should you have any questions regarding this, please do not hesitate to ask.

  We appreciate your time and patience.

  Sincerely,
  
  ****************
  ************* Advocate
  NETGEAR, Inc.

   

  
  
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/23/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I bought Netgear nighthawk ax6000 wifi cable modem router a year ago. After 6 months my power went out and bricked the router. I called customer support and spoke with an agent. He tells me they can only help me over the phone for the first 3 months which I think is insane since I spent 500 dollars on it. So he continues to tell me I can look it up online and fix it myself. I try to do it myself and can't get it to work. I call around to computer shops to see if any of them can help me which they cannot. I go back and see if I can fix it myself again and find out they have the wrong firmware online. I call them back and they say that I'm right about the firmware but nothing they can do about it. I paid 500 dollars for this modem/router and if they power goes out once you're just beat? Now they won't take it back or put a fix for it online so I'm just out 500 dollars. I would like my money back and for others to know about their poor busines practices. I'm not the only one this has happened to and think they should be held responsible for selling such an inferior product and practices!! People don't have 500 to buy Netgear's routers every 6 months!

  Business Response

  Date: 03/10/2023

  Dear Mr./****************,
  
  Good day! My name is ****** and I am a ************* Advocate for ********************** I understand that from your recent correspondence that you have submitted a complaint regarding the product issues and the service you received when you contacted NETGEAR and asked for help with your device. I would first like to thank you for your feedback. I will make every effort to ensure that your case with us is handled efficiently.
  
  Mr./****************, let me assure you that we continue to be committed to providing you and all of our customers with the highest standards of product & service in the industry. NETGEAR Inc. is able to replace products found to be defective with the same model or a suitable upgrade if the current model is unavailable, according to the One Year Hardware warranty. As per NETGEAR Consumer Warranty Policy the product is also entitled for 90 days Service warranty from the date of purchase for any technical assistance.
  
  I have personally taken the time to review your account and I noticed that your NETGEAR 8-stream AX WiFi Gateway(CAX80) is already expired for support warranty since 06/16/2021. We are more than happy to work with you in addressing your issue. As a courtesy we will provide you a one time ***** support to check the unit and process one time replacement. Please let me know if you want me to arrange a callback with our support expert by providing your preferred callback time or updating the ticket ******** online.
  
  The following link details product warranty information:
  
  *****************************************************************************************************
  
  We appreciate your time and patience.
  
  Thank you for contacting NETGEAR.
  
  Kind regards,
  
  ****************
  ************* Advocate
  **********************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/19/2023

   
  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

  Date:02/22/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Netgear made my CAX30 router unusable. The router no longer broadcasts a SSID signal and the ethernet ports are disabled. The router continues to be connected to the *** and the *** can ping my device - the device just fails to provide internet for my home. Netgear community members online have surmised that the bricking of our CAX30 routers is most likely the result of a bad firmware update from Netgear. I have called Netgear twice. Both times they offered no support without paying exorbitant fees, $180+ for a 90-day support period, which I refused. It isn't fair - they caused this problem and then want me to pay them to solve it! This is extortion and a scam.Posts on the Netgear forum have been deleted by mods at will. Posts talking about threads about the CAX30 being locked were also subsequently deleted. Netgear is not allowing an open venting or discussion of these issues. They are purposefully denying the right of their customers to have a voice on their platform to preserve their reputation and increase profits. I have a background in cybersecurity and computer networking, so I understand these issues better than most. But how many customers have unwittingly paid for their support because they were given dishonest information? Where is the accountability when Netgear lies and misleads their customers? My router has been inoperable for days due to their negligence. Was this all just a scam? To sell their service plan? Why have my cases been closed as soon as they've been opened. Is it because I haven't paid them a fee?Netgear have failed to provide any guidance on when service will be restored. No emails, no admittance of wrongdoing, and no updates on when firmware will be updated again. They have proven to be an unethical, greedy company that needs to be investigated.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/07/2023

  Dear ******************,
  
  I hope this response finds you well! 
  
  My name is Draze and I am a ************* Advocate for ********************** I understand from your recent correspondence that you have submitted a complaint regarding your AX2700 DOCSIS 3.1 WiFi Cable Modem Router(CAX30S) as it stopped working, and it seems that you are dissatisfied with the support you've received from our technical support team.
  
  I would first like to thank you for your feedback. I will make every effort to ensure that your case with us is handled efficiently.
  
  I have personally taken the time to investigate your concern and Once again we do apologize for the inconvenience this had caused you. Our team recently sent out an email blast concerning the (CAX30) as it appears to have issues with the internet connectivity after updating to FW v2.1.3.10. upon further checking, I noticed that you have already done the suggested troubleshooting on our Knowledgebase website and had also requested assistance from our technical support staff However the issue still persists.

  I can see that you are now communicating with our Technical Support Team looking into getting a replacement unit. I have created an *** for your replacement device. Please complete the transaction I sent you so that we can process your replacement unit.
  
  To proceed with the *** process, we would like to request a copy of your INVOICE as well as a clear/readable photo of the WHOLE back of the unit containing the *** MAC, IMEA, and other information found on the back of your NETGEAR product. A valid INVOICE should contain the price of the device, the store where you purchase the device and the date of purchase.
  
  You may check and update the shipment status of your *** at this link; *************************************************************************** | Check Status 

   

  We do extremely apologize for the support you have received previously with our technical support team, I assure you that everything is well documented here and we appreciate your feedback as this would help us improve our service here at NETGEAR.
  
  Thank you for contacting NETGEAR! please do not hesitate to reach out if you have other inquiries.
  
  Regards, 
  
  Draze C.
  ************* Advocate
  **********************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/10/2023

   
  Complaint: 19451946
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  On Tuesday, February 21, 2023, NETGEAR sent out a firmware update that caused my NETGEAR CAX30 modem router to stop providing wireless and wired internet for our home. The firmware update turned off SSID broadcast and disabled the ethernet ports. After five days of troubleshooting, we determined that the device was irreparable, and I returned it to Costco.
  
  I feel that NETGEAR has engaged in unethical business practices in the following ways:
            NETGEAR caused the CAX30 to stop working. NETGEAR programmed and sent out a defective firmware update that turned off the CAX30's SSID broadcast signal and ethernet ports. 
            NETGEAR charged customers for technical support for a problem they caused. Even though CAX30's issues were widespread, and the result of NETGEARs failed firmware update, NETGEAR charged customers a fee for tech support. I refused to pay their fee, but other customers did pay for support. 
            NETGEAR failed to provide qualified technical support specialists. Customers relied upon NETGEAR "experts" who lacked sufficient education and/or experience to understand and solve technical problems. 
            NETGEAR failed to provide refunds for CAX30 modem routers. NETGEAR did not issue a recall and did not offer refunds, even though it was their responsibility to offer recompense.
            NETGEAR could not guarantee that replacements for CAX30 devices would be new and in excellent condition. NETGEAR offered replacement devices that *** be refurbished, dirty, or used, and otherwise not in comparable condition to the brand new CAX30 devices customers purchased in retail stores. 
            NETGEAR did not offer any alternative to CAX30 replacement, such as a refund or other forms of compensation. NETGEAR only offered a replacement for the CAX30, even for customers who *** have no use for a replacement device, after they were forced to purchase a new modem and router. 
  
  Some customers were unable to get a replacement device and were forced to eat the cost of the CAX30 and buy a new modem and router. NETGEAR *** have a pattern of negligently sending out firmware updates that cause devices to stop working, then charge customers for tech support. They tried to charge me $180 but I refused to pay it. I believe NETGEAR is committing fraud on a wide scale.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  **************************************

  Business Response

  Date: 03/19/2023

  Dear ******************,
  
  I hope you are having a great weekend!
  
  Were really sorry that the customer service and support you were expecting from ** didnt turn out as you were expecting.
  
  We take full responsibility for not making enough effort to provide you with our usual high service standards.
  
  In order to make this up to you. We will make sure that we would further examine what happened, conduct phone call reviews, and leave any appropriate comments for the poorly handled case. I assure you that your feedback is well important to us and we appreciate you letting us know as this will also help us improve our service with NETGEAR!
  
  Hopefully, this will address your problem. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have any additional feedback.
  
  Thank you for contacting NETGEAR! please do not hesitate to reach out if you have other inquiries.
  
  Regards, 
  
  Draze C.
  Customer Care Advocate
  **********************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/22/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  About 1 1/2 months ago, I started having issues with my work VPN connecting to the CAX30 Modem. I went through all the IT steps at work and through my *** (Sparklight). *** says nothing is wrong on their end - same with my IT. Called NetGear - my modem was purchased 9/2021 - and it is out of warranty for support. I get conned into 3 month offer - their lowest at $60 to just get started. Cust Serv rep is a complete b******* and foreign speaking. Finally she tells me she can't help me - that I have to call some other number. On hold for an astronomical long time. Hang up. Yesterday, internet just quits working. I chalk it up to modem is shot. My *** only lets me purchase certain modem/routers so I had to spend $600 on a new one. Come home, set it up and call *** to update modem on their end. *** *** then tells me that he hopes the CAX80 works better than the CAX30 model. I ask more questions. *** and NetGear are both aware that there is some setting that is messed up in the CAX30 right now that is causing the modem to not work correctly. Not ONCE did *** nor NetGear advise this to me. Had I known, I would have continued to use my phone hotspot until the issue was fixed. But no, I was not told and led to believe that the modem was shot. So I spent almost $700 in the last 2 weeks to fix something that both the *** and NetGear knew were wrong with the CAX30. This is so wrong on so many levels and I am looking to NetGear to reimburse me for my purchase or at least pay half. This is withholding information from your customers which in turn puts them in debt for NO REASON. I am to the point of contacting an attorney because I am so mad. Shame on you Sparklight and Shame on YOU NETGEAR!!!!!

  Business Response

  Date: 03/04/2023

  Dear ****************,
  
  I hope this response finds you well! 
  
  My name is Draze and I am a ************* Advocate for ********************** I understand from your recent correspondence that you have submitted a complaint regarding your AX2700 DOCSIS 3.1 WiFi Cable Modem Router(CAX30S) as it stopped working, and after numerous attempts of troubleshooting the issue still persists.
  
  I would first like to thank you for your feedback. I will make every effort to ensure that your case with us is handled efficiently.
  
  I have personally taken the time to investigate your concern and Once again we do apologize for the inconvenience this had caused you. Our team recently sent out an email blast concerning the (CAX30) as it appears to have issues with the internet connectivity after updating to FW v2.1.3.10. upon further checking, I noticed that you have two accounts registered under NETGEAR if I may suggest we can possibly merge the two accounts so we can avoid emails being sent to the inactive email address, Kindly just provide us your preferred email address so we can proceed with the next possible step.
  
  Please also be advised that your Gearhead 3-month refund request is currently being processed in our department. Please allow us 5-7 business days to investigate your refund request. 
  
  Per the GearHead Contract Terms and Conditions: NETGEAR Refunds Policy (Only Applies to Subscription Contract Services) 
  
  Note: Pay-per-incident services are NOT refundable. A NETGEAR GearHead subscriber, who has not used the entitled services, may choose to unsubscribe from the plan and receive a full refund within the first ten (10) business days of the subscription. If the services have been used, NETGEAR will deduct an amount proportional to the usage (number of incidents multiplied by the ongoing pay-per-incident rate) and refund the balance amount. 
  
  After ten (10) business days, the subscription is NOT refundable Here is a link to a copy of the guidelines that were e-mailed to you when you purchased the contract: *****************************************************************************************;
  
  Regarding the Refund Request for the (CAX30), We understand you are now requesting into getting a refund for your CAX30. We want to inform you that NETGEAR, as the manufacturer, offers a limited liability warranty, whereby a replacement is provided in case of a product defect or failure. NETGEAR generally does not give refunds (or offer product upgrades), as refunds will come from the place of purchase. However, we recognize that you are not happy with your experience with NETGEAR. This is not a confirmation but what we can do is perform a further review of your request, and we will update you on the outcome within the next 3-5 business days.
  
  Thank you for contacting NETGEAR! please do not hesitate to reach out if you have other inquiries.
  
  Regards, 
  
  Draze C.
  ************* Advocate
  **********************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/21/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Netgear has locked me out of the use of my Internet cable modem. Without notice. For not Buying the security subscription. When making the purchase of the almost 400 Router It was not made clear on packaging that a subscription was going to have to be paid for after 90 days.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/02/2023

  Dear **************,
  
  I hope this response finds you well! 
  
  My name is Draze and I am a ************* Advocate for ********************** I understand from your recent correspondence that you have submitted a complaint regarding your AX2700 DOCSIS 3.1 WiFi Cable Modem Router(CAX30S) as it suddenly stopped working when your Armor security- trial got expired.
  
  I would first like to thank you for your feedback. I will make every effort to ensure that your case with us is handled efficiently.
  
  I have personally taken the time to review your concern and I noticed that you have the AX2700 DOCSIS 3.1 WiFi Cable Modem Router(CAX30S)
  Our team recently sent out an email blast concerning the (CAX30) as it appears to have issues with the internet connectivity after updating to FW v2.1.3.10. Hence, the Armor security- trial expiration is not the primary issue why the device has connectivity problems.
  
  You may kindly check our Knowledge base website as We have created a step-by-step process instruction that you may follow to restore your internet connectivity via: ************************************************************************************************************************************
  
  If the issue still persists you may kindly contact our technical support team for further technical assistance. Kindly create an email inquiry on: ************************************************************* or contact our NETGEAR support at ******************************************************* or call ************** and press 1 for technical support.
  
  Thank you for contacting NETGEAR! please do not hesitate to reach out if you have other inquiries.
  
  Regards, 
  
  Draze C.
  ************* Advocate
  **********************
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/21/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Purchased Netgear RAX120 router through Amazon on 12/8. I worked for several month trying to resolve connectivity issues through my ISP and Netgear. After confirmation from L2 support at Netgear that the device is defective ********************** initially communicated that they would replace the device. I was asked multiple times from help desk support staff where the device was purchased. After proof of purchase was provided Netgear reversed decision to replace the router. How can a company choose not to back their products when purchased legitimately through the world's largest retailer?

  Business Response

  Date: 03/01/2023

  Dear ******************,
  
  I hope this email finds you well! 
  
  My name is Draze and I am a ************* Advocate for ********************** I understand from your recent correspondence that you submitted a complaint regarding your replacement request being denied for the Nighthawk AX12 AX6000 12-Stream WiFi Router (RAX120v2). I would first like to thank you for your feedback. I will make every effort to ensure that your case with us is handled efficiently.
  
  I spent some time thoroughly reviewing your request and It appears that the Nighthawk AX12 AX6000 12-Stream WiFi Router was sold by *******'s
  which is not an authorized NETGEAR reseller. Due to your product being purchased from an unauthorized reseller, your product is not eligible for warranty coverage, as stated in our Consumer Warranty Information:
  
  Your NETGEAR product must have been purchased from an authorized NETGEAR reseller in order to be eligible for warranty coverage.
  
  Hence the replacement request was rejected and your request for advanced shipping was canceled due to this reason. Thus, we have refunded you the *** fee for $32.37 on 02/23/2023.
  
  The process of the refund takes 24 to 48 hours and it may take up to 7 to 10 business days for you to see the funds credited back to you from your credit card company. I will send an email confirmation for the refund once processed.
  
  We highly suggest that you contact your reseller for further assistance. Your feedback is much appreciated as this will allow us to further improve the quality of our service. 
  
  We have self-help documents and useful product articles available on our knowledge base ********************************************** that you may use as reference.
  
  For more information on the Consumer Warranty, please click on the following link: *****************************************************
  
  For more details on the Authorized Reseller information and listing, please click on the following link: *************************************************************
  Thank you for choosing NETGEAR.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  Draze C.
  ************* Advocate
  **********************