Complaints

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:02/10/2025

  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.

  Software is difficult and they refuse to speak to me in person and will not refund money. This could easily be resolved if they would just communicate with me.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/14/2025

  I'm sorry to hear about the frustrating experience. I see that you spoke to a team member via chat earlier this week. They tried to assist you with activating your kits, but in the end, you were issued a refund, as your requested. If you need further assistance, please feel free to reach out to our Customer Experience team. Thank you.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/18/2025

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as Answered. 

  [You must provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.  If you do not enter a reason for your rejection, your complaint will be closed as Answered.]
  
  Businesses and Customers should be civil, courteous and polite in their responses to complaints. It is important to remain professional and productive when participating in the BBB complaint process.
  
  FAQ
  
  Regards,

  ******

   

   

• Initial Complaint

  Date:01/18/2025

  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 ordered genetic testing. Didn't tell me much about what I thought I would learn about my dogs coat. So I upgraded. Paid $40 and was told it takes 24 to 48 hours to receive. Results. Cool! But when I went to my dog's profile within the (same hour) I found this bogus report with a bunch a bull you can't prove or don't even need. They sent me an fabricated email stating my upgrade reports are almost ready. They pretended like they we're doing something in the lab while I was already reviewing the ** report they sent. What a fraud. They did an age test recall because the info was not matching previous dog records. I hop online to call them out and was met with more cover up and useless apologies. This company needs to be investigated. They have this chat only style of customer service where **** just copy and paste replys. Can't ever reach someone on phone. Buyers remorse for sure.

  Business Response

  Date: 01/29/2025

  I'm sorry to hear that you're disappointed with your experience. While we do communicate that Health and Trait results may take ***** hours to appear, they do sometimes take less time than that, which is why you saw them earlier than the communicated timeframe. The Health and Traits results that are listed in your account are indeed for your dog. If you have any questions about the results or need assistance interpreting them, please feel free to reach out to our Customer Experience team.

   

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/29/2024

  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.

  SCAM!I followed the directions and sent in the test. When I entered the activation code to the site it said the code "has already been activated."It's brand new in the box and never been opened.I wrote costumer service and they said the kit expired. That contradicts what the web site said. It said it had been used. On the box it doesn't state an expiration date. The company didn't offer to remedy the issue. Instead they offered to sell me a new kit.

  Business Response

  Date: 01/02/2025

  I'm sorry that you have run into this. As our team explained to you, the kit you were trying to activate was purchased over 24 months ago. As described in our Terms of Service, kits must be used within 24 months. After that period, they are considered expired. We are able to provide a replacement for a minimal fee to cover the shipping and handling. If you are interested in this, please feel free to reach out to our Customer Experience team. Thank you.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 01/23/2025

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as Answered. 

  See attached 

   

   

  Business Response

  Date: 01/29/2025

  As clearly stated in our Terms of Service (***************************************), our kits expire 24 months after purchase. If the customer would like to proceed with testing their dog, we can process an order for a replacement kit for $25. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/22/2024

  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.

  Paid ***** for kit through ******. Receive kit, swabbed dog, sent to Embark with the provided envelope. They say theres no account/order received/no record

  Business Response

  Date: 11/26/2024

  I'm sorry to hear that you've run into difficulty receiving your dog's results. I see that you are currently in communication with a Customer Experience team member and they are working with you to resolve this. If you have changed your mind and wish to receive a refund instead of proceeding with the test, please let us know.

  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:10/11/2024

  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.

  I purchased a dog age test from embark and the results were inaccurate by more than 4 years. This has been determined by several veterinarians as well as the shelter that I got the dog from. Upon research I learned that the product has been recalled multiple times are there are many complaints out there from customers about the inaccuracy of the test. I was denied a refund despite the product being a scam.

  Business Response

  Date: 10/18/2024

  I'm sorry to hear that you are disappointed with your dog's age test results. You are correct that we did recall our original Age Test. We released a product in October of 2022, and soon after its launch, we realized an error was made that impacted the accuracy of many results. We refunded everyone who purchased the product and dedicated the last year to the research and development of a new Embark Age Test.  
  
  The results provided with the Age test is a prediction interval. This prediction interval provided in your dogs results tells you the range of dates that are likely to contain your dogs birthday. It is possible that your dogs birthday is on a different day but is still within this prediction interval as 77% of dogs have a true birthday within that range. In other words, there's a 77% chance that your dog's birthday is within 12 months of the date we provided. We stand by the accuracy of our Age Test and do not provide refunds.

   

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/21/2024

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as Answered. 

  [You must provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.  If you do not enter a reason for your rejection, your complaint will be closed as Answered.]
  
  Businesses and Customers should be civil, courteous and polite in their responses to complaints. It is important to remain professional and productive when participating in the BBB complaint process.
  
  FAQ
  
  Regards,

  *******

   

   

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/25/2024

  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.

  My husband purchased a dog dna test kit from ****** as a mothers day gift back in May. His credit card was charged payment made in full. I recieved the test, followed instructions and returned in mail. Waited weeks for results that never came. Contacted ******* and they said test must have gotten lost in the mail we will send you a replacement test ...which I had to pay shipping for. Get test, do test send back. Again no results received. Contact ******* for a refund. Have provided copy of payment and have been told basically to bad so sad. The number from that receipted is associated with another dog! So I have paid 175 dollars, have no results and no refund. Numerous emails back and forth and time wasted.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/30/2024

  Hello - I'm happy to help clear this up. I reviewed your husband's Amazon order for the kit that is associated with your dog, **** It has already been refunded. The other order information you provided to our CX team member is associated with another dog who has results available, thus that order cannot be refunded. There is a 3rd order that your husband placed for a DNA kit, but I can confirm that that was canceled.

  Please feel free to reach out to our Customer Experience team if you have any additional questions. Thank you!

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/30/2024

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as Answered. 

  Their response is not true. My husband mistakenly purchased 2 DNA kits on ******. ****** refunded one, we have the purchase and refund copies from ******. Therefore, I have one test which we got and executed. We have not received any results. I have paid for a test and have nothing to show for it. They have said that the receipt or kit number I have provided for refund is associated with another dog... this is not my error or mistake. The issues still stands.. I have paid this company $160   and have nothing to show for it. All correspondence on my account with them has now been removed.
  
  Businesses and Customers should be civil, courteous and polite in their responses to complaints. It is important to remain professional and productive when participating in the BBB complaint process.
  
  FAQ
  
  Regards,

  ********

   

   

  Business Response

  Date: 10/18/2024

  I've reviewed all of the correspondence along with the information the customer provided. As I wrote previously, a refund was already issued. My recommendation is to log in to the ****** account used to make the purchase to review the order info and to confirm that the refund was issued. If there is an issue or question about the refund that was issued, you may want to reach out to ****** for assistance. Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/18/2024

  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.

  05/09/2024 I purchased the age and breed tests. It was bundled and cost me $238. The results that came back for the age test were wildly inaccurate. They indicated that my dog was 3 months old at that time. The vet had indicated he was over 2 years old. I reached out to Embark for help and an explanation. I received a very canned response that basically told me they were sorry the results were not what I wanted to hear. That wasnt the issue. Its not about what I wanted to hear. I wanted accuracy. They claim that the age range is 18 months which is already a very large range to give themselves room for error. Even if we allow 18 months. Their results were off more than that.I purchased a test from Epi-Paw and their results matched up exactly with what the vet said and with what others who knew Max said was my dogs birth month.Embark said my dog was born on *****************. The vet, other experts and ******* indicated Max was born in *************. Embark was almost 2 full years off.I brought all of this to their attention. ***** from Embark responded with very vague responses and general answers about the science. He would not address why **** test results were so far off. He refused to help. He refused to retest my dog. He refused to refund any money. He didnt care at all. I did research on this company and found out that they had pulled their own products from the market in the past for bad results. Then they thought they had fixed the errors in their methodology and put new and improved products back on the shelves. I think that was a mistake. If Embark had simply offered to retest my dog with new DNA or retest one of the 2 samples of DNA they already had, I wouldnt have been so upset. But, they refused to do anything at all.I want a full refund of the age test as well as reimbursement for the test I bought from Epi-Paw that provided me accurate results. That test was $120 plus shipping.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/23/2024

  Hello

  I'm sorry to hear that you're disappointed with your experience and feel that Max's results are incorrect. As ***** on the Customer Experience team explained, the prediction interval provided in your dogs results tells you the range of dates that are likely to contain your dogs birthday. It is possible that your dogs birthday is on a different day but is still within this prediction interval as 90% of dogs have a true birthday within that range. What the results are saying is that there is a 90% chance that Max's birthday falls within the dates provided with his results. Based on what you are reporting, while we did not get the birthdate exactly, it is still within the prediction interval range. We are confident that the model meets our standards for accuracy and scientific integrity, and matches the prediction interval claims that are represented on our website and other customer-facing materials. Were not able to provide refunds or. complimentary retests.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/23/2024

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as ************************************ is saying that their results were within the 90% prediction interval. However that is just false. I have uploaded the docs to show that they said Maxs DOB is ********. However, his true date of birth is **********. They were MORE than 18 months off  The prediction interval is 18 months. What ***** explained AGAIN is a canned response that in THIS case is factually incorrect. It seems they refuse to address this. I have uploaded screen shots from the Embark website. If what they said was true then their results would have been within 18 months of Maxs actually birthday. The results were not. 
  

  It is obvious to me that they simply provide the same response over and over as if repeating it will somehow make it true. This is likely why they have such a low rating with the BBB and are not even registered with the BBB. There are so many complaints about this company.

  I wish I had checked here before I bought these tests and wasted over $250. The face that the company simple refused to offer anything to make it right speaks volumes.

  I will be filing more complaints with every agency and website that is available. If Maxs age DID actually come out within the prediction interval I would not have filed this complaint. The fact that the company wants to parrot their talking points instead of just helping a paying ex-customer tells you all you need to know about the way they do business. The science is only as good as the humans conducting the tests and/or following the chain of command with my dogs DNA. They are so sure they could not have possibly made a mistake anywhere else that they just go back to false statements  

  That is very sad. I want my money back or another test for Max of equal value that I dont already have. I will not accept false statements from the company as the final word. It does not work that way.

  Thank you,

  *****

   

   

   

  Business Response

  Date: 09/30/2024

  I'm sorry to hear that you remain disappointed. As we mentioned previously, the birth date provided by your dog's vet and EpiPaws are also estimates, with their own prediction intervals. In regards to the EpiPaws results, there are several reasons why test results can differ between companies:
  - The algorithms used
  - The reference panel
  - The specific markers that are used to make the determination

   

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/30/2024

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as Answered. 

  Finally, you address the other test. Thats a start. But you now miss the larger point. If YOUR prediction interval is 18 months, your test results are still outside the actual birthday. That is problem. I rescued Max a dog and you tell me he is 4 months old  yet hes over 2 years old. Can you even understand why your results are meaningless to me? Giving yourself an 18-month interval when the animal is less than 2.5 years old pretty much almost insulates you from EVER being wrong. That is my problem. You could have guessed that Max was anywhere from 7 months old to 4 years old and your results would have been within the prediction interval. But would those results really be meaningful. Your test said Max was a puppy. But that was false. He was and IS a full grown adult dog. That is why your results were meaningless for all intents and purposes. Lastly, again, your own results did NOT fall within the stated prediction interval by your company. Thats a huge FAIL. Please give me a refund.

     
  Regards,

  *****

   

   

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/26/2024

  Type:Sales and Advertising Issues
  Status:

  UnansweredMore 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 had email conversations with an employee there. They don't have a phone system. I recently was made aware of that they will give your dog(s) health information out to others. Which is concerning the amount of information I found out was shared. In their policy it strictly says they wouldn't unless they have my permission, which they didn't. Emails were evasive and dodgy.I also found that their tests aren't reliable when trying to download reports. The reports aren't legible/consistent and can change. My overview appeared fine one day and couple weeks goes by and a health concern pops up after I already viewed the data. Overall, I wouldn't use them again. The employee was rude and dismissive when I had issues. When I provided proof I didn't make edits, I was accused of altering their report. Overall experience was terrible. The lady had to send me a copy thay was correct because now my report for that one dog don't download at all and she closed out the case regardless of my complaints.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/12/2024

  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.

  We had our rescue dog DNA tested through Embark. When we received the results we were confused and dumbfounded. This company did not provide an actual breed or breed breakdown of our dog, rather they provided us with a colloquial/slang term called American Village Dog. Through extensive research into The American village dog it is a term that is distinctly funneled to their websites algorithm as a dog breed. This is not a breed recognized by any accredited kennel club or by any veterinary organization. This company tried to disseminate this information scientifically sound. I asked for a refund and was given no recourse or an actual answer to why this breed was acceptable as an outcome. They didnt even offer to rest.Our dog isnt a pure breed or from a breeder this is why we entrusted this company to help us determine her genetic makeup. She is obviously made of a many other dogs which should be scientifically distinguishable DNA. I was saddened to know that with all the medical, technological and diagnostic advancements that are highlighted and advertised for this DNA test that this is the outcome. We just dont want others to make the same mistake as us and entrust this company.

  Business Response

  Date: 07/17/2024

  I'm sorry to hear that you are disappointed with your dog's results. I understand how these results can be surprising! A Village Dog result means the majority of your dog's DNA doesn't come from any purebred dog breeds. Village dogs were around long before modern purebred breeds (which, remember, really only started having closed populations in the past century or so), and there are still a lot of dogs in the world today who have little to no ancestry from breeds.  If you'd like to learn more about village dogs, we recommend this resource: **********************************************************************************************************************

  As per our policy, we do not offer refunds. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/04/2024

  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 had an interaction with ******** who accused ******* fellow Vietnam Veteran of being the same person.The content of her emails to both my ********** had unprofessional accusations which could be considered defamatory.After reviewing this issue over the last few hours and researching my options of being defamed, I find it appalling her attitude on this issue.I'm elderly & my friend is older than I. She treated us like criminals.My **********, we're both vet's, risked our lives for freedom she enjoys as we celebrate TODAY!!! My friend is older than me... He can't work a computer.I've helped him before with other "online only" issues and NEVER had anyone accuse us as criminals! I would like my money back if this is the way you treat your customers Veterans or NOT. WE ARE NOT CRIMINALS No one deserves this abuse...

  Business Response

  Date: 07/08/2024

  Hi *******

  We reviewed your interaction with ********. She did not accuse you or your friend of fraud. Our system flagged that the code was being used by the same person. With that being said, she offered to extend the refer a friend discount to your friend if they are still interested in this offer, please have them contact our team directly for assistance.

  Thank you.

  *******