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Business Profile

Smart Phone Software

Bark Technologies, Inc.

Complaints

Customer Complaints Summary

  • 74 total complaints in the last 3 years.
  • 43 complaints closed in the last 12 months.

If you've experienced an issue

Submit a Complaint

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.

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Complaint status

Complaint type

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:08/31/2023

    Type:Sales and Advertising 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.
    On June 11 and July 2nd, 2023, I ordered 2 separate Bark phones to lease, for my son and niece (with what was supposed to be a free trial, but I was charged for anyway). I received 2 used phones, with contact information from the previous users still in the phone. They were both in decent condition, but it was obvious these were used. The phones had several issues with not blocking and allowing the websites I specifically listed in the app. It became frustrating because there is no customer service number to call. You can only send an email for support. They responded, but usually the responses had nothing to do with the email I sent. Eventually I figured ot out on my own and they began to work. However, one of the phones began to receive calls from callers we did not know, even though the phone should have blocked numbers that were not approved. I eventually became tired of this and cancelled. One of the phones had damage to the screen, from my son. The other was in the exact condition as when I received it. It had a case and screen protector on it from the beginning. They charged me 2 separate charges of $59 for phone repairs. I emailed them (remember you cannot call) asking for information on the 2nd phone, and they responded with an email that did not address my concern. I sent another email and they stated there were blemishes and scratches on the 2nd phone. I responded I disagreed, but have not heard back. I emailed asking for pictures, but have not heard back. Now I emailed them informing them I am disputing the charges (which I have with my credit card company).I have spent $314.23 for 2 phones (1 for 2 months, 1 for 1 month) that did not meet the standards promised and scam repair charges.I wish I would have read the reviews on the BBB first. It seems we have all had the exact same experience and issues.

    Business Response

    Date: 09/01/2023

    Good afternoon, 

    We would be happy to refund the disputed charges for the second phone. Thank you so much for your acknowledgement of the cracked screen of the first device. Those charges will remain in order to refurbish the phone. 

    To address your other concerns, we don't have any prior communications requesting assistance with set up of the devices and we do not send out refurbished phones to new customers, they are only used in the event that someone damages their phone beyond repair. We would always be happy to assist in the event that a phone arrives and is not as you expect it to be. We can be reached 7 days a week from 8a-2a EST via email or you are welcome to request a scheduled call with our team. 

    We would also be happy to chat more about the trial period. Currently, the Bark Phone does not come with a trial period, although our ******************** does include a 7 day trial. If you believe you saw advertising stating the Bark Phone includes a free trial please don't hesitate to let us know at ************ and we would be happy to remedy the communications. 

    Warm regards, 

    *****

     

    Customer Answer

    Date: 09/01/2023

     
    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:08/23/2023

    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.
    They are trying to charge me $59 for damages that did not happen. Looking at their reviews they have done this to multiple people!

    Business Response

    Date: 08/24/2023

    Good morning, 

     

    The customer returned the leased Bark Phone and there was evidence of damage exceeding our ability to put the phone back into circulation without refurbishment. The damage displayed was on the back of the device and should not have occurred had the case Bark supplied been utilized during the time frame they had the device. The refurbishment fee they were charged was $59 as detailed here: **********************************************************

     

    The customer agreed to these terms when they signed up for the Bark Phone via the terms of service. The phones are assessed by a professional service to ensure accuracy, consistency and reliability and are associated to the pictures via IMEI which is a unique identifier. 

    This account is not eligible for a refund per our terms of service and repairs and upgrades details. 

     

    Best, 

    **********;

    Customer Answer

    Date: 08/24/2023

     
    Complaint: 20512320

    I am rejecting this response because:

    We never took off the provided case. Who knows if that damage was there before we even got the phone or during shipping. I refuse to pay. 

    Sincerely,

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

    Business Response

    Date: 08/24/2023

    Good morning, 

    Bark currently does not send used phones into production so it is not possible for the phone to have been damaged by a previous owner prior to being received by the customer. Additionally, because we are unable to prove that the case was utilized during the duration of the time the customer had the Bark Phone, we rely on a thorough investigation of the phone to ensure accurate assessment of refurbishment fees. 

     

    This account is not eligible for a refund due to the scratches that were found on the backside of the phone that required refurbishment. Pictures of the damage are attached. Refurbished phones are only sent out in the case of the need for a replacement if a child damages a phone beyond use. The customer received a brand new Bark Phone. 

    Sincerely, 

    *****

    Customer Answer

    Date: 08/28/2023

     
    Complaint: 20512320

    I am rejecting this response because:
    We never removed the case, and several other people are complaining about your company wrongfully charging them for the same exact thing. I refuse to pay for this. You are scamming innocent people who are just trying to keep their children safe online. Your service *****, the phone was super slow. I refuse. 

    Sincerely,

    ***********************
  • Initial Complaint

    Date:08/10/2023

    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.
    We had the phone for about 6 mo. The phone never worked properly and there is no way to reach a rep by phone. Only by email and I have endless emails to them trying to get the phone to work. After a while we started getting a ton of spam calls on the phone. Which is weird since it is advertised that no calls will come thru unless approved. Returned the phone and I was still billed for $125 for non-return fee and $59 repair fee. After about a mo of inquiring about my refund they finally agreed to refund the $125, I havent seen it in my acct yet. The $59 is for damage to the phone that we did not do. I returned that phone in good condition. The photos they sent me looked like it had been sanded with sandpaper. The phone was in its case the entire time. These are deceitful business practices. I dont even care about the $59 at this point. I just want to warn consumers that the services advertised are not the services you receive and they will take your money.

    Business Response

    Date: 08/10/2023

    Good afternoon, 

    Bark's team provides scheduled calls as a means of support in addition to email. The customer was responding back and forth with our team in April and then did not respond to the last email or request a phone call. Our team is happy to schedule an appointment for a call when requested and if or when issues cannot be resolved via email. 

    The $125 charge was for not returning a canceled phone in a timely manner (within 14 business days). Upon receipt of the phone we did initiate the refund this past Tuesday August 8th. Refunds take 5-7 business days to post to an account depending on the financial institution which is the reason the customer has not seen the funds post to their account as of today. 

    Additionally, despite significant damages to the phone, we are refunding the $59 refurbishment fee as a courtesy which will post to the associated account within 5-7 business days. 

    We are very sorry to hear the experience has not been a great one.

    Warm regards, 

    Beka

     

     

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:08/03/2023

    Type:Sales and Advertising 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 returned the phones as requested by the company to terminate services. Upon returning the phones as soon as they were received by the company I get an email stating I'm being charged for damages. Charged *****. There is no details enlisting the so called damages. It's a scam. There was no damage to the phones and the comp failed to provide such details to prove any.

    Business Response

    Date: 08/04/2023

    Good afternoon, 

    The customer wrote in requesting to return the Bark Phone devices on July 22nd at 9:30p est and was provided with instruction on how to do so. Per the terms of service of the Bark phone, which is purchased as a month to month leased product with no long term contract, the phones are inspected upon return to assess for any potential damages that would require refurbishment in order to be placed back into production. **** uses a unique identifier called an IMEI to match a returned phone to the account. 

    Once they were inspected, it was determined that there were damages to the front and backs of the phone including scratches on the screens that would require partial refurbishment. The customer was provided with documentation (picture evidence) of the damages assessed today at 10:41a est.

    Despite the damages to the phone we have canceled the pending invoices for refurbishment. 

     

    Best, 

    *****

     

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:07/01/2023

    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.
    I was billed $59 for repairs to a phone I returned in good condition. The phone had no broken or cracked screen and had the case on the entire time. It was returned in the box it came in along with the charger. The repair policy indicates no fee for phones in good condition. It does NOT indicate that the phone needs to be in new or excellent condition. It indicates a $59 fee for phone needing repairs. The phone I returned did not need any repairs. I was not provided proof or images of repairs that Bark technologies claims needs to be done. This is unacceptable.

    Business Response

    Date: 07/10/2023

    Good morning, 

     

    Thank you so much for writing us. ******************** was provided an explanation for the charges on Jun 30th. Bark is always happy to provide photographic evidence of what was found upon assessment, but in this instance it was not requested by the customer until this report was filed. Our team proactively reached out on July 3rd asking the customer to provide pictures of the phone prior to shipping and offered to provide photos of what was found by our team during the inspection process. Once it was reviewed by our billing manager the customer was issued a full refund of the charges for repairs on Wednesday July 5th 2023. 

     

    Please let us know if there is anything else we can do to help remedy the situation. 

     

    Warm regards, 

    **********;

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:05/31/2023

    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.
    We ordered two bark phones in March of 2023. Setup was not simple, but we got through it. Once the phones were set up, 80% of the time there were issues with the apps (that we had already allowed)Sometimes the apps would work, sometimes they would be blocked. There were no "time restricted" settings on the phones, so this was solely a Bark issue.We continued service, through April of 2023, when one of the two phones was accidentally water damaged. We reached out to Bark to return & order a new phone. Nowhere in the emails with support was an additional fee of $125 mentioned for "damages"Fast forward to May of 2023. We have returned the damaged phone, and two undamaged phones. We took "too long" to return the phones, so THREE separate $125.00 "non-return" charges were assessed. As I understand the need for the $125.00 "holds" to my account, upon receipt of all devices, this hold should have been released (or refunded) but instead, I have received NO refund, and two separate (attempted) charges for $59.00 & $125.00.These charges may be in the fine print somewhere, but in NONE of the MANY emails I've had with support were they EVER mentioned. I've attempted to contact bark over the last week, to no avail.I would like a refund of the $375.00, $100.06 for the last month of service, and for Bark to have better service and communication with their customers.

    Business Response

    Date: 06/01/2023

    Good afternoon, 

    To date, Bark has refunded the customer $191.00 of the non-return and damage fees associated with the account. 

    Our first communication was received from the customer on March 15th  at ***** stating they needed help with set up of Bark phone. Our team responded asking for more details March 15th at 3:41p and received no response from the customer. 

    The customer then submitted a ticket again on April 6th stating phone was submerged in water and needed to be replaced. Customer support responded April 8th asking for more detail and shared the details of the replacement program found here: *****************************************************

    Customer was advised April 8th at ***** they would have 14 days to return the phone before non-return fees are applied. 

    May 1st customer wrote in asking why we were trying to charge them, May 3rd billing team responds (only on during business hours Mon-Friday) - Customer was advised they were being charged for not returning the damaged phone. 

    Customer wrote back May 3rd asking if we could stop the charge until they could mail the phone back but we do not have a mechanism to stop a non-return fee. Customer support did offer to refund it once the phone had been received. We also offered to troubleshoot the apps not working (which was identified as a settings issue that could be adjusted) 
    Customer then stated they would just return all three phones 2 active and the 1 damaged phone. 

    May 30th customer wrote in regarding additional fees associated with the damage done to the phones. 
    May 31st billing team responded explaining the returned phone that had water damage was non-repairable which incurs a $125 fee per: *****************************************************
    The second phone was in usable condition but had repairable damage, most notably scratches on the phone that resulted in a smaller repair fee of $59. 

    Billing refunded the $125 non-return fee and $66 (partial refund) of the water damaged phone fee to the customer upon receipt of the damaged phone but that did not fully negate the $125 that was charged due to the damage being non-repairable damage. 

    The customer stated they were not informed of the fees but were sent the policy link multiple times throughout the communications and offered twice to troubleshoot the settings issues they were experiencing. Additionally they were sent an email communication letting them know that they would be charged if they did not return the damaged phone within 14 business days prior to the actual charge being processed for not returning the damaged device. 

    As the customer was offered troubleshooting services and the phones were in use for the full time period that the service was active we do not believe a further refund is appropriate at this time. 

     

    Best, 

    **********;

    Customer Answer

    Date: 06/01/2023

     
    Complaint: 20127005

    I am rejecting this response because: 

    Clearer communication should be had, when a customer is in contact with a support agent. **** should NEVER had tried to take additional funds PRIOR to refunding the non-return fees. Bark should have better business practices, to know that a customer was already charged AND OWED A REFUND of $375.00 BEFORE attempting to take additional funds, potentially over drafting a customers account and in turn, causing the customer to pay MORE money for phones that did not meet expectations to begin with.

    Side note- refund has STILL not been received. 


    Sincerely,

    Chelsea

    Business Response

    Date: 06/01/2023

    Hi *******, 

     

    The refund was processed yesterday, May 31st as seen in the attachments shared in our previous message. Refunds take up to 5-7 business days to display in your account depending on your financial institution. 

    Bark sent an email when the replacement phone was originally requested and processed on April, 8th and our system shows it was opened that day as shown in the attachment. In the email it indicates that there will be a charge if the phone is not returned as it is a leased item. Additionally, it is detailed here: ***************************************************** that if a phone is damaged beyond repair it will be a $125 fee to refurbish the phone. It is unfortunate that the non-return fee coincided closely with the repair fee and we are truly sorry for the impact to your family. Had the phone been returned initially in a timely manner the fees would not have accrued simultaneously. We are unable to process refunds on phones that have not been returned until they have been received in hand. 

    Due to the damaged phone being returned simultaneously with the two additional phones there is nothing we could have done to provide a refund of the non-return fee prior to the fees for damages on the two devices because that phone had not been returned to Bark's possession prior to ** receiving the additional two phones. 

    The non-return fee has been refunded and a partial refund has been issued for the damaged phone despite it being beyond repair.

    We are unable to provide any further refunds. The total amount Bark charged your account was $309 for partially damaged and fully damaged phones as well as the non-return fee ($191 of which has been refunded to date). 

    If the funds were attempted more than once it may be reflecting on your bank account as more than that amount but currently that is what Bark has attempted to process to account for the phone fees. 

    Please let ** know if there is anything else we can assist with, but we are unable to refund any additional phone costs as two of the three phones were in need of repair. 

    Best, 

    *****

     

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:05/13/2023

    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 signed up for the Bark phone for my daughter to have a secure line to be able to talk to her family. We got the phone and immediately there was major issues with set up. Tech-support was nonexistent and our only option was to send an email wait for a response, which usually came when we were unavailable and then respond to them and weight again making most of our problems, get drawn out over days and honestly being a single mother, running a company, made it to where troubleshooting the problem wasnt even possible.. We were unable to use the phone. We were constantly being blocked by the security protocols, and no matter how many help articles I read we couldnt get the phone to reset or do anything for us.After a couple months of having the phone, Im paying for it without being able to use it it just sitting on my desk I decided to return it.Bear in mind, this phone had never left. My desk never been scratched and was in perfect mint condition.When I returned the phone which I did promptly, I got a follow up email after the fact informed me they were charging me $59 for a damaged phone.I received two email correspondences one of them telling me I was being charged because I didnt reset the phone which again I tell you it was not possible and part of the reason that I was returning the phone and the second was that there was scratches on the screen which again I promise you was absolutely not true.I emailed the company since I paid for services that I couldnt even use for months on end and requested this to be rectified and was informed that they would not be fixing it. I am requesting my $59 back. There was nothing wrong with his phone and whoever is reporting that lacks ************* hard enough that I had this horrible experience for months for my daughter couldnt even use the phone that I got and paid for for it to be continued on the faces of me being billed for nonexistent damages just throws it over the top.

    Business Response

    Date: 05/15/2023

    Good morning, 

     

    **************** first contacted our support team on March 4th at 6:01p sharing some troubles she was having while activating the phone. Our support team responded at 6:21p. ******************** subsequent response indicated that she was not interested in troubleshooting over email and stated that she would not. The support team responded at 6:43p with a link to our scheduling app that allows parents to schedule a phone call with our support team. Calls are scheduled to ensure that the customer has the appropriate devices on hand and that screen sharing capabilities are set up for troubleshooting. Had the customer taken advantage of the call link that was provided they would have had the opportunity to pick a time convenient for them and would have received a calendar invitation with a zoom link and instructions for what to bring to ensure the call was successful. Customer never scheduled time with the support team. 

    ******** wrote in again on March 18th and was given clear instructions on how to resolve the issue they were experiencing. They did not respond to the final instructions on how to allow a particular app for their child. On May 2nd they requested to cancel the account. The account was canceled and instructions on how to return the phone were emailed. 

    **************** has not been charged for not resetting the phone but was charged a $59 refurbishment fee (due to the phone being a lease) to restore the phone to its previous condition. The attached picture is the a scratch that was found on the screen surface that will require refurbishment. 

    The photos are saved by IMEI that is unique to the phone. 

    This account is not eligible for a refund per the terms of service here: **********************************************************************************************

    In the instance that a customer has experienced genuine product malfunction Bark does consider refunds or partial refunds of fees on a case by case basis. In this instance, the issues experienced were not product malfunction and the customer did not take advantage of the customer support options presented, including a phone call and screen share to resolve any product confusion. 

     

    Best regards, 

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

     

     

    Customer Answer

    Date: 05/18/2023

     
    Complaint: 20055112

    I am rejecting this response because:

     

    well, I really appreciate that. The time and care was taken into responding to you my better business complaint it is really sad to me that the first time youve tried to provide any service to me at any level or any timely response was when I filed a complaint that goes public. That picture you sent is not a picture of the phone that I returned to you. I returned the phone in a packaging insured that it was protected and it had no marks on it. Yeah, *** contacted my credit card company for a chargeback.

    Im so glad that you pulled up the multiple times that I had to contact you. You should probably document the times in between those that I was unable to get anyone on the phone. I didnt want a zoom session. I wanted to talk to somebody for service I also wanted to do that in a timely fashion, there is nothing wrong with the phone that I returned you .


    Sincerely,

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

    Business Response

    Date: 05/19/2023

    Good afternoon, 

    I appreciate your response, but wanted to indicate again, that each email we received regarding a request for service was responded to in a timely manner and a call was offered. We do not currently have an 800 number and we schedule all of our calls in advance to ensure we have time to troubleshoot any technical difficulties. We offered the link to our scheduling calendar twice to the customer and they did not schedule time with our team. 

    We are unable to provide support if the customer is unwilling to utilize the communication methods we provide for customers to ensure that the technical troubleshooting is successful. The customer has now indicated that they utilized the bank process of a chargeback which takes the refund process out of our hands as it is reviewed by the bank and the dispute process. We are now unable to process the refund in our system since the chargeback process has been initiated and will respond to the charge dispute via the dispute process between our credit card processing system and the customer's financial institution. 

    Additionally, phones are identified by a unique number that is assigned to each phone when it is issued to the customer. When returns are received they are assessed and logged using the unique identifier. The picture of the phone shared was stored by that unique identifier and linked to the customer's account - again matching up via that same unique identifier (called an IMEI). 

    Since the customer initiated the chargeback process we are unable to proceed with the initial request of a refund of charges and will have to address the concern via the banking process. 

    Please let me know if there is anything else we could assist with. 

     

    Best, 

    *****

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:05/05/2023

    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.
    This company promotes a phone thats safe for children, its been anything but that! Upon having the phone for my 11 year old for just 4 months, it presented MANY issues. No service, specifically at a moment where my son was in danger and needed to get in contact with a parent. This companies only form of customer service is via email- which takes roughly 24 hours for a return. The phone continued to not work, leaving me at the mercy of scheduling a tech support zoom call DAYS later. Once they finally decided the phone needed to be exchanged, I took photos proving its mint condition, and sent it back using the fed ex label they provided. I was charged $59 due to scratches- I have physical proof that the phone had none. Their customer service provided no help or explanation- I commented on their social media platform only for my comment to be deleted and blocked from commenting further. Not only are they not supplying a safe product for children like they promote, they wrongfully charged my account, lied, and have blocked me from reviewing or commenting on a product that failed multiple times.

    Business Response

    Date: 05/08/2023

    Good morning *******, 

    Thank you for bringing this issue to our attention. We will be issuing you a full refund not only for the device returned but for the last month of service with our company. After reviewing your timeline of communications with our support team it is clear that there were multiple opportunities for ** to have served you better and I sincerely apologize that we missed it. 

    Our head of support will be addressing each of the issues in that timeline to ensure improvements moving forward. Additionally, she is looking into the cell service issues in your area. It appears your plan was wifi only which would cause the issue with calling and texting if the phone enters into a "dead zone," however, it appears we never successfully tested that theory with you while on the phone. 

    You should also be hearing from the head of our Billing team very shortly. 

    Again my deepest apologies for the frustrations you experienced. We are more than happy to make it right. 

    Please let me know if there is anything else we can do to resolve the issue. 

    All our best, 

    *****

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:03/29/2023

    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.
    We bought my daughter the Bark Phone and she was not able to accept incoming phone calls on it. We set up the Contacts and checked all settings to allow phone calls and it still did not work. My complaint is due to the fact that there is NO CUSTOMER SERVICE. The only option is a chat bot that will give you articles that are of now help. We returned the phone and went back to an iPhone with parental monitoring software.

    Business Response

    Date: 03/30/2023

    Good morning, 

    Ms. ********* contacted our support team at 8:29a on March 29th, 2023 regarding the Bark Phone not being able to receive phone calls. She then proceeded to email us again at 11:27a, 11:30a and the finally at 11:35a. At 3:02p a manager from our team emailed ********************** letting her know they would be calling within five minutes to assist with her technical issue. The phone was in need of a software update and the manager attempted to walk ********************** through the troubleshooting. Ultimately, after explaining that the Bark Phone is not eligible for refunds unless the hardware is not functioning and cannot be remedied, the customer hung up on the manager prior to a resolution being reached. 

    The terms of service for the Bark Phone, which is a month to month lease agreement, can be found here: 

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

    Had ********************** remained on the call with the manager they would have offered a credit to utilize Bark's premium monitoring subscription in the amount of the Bark Phone monthly cost to account for their dissatisfaction with the service. 

    The customer support team is currently experiencing higher than normal volumes but is responding to customers within 1 business day. 

    This account is not eligible for a refund, but we would be happy to issue a credit to utilize the premium subscription services. 

    All our best, 

    Brian 

     

  • Initial Complaint

    Date:08/14/2022

    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.
    On 8/10/22, I became aware that a company named Bark.us was illegally taking money out of my account from January 2022 thru August 2022. I contacted my credit card company and they stated to contact the company to try and get the situation resolved. Since there isnt a phone number listed to contact them, I sent an email stating that they were illegally taking $14 from my account for the last 8 months. To which they stated that they can see I used their services for a little while and then I stopped using it. I advised them that I signed up for a free trial and then canceled their services and so no other correspondence happened between the company and myself. They then stated that: As part of your subscription, weve been sending update messages to your email. I advised **** that I have never received such correspondence from their company because I never had a subscription. I did request proof that they actually sent updates to my email since per ****, thats their company practice. They were of course unable to provide any proof that any such emails with updates were ever sent to me. I then asked them for the timeline of when I actually used their services. Again this company was unable to provide documentation of me using their services. I suspect that the reason why they cannot provide proof is because they have no proof of an active subscription. I cancelled before the free trial period ended. Further, if I did have a subscription, they never provided any updates and per ****, it is their company's policy to provide updates. I have asked for a full refund in the amount of $112.00 but they only want to give me 3 months of a refund. Three months is not sufficient as the error was on their part and not mine.Please look into this matter as I would hate for anybody else to be duped by this company and for their money to be illegally stolen like my money was stolen.

    Business Response

    Date: 08/16/2022

    Bark.us (Bark Technologies) honors cancellation requests and has the ability for customers to cancel accounts themselves. https://support.bark.us/hc/en-us/articles/360049964872-How-do-I-cancel-my-Bark-account-

    Here are our Terms of Service with more information on our subscription and refund policy: bark.us/terms (Section 2 titled "Account Set-Up; Subscription, Auto-Renewal, Cancellation and Refund Policy." may be the most helpful to review)

    This customer created their account on Bark.us under the *********************** email on July 2, 2021. They did not cancel their account before the end of the 7-day trial, and were charged their for their Bark Premium subscription ($14) on July 9, 2021. Per our terms, the subscription keeps going unless the customer cancels. See the "subscription status" and "invoices" screenshots to review how long the subscription of their account kept going since there was no cancellation of the account.

    The customer continued to receive emails from Bark.us from July 2021 through the date of their cancellation on August 12, 2022. See the attached screenshot named "communications-********.png".

    Customer reached out with a cancellation request on August 12, 2022, which we honored after making sure they didn't need help with ****. We refunded the last two months of their subscription and communicated this to the customer. We also offered to provide them 3 months of account credit if they ever wanted to return and give us a second shot. The refunds were processed on August 12, 2022 and were for the charges that had originally occurred on July 9, 2022 and August 9, 2022. See attached screenshot named "invoices-********.png"

    In our email communications on August 12, 2022, the customer provided a screenshot they believed to serve as proof that they'd already cancelled their Bark.us subscription months prior, but the screenshot instead showed email communications from a different company (Bark.com). See attached screenshot named "bark-com not bark-us.jpeg". We communicated this to the customer and reiterated that there had been no prior cancellation request nor cancellation of the account. See attached screenshots named "subscription status-********" and "zendesk-********".

    Given that they submitted this complaint, it has become apparent to our team now that the customer misunderstood our messages from the August 12, 2022 email thread. I've attached the email thread with the customer here as screenshots named "************************ 1" through "part 5". 

    We cannot refund more than 6 months of charges due to constraints placed on us by our payment provider, Stripe. However, I went ahead and refunded the most I could -- the charges from March 9, 2022 through June 9, 2022. Due to the timing of financial institutions, it may take **** business days for the refunds to reflect back on their original form of payment. In total, they will have $84 refunded to them. See attached screenshot named "updated-invoices-********.png"

    If there's any additional questions, they're welcome to reach back out to us at ************* We're always happy to help!

     

    Customer Answer

    Date: 08/16/2022

     

    Complaint: 17714114

    I am rejecting this response because: once again this company is lying.  This is why I repeatedly asked them for proof of when I signed up with their company and they refused to provide that documentation.  They knew their company was fraudulently taking money from my account.  I asked them for proof that a status update was being sent to my email and again they refused because they had no documentation of sending me emails.

    1. This company is stating now that I signed up with their company in July of 2021.  Wrong.  If I indeed signed up with the company in July of 2021, why did they start deducting money from my account in January of 2022?  Did my 14 days trial period cover 6 months of free service?  Their logic make no sense.  They are grasping for straws because they have no leg to stand on.

    2. I've repeatedly asked for them to provide me with proof that emails were being sent to me updating me from January thru August.  If this falls under their company policy, why are they unable to show me proof that updates were sent to me?  I have never received an email from this company.  The first correspondence with this company was on August 12 when I became aware that they were continually charging my account.  I have never received any emails from this company with a status.  So if their package includes providing routine updates, they have failed in that aspect as well because this was never done.

    3. They are trying to say that they refunded me for 2 months and I should be satisfied.  As I told them on the phone, 2 months is not sufficient.  I want the 8 months of refund because they were not authorized to go into my account starting in January of 2022.  (If they want yo provide me with 13 months of refund since according to their current claim, I have been using them for 13 months and not 8 months).

    To some people this may seem like a small amount but as a parent, I have to speak up.  If a company is supposed to help monitor your children's account and they fail to do so, other parents need to know to stay away from bark.us.  This is unacceptable.  How can they monitor your children's safety if they cannot keep records of who are their actual clients, when cancellations are submitted and how long somebody has been a client?  You guys need to do better and stop trying to pass the buck.  You need to own up to your error and refund every dime you have taken from me.  Parents beware!

    Sincerely,

    *****

    Business Response

    Date: 08/17/2022

    I'm sorry to hear that you're still dissatisfied with our support of your account cancellation and refund request. I want to address each one of your complaints below. 

    "I am rejecting this response because: once again this company is lying.  This is why I repeatedly asked them for proof of when I signed up with their company and they refused to provide that documentation.  They knew their company was fraudulently taking money from my account.  I asked them for proof that a status update was being sent to my email and again they refused because they had no documentation of sending me emails."

    In our previous response, we included a screenshot showing invoices from July 2, 2021 through August 9, 2022. We also included a screenshot showing the logs of what emails you'd been sent up until your account cancellation. You were being sent email communications throughout the time of your subscription and were charged for a subscription each month until you requested a cancellation. There is no record of you ever cancelling this Bark.us account, but you did provide information about cancelling a Bark.com account. We understand the confusion there! 

    "1. This company is stating now that I signed up with their company in July of 2021.  Wrong.  If I indeed signed up with the company in July of 2021, why did they start deducting money from my account in January of 2022?  Did my 14 days trial period cover 6 months of free service?  Their logic make no sense.  They are grasping for straws because they have no leg to stand on."

    We did charge you for a Bark Premium subscription from July 2021 to August 2021 as evidenced by the invoices screenshot attached in our previous message, due to your account never having been cancelled. You did not have 6 months of free service.

    "2. I've repeatedly asked for them to provide me with proof that emails were being sent to me updating me from January thru August.  If this falls under their company policy, why are they unable to show me proof that updates were sent to me?  I have never received an email from this company.  The first correspondence with this company was on August 12 when I became aware that they were continually charging my account.  I have never received any emails from this company with a status.  So if their package includes providing routine updates, they have failed in that aspect as well because this was never done."

    In the email thread you're referring to (which we provided screenshots of in our previous response), we were letting you know that we send regular emails to our account holders (e.g. newsletters, weekly recaps, etc), since you were asking about email communications. It's not a company policy to send an email for every subscription charge, if that's what you thought we meant. In our previous BBB response, we attached a screenshot showing the logs of emails we'd been regularly sending *********************** during the course of the subscription.

    "3. They are trying to say that they refunded me for 2 months and I should be satisfied.  As I told them on the phone, 2 months is not sufficient.  I want the 8 months of refund because they were not authorized to go into my account starting in January of 2022.  (If they want yo provide me with 13 months of refund since according to their current claim, I have been using them for 13 months and not 8 months).
    To some people this may seem like a small amount but as a parent, I have to speak up.  If a company is supposed to help monitor your children's account and they fail to do so, other parents need to know to stay away from bark.us.  This is unacceptable.  How can they monitor your children's safety if they cannot keep records of who are their actual clients, when cancellations are submitted and how long somebody has been a client?  You guys need to do better and stop trying to pass the buck.  You need to own up to your error and refund every dime you have taken from me.  Parents beware!"

    As mentioned in our previous response, our payment provider Stripe has a limitation on how far back we can go for a refund, and we've refunded all that was possible at this time (6 months back). If you had noticed a bit earlier that you were being charged by **** when you thought you'd cancelled, we would've been able to refund you the entirety, but due to how much time has passed, this is as much as we can do with the rules set forth by these financial institutions. We do have clear and accurate client records, as required by our SOC-2 compliance and other compliances we must abide by as a business. We're sorry to hear that our customer support hasn't satisfied you, and we're still committed to doing all we can for you. We hope the information above has been helpful.

    Customer Answer

    Date: 09/02/2022

     
    Complaint: 17714114

    I am rejecting this response because:

    I applaud your creativity in providing a list of invoices with no name.  Tell me what account you were deducting these funds from so I can alert them of fraudulent charges from your company.  As I told you before, you must have my account mistaken with somebody else's account.  You refuse to refund the total amount you have deducted from me.  I see you as an unscrupulous business and I will be sure to share that information with everybody.  Maybe you should hire somebody not named *********  Best of luck to you. 

    Sincerely,

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

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