Complaints

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

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  Glowforge

  Seattle, WA 98134

• 

  Glowforge

  2944 1st Ave. South, , 98134, Seattle, WA 98134

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:11/29/2022

  Type:Service or Repair 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 bought a glowforge in May of 2021. The laser has never worked right. It refuses to cut through any kind of material.. When contacting customer support they say that there's nothing they could do unless we payed shipping to ship it back to them and that was while it was still under warranty. Now that the warranty is expired we can't even get an answer from them.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/18/2022

  Type:Service or Repair 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 purchased a Glowforge Pro two months ago and it keeps derailing. Upon inspection the wheel is faulty. I paid $7,000 for this printer brand new and their solution is to send me a refurbished printer. Refurbished means pre-used, pre-broken. They sell refurbished printers to owners who arent covered by warranty for around $1600. I paid $7,000 2 months ago. It doesnt depreciate in value that quickly, especially over a faulty wheel. Everything else works fine. A major problem is that the tubes are rated to last two years and theres no telling how old a refurbished is. Theres no reasoning with customer service and they dont give any answers. They send a faulty product and expect to trade your new printer with a used one without any compensation for the difference in value. They have poor customer service, which you wait days for because you cant just pick up the phone to resolve the problem, and then are given generic copy and pasted answers. I want a new printer to replace my new printer. Its 2 months old. Theres a huge difference in value between a new machine and refurbished machine. Thats without taking into account the tube that lasts 2 years.It is not an even value solution. I do not want a printer thats already been broken as a replacement for my new printer.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/18/2022

  Type:Service or Repair 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 paid $1500+ after taxes for a refurbished machine from this company after my $7000 laser went out out of the blue, with issues that couldnt be fixed remotely but wouldnt tell me what the issues were. The refurbished unit had a 90 day warranty and on day ****************************************** August 2022 happened again in Nov 2022 which again they couldnt explain to me how or what these issues were. They wanted me to spend the money again after receiving a faulty machine. **************** wouldnt help in any way. With the purchase of a $7000 machine, you expect it to last longer than this. Now I am stuck with a $8500 laser that doesnt work.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/10/2022

  Type:Service or Repair 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 have purchased the Glowforge plus on Feb 8th Order# G2261339406 in the amount of $4,943.83 The laser machine has stopped working on several occasions, (stop cutting) it gears up as if it's about to cut but once the lens does the first shift to the middle it just stays there making a clicking sounds, the company has no phone line for customer service. The only source of communication is via email. I have reached out to the company on several occasions and they have failed to assisted me in getting my machine replaced, fixed or working. I would like a resolution in getting my machine fixed as I used this product to run a business and due to the failed attempts with is company my business is losing money.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/03/2022

  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.

  We purchased a Glowforge on November 7, 2021. That machine has a 1 year warranty. On October 31, 2022 the machine became incapacitated. This was evidenced by an ***** light on the machine. This ***** light is indicative of an internal failure and is common with Glowforge. We have had 7 machines in the last two years. Until now, have never had a problem with Glowforge or their service. We filed the trouble ticket with Glowforge immediately (as we did the last three times this has happened with different machines). The support staff asked for an array of photos from the machine. They are denying our claim by saying there is corrosion in the machine. This is completely false. There is no corrosion whatsoever. There were stains left by cutting wood that is normal with these machines. The technician asked us to wipe that with a clean cloth and rubbing alcohol. We followed the directions and all of the wood stains were removed leaving shiny stainless steel. Now they are refusing to repair or replace the machine under the warranty which is still in effect until November 7, 2022. We need help getting this resolved as the machine is nothing more than a paperweight at this point and we still owe $3600 on this dead machine. Thank you for your time.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/02/2022

  Type:Service or Repair 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.

  Since we bought the Glowforge we have been in almost constant communication with support due to issues. It makes us wonder and conclude that our Glowforge was a lemon. We purchased our Glowforge in January of 2021. It was delivered in March 2021. Our first issues started in June 2021. More issues in July 2021, September 2021, due to issues we received a new head, hoping that would solve them, October 2021 we had a yellow button and it kept saying it was being bumped plus additional issues you will find in our history, November 2021 there were multiple issues with pass through and alignment. February 2022 we received a new lense also hoping that would fix our issues. The we moved in March and didnt start using the machine again until August 2022. Everything worked well until October 2022 which showed an alignment issue and then the main issue of the laser not working at all. Through all of this process my wife has cleaned everything and kept it in great condition. After each hour of use the fans would be dusted and the lenses would be cleaned. It is well cared for. We are hoping that Glowforge will continue to be helpful and support its consumers with the product. You can see from our history that this is not normal and there is something amiss with our unit. We are not expecting a free unit in return but $1600 on top of the $6000 we have already spent is heartbreaking to us and financially devastating to our business. The fact that we would get a refurbished unit also makes us nervous due to the fact that it could be having the same issues as our current machine and no warranty so we will be spending another $1,600 to replace the replacement.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:10/31/2022

  Type:Order 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 purchased the a Glowforge on 7/12/2021 and this was the biggest mistake of my life. Ive used the machine to cut small projects during the small time frame that Ive had it. On 10/21/2022, I turned the machine on and it would not move past the Centering stage. After combing through the glowforge community and cleaning the machine thoroughly, I contacted customer service for assistance. There is not direct contact number to speak with a person so all communication took place through email. I spoke with ******* and he requested that I send in a series of photos. I did as requested and was informed that there was an electrical issue with the machine. I would need to send the machine in and they would issue a refurbished machine but I would need to pay $1651. If the machine is considered defective, then why would this not be covered by the company? There needs to be a better resolution because this is unacceptable.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:10/17/2022

  Type:Service or Repair 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 bought a glowforge Pro laser cutting machine a year ago for almost $6000.00 a month before the warranty expired the glowforge fan broke they sent me a refurbished at no charge because it was still in my warranty period, It came with a 3 month warranty not even 2 months later the fan broke again now they want me to send them $1651.00 for a refurbished machine. I am in a lot of ******** groups and I see emails from other members stating the same thing and Glowforge is telling them to send them anywhere from $500 to $3,000 for a refurbished machine. I have spent my hard earned money to purchase this machine the first time. Now I can't afford to spend this amount on a refurbished machine, My husband had a triple bypass and has been out of work and I have been the only one making any kind of money

• Initial Complaint

  Date:10/10/2022

  Type:Product 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.

  10/5/22 $3200 Have sent messages by email several times in a day since that Tuesday. Receive a message back saying they received message and will get back. ONLY received 2 messages recently asking for serial number and a photo. It's been almost a week . Machine has not worked since the 5th and no customer service just empty emails or a request for a photo- will send back and then NOTHING- I have now had to refund customers due to not getting help.poor customer service. I need help or I need a machine replaced. $3200 is too much money just to sit in a room and only has been about 6 month and I have had issues with the machine from the get go and they never responded except once stating they were sorry to hear it wasn't working out. POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE.BELOW IS JUST AN EXAMPLE OF MOST RECENT CORRESPONDENCE.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/28/2022

  Type:Product 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 purchased a Glowforge Pro In November 30, 2021 and was received mid December 2021 for my small business. Machine hasnt been used much, but few months later, it stopped cutting materials all the way through which was causing me time, material, money and potential clients. I reached out to Glowforge early June 2022 with the issues I was having. After several emails, tests and confirmations, ***** from Glowforge notified me that a refurbished machine will be sent out since our machine couldnt be fixed. Our new machine arrived mid/late June 2022. With full time jobs and kids, we barely use the machine but we also try to sell custom work when we can. After some time, we ran into the same issues, trying different material, thin, thick, Glowforge products, non Glowforge products and even with 2 passes, matching wasnt cutting. I reached out to Glowforge August 26, 2022 and was assisted by ***** who had me run some tests and send few photos as requested and ***** determined that the machine needs to be replaced with a refurbished machine. At this point, *** lost so much time, money, customers, materials and frustration. I did not accept their offer and would like a return and refund. Additionally, I dont want to give another change to a company and their machines that has not been functioning properly, twice. *** then joined the conversation and determined that unfortunately according to their return policy, theyre not able to do a return. Policy does not state anything about a damage caused by the machine and not by the user. I am requesting a full 100% refund since these issues were not caused by me. Thank you.