GearBest Drone Bust into Flames on Second Flight, Am I Entitled to a Refund?

The Wololo Wombat on 29/11/2017 - 13:07
Last edited 29/11/2017 - 14:17 by 1 other user

I recently bought the Bayangtoys X21 drone!

It worked really well - though the instructions are quite hard to read - I had to use youtube user reviews.

I tested it out in my big backyard. On the second flight, I decided to use the 'automatic return to home function'.

The drone circled away from where I was/where it took off from, and right into a tree 15m away. It shut off and hit the ground - not broken, but the battery had come out.

When I retrieved it, the battery 'exploded' and bust into flames - like this video, totally destroying the drone's internal components and meting the casing. The amount of smoke was incredible, I had to sprint away from the smoke. It was really dangerous. If that had happened inside my house, my whole house may have burnt down.

Here's a picture of the damage.

Should I request a refund? While I did decide to use the 'return to home function', I did not expect it to crash into the tree (that was out of my control). The drone was far away from the tree when I decided to use the function - it had to move further away to get there! Also, it was not this fall that broke the drone, but the battery failure.

Poll Options

  • 21
    Yes Full Refund
  • 1
    Partial Refund
  • 3
    Unsure/More Information Needed
  • 15
    No Refund
Electrical & Electronics

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Comments

  • spackbace on 29/11/2017 - 13:09
    +3

    Contact them

    GB isn't an Aussie store, so ACL doesn't apply. Whatever resolution they offer is about the only option available.

  • boo hoo on 29/11/2017 - 13:13
    +1

    No refund.
    You drove a nail into it.
    Ban all drones,
    Report to CASA.

    ……………………………joking.
    Pretty dangerous.

  • dodgybrothers on 29/11/2017 - 13:27

    good luck if you get any response !

  • Wampus on 29/11/2017 - 13:39
    +6

    Entitled to a refund? Probably. Will you get a response, let alone a refund, from GearBest? Nope.

  • dcep on 29/11/2017 - 13:42

    was the battery low hence shutting down ?

    battery punctured when it hit the ground hence the explosion.

    nice homing napalm btw.

  • tsunamisurfer on 29/11/2017 - 13:52
    +8

    I am shocked……that Gearbest was able to deliver in the same calender month that the order was made.

  • Thrift on 29/11/2017 - 14:12
    +1

    No refund. It's not a faulty battery, that's what can happen to batteries when punctured/subjected to shocks. Same as no refund if you smash your car into a tree and the fuel tank ruptures, the fuel ignites and burns your car down.

  • MAKAMAKA on 29/11/2017 - 14:32

    You can just have a try but I think they are not going to refund you.

  • systema on 29/11/2017 - 15:04
    +1

    It sounded like the battery was damaged when the drone fell off the tree. The battery out of the battery bay would indicate that the battery had probably impacted the ground. With LiPo battery, physical impact can lead to mechanical deformation or rupture of the cell, leading to short circuit and thermal runaway.

    You can try a Paypal dispute or credit card charge back, if the transaction is recent. However, I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you.

  • Cluster on 29/11/2017 - 15:54
    +4

    You crashed the drone and it burst into flames. Would it have burst into flames without the crash? No, so I don't think you're entitled to a refund.

    • The Wololo Wombat on 29/11/2017 - 16:12

      Yes, true. But does it matter that I was using the built in 'return to home' function'? Did I crash it, or did it crash itself?

      • Cluster on 29/11/2017 - 16:30
        +7

        The drone presumably has no way to detect obstacles such as the tree it crashed into. Therefore it's your responsibility to operate it in an area free of obstacles.

      • HighAndDry on 29/11/2017 - 18:24
        +1

        Did I crash it, or did it crash itself?

        You crashed it. So long as you were flying the drone, you're responsible for it, including its use of any "return-to-home" functionality. Robots aren't people yet.

  • Cheeper on 29/11/2017 - 16:10

    Ouch… $200 up in smoke:-(

  • aussieprepper on 29/11/2017 - 16:40
    +1

    I am glad you are okay and did not breathe in any of the fumes from the exploding lipo cells.

    What pierced the battery? Was the Lipo over charged? The battery fell out did the wires come of and cause a short?

    In my opinion its user error but you might be lucky to get a refund or partial refund.

    I think its better to use a drone in a very wide open space?

  • myusername on 29/11/2017 - 17:09

    my question is are you suprised?

    sounds more like a $200 lesson not to buy no name cheap crap.

    these sort of items i'm always inclined not to by cheap crap.

  • [Deactivated] on 29/11/2017 - 18:27

    You tried to return to home without setting a home waypoint. Your fault.

  • [Deactivated] on 29/11/2017 - 18:29

    Actually, even if he crashes the drone it shouldnt burst up in flames. Refund should be entitled.

    • rasserie on 02/12/2017 - 12:06

      its the battery not the drone

    • whooah1979 on 02/12/2017 - 12:18
      +1

      even if he crashes the drone it shouldnt burst up in flames.

      The drone itself isn't combustible.

      The battery on the other hand may spontaneously combust if it's handled improperly. Colliding the drone into an immovable object will do that.

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