Menu
Login
Returned Freedom Leg Off-Loading brace (cost $449 - pd with credit card) in August 2011 after receiving authorized return number MS080801 from company. FedEx online record shows it was delivered to 170 W Dayton St Ste 102A, Edmonds, WA 98020 on August 22, 2011 at 3;54 p.m. No refund received. Cannot get reply from phone messages left or emails.
Contacted Better Business Bureau, Washington state. No response to their inquiry to company.
Ordered this product on-line. Web site is still up (fwdmobility.com)
As of today, 1/19/2019, the BBB gives them a "C" rating. The company also clearly lays out their money back policy as "The 100% Money Back Purchase Price Guarantee is valid for 14 days after the day you receive a Forward Mobility product. Just notify us, by phone: [protected] or e-mail:..." As none of the negative reviews give a clear timeline for when they ordered, when they received the order and when they called for a return authorization, it isn't clear if the fault lies with the company or the customer. I remain on the fence...
Was planning on ordering a Freedom Leg for my ankle surgery next week. My reservations used to be about how well this product might work for me but, now I think the main problem would be terrible customer service. My plan now is to look for a used product or, if I have to get the Freedom Leg from Forward Mobility, I'll use a credit card. This way if there happens to be an issue with returning it, my credit card company will simply cancel the payment(with proof that it was returned, of course).😊
put the brace on e-bay, I'll bid on it, with a credit card sgtkelso@cox.net
am in the process of buying the freedom brace, I see all these complaints but no one explains the complaint, what is your complaint ?I would like to know why you are returning the product, I see people in videos walking crutch free, I know it exists, I can see people walking up and down stairs with the thing, you all are complaining, tell us what is the complaint, why are you returning the brace? sgtkelso@cox.net
Hello...my name is Steve and I live in NH. Just had a tibia plateau fracture 3 weeks ago and had plate and 9 screws installed one week ago. I am STILL interested in the freedom leg brace and would love to by-pass the FWDmobilty Co. altogether and possibly purchase device from an unhappy, non-reimbursed buyer. If anyone thinks that this might be a win-win please contact me. Thanks in advance, and sorry most seem unhappy with the company, my heart goes out to you. Steve
SACK@VALLEY.NET
Correction on my previous comment above: many good things are said about iWalkFree and from what I am reading Forward Mobilty- the makers of FREEDOM LEG are the unethical ones...
There is a lot of good comments about iWalkFree. I have yet to make my decision as to which product to buy for an upcoming surgery but it is clear with all the research I've done that the folks at iWalkFree/Forward Mobility are clearly unethical. I have found the owner of the company Joel on Linkedin and sent him a message, emailed his wife at her work as well as contacted 21 media outlets with this story (local and national level, large and small, written and TV). If it is true they are scamming people then it should be brought to light. I can't possibly imagine taking advantage of injured and the disabled.
Does anyone know of a similar product that works by the same concept of zero weight? It has to be non-weight bearing. My husbands' leg from the knee down has too much damage for the "iWalk Free Hands Free Crutch". I am not looking forward to telling him about another option that won't work.
I am so sorry that you have been scammed. I called Forward Mobility today after finally talking my husband into it. I thought it was a dream come true for him. He was hospitalized on his 50th birthday and had 9 surgeries on his leg over a 6 month period. He has been in a wheelchair for 5 years and it is really taking a toll on him because he was always fixing things and on the go. Now we have to pay someone just to change a light bulb. We are still in debt from medical bills and no income for so long, but I thought for him to be able to walk again is worth 1000 times the "sale price" of $449 for the new and improved model Freedom Leg.
When I got the voicemail at two different times of the day, I was a little concerned, but I left a message. Also, I thought, what the heck, I may as well use the time to check them out on www.bbb.org. They have an "F" rating with 19 complaints. They are listed as www.fwdmobility.com not www.freedomlegbrace.com, but the phone number search works too. They have not called back yet but I am sure they will because I haven't purchased one yet. I will be very happy to pass on your refund requests along with a few choice words regarding their heartless character to say the least.
I really want to thank you for saving me from losing money we don't have. I am not sure whether this will help any of you, but if you purchase a product that is not what it was advertised to be, whether you returned it or not, if you paid by credit card, most credit cards companies have a form on the back of your bill, or you can call and ask for one, that allows you to dispute the charge and it will be removed from your credit card account. The credit card company then goes after the seller. It is worth a try. I have actually been very lucky on a $500 product that I disputed. The process is very easy and the refund was issued almost immediately. Best wishes and thank you so much.
Sincerely,
Cheryl
If you are going to require surgery that will prevent you from any weight bearing on a leg/foot/ankle this is an excellent alternative to walker/crutches/knee scooter. These guys have gotten same bad ink previously but they couldn't have been more helpful. Sadly because of my size I wasn't able to use their product BUT their customer service and followup was outstanding and despite what I have seen posted my money was refunded in a mere 2 days
I also got my refund, although not until after I had sent a follow-up e-mail with a copy of the package delivery notification. Keep your paperwork!
My podiatrist gave me a script and I received mine from a prosthetist. I was NWB for 8 weeks. I run a parrot sanctuary which takes 4 hrs a night to clean and feed on a good day. I was wondering how I was gonna do the daily routine. Thank God for the freedom leg brace. I could actually carry bowls of food and water with both hands while walking somewhat normally.
If anyone wants to contact me directly. My email is parrotclubs @aol.com. I have put on a few videos on YouTube.
I'm not understanding all the negative review. This is a great product covered by your health insurance. Nobody has to pay out of pocket if you're insured or have medicaid.
I have the same experience with FwdMobility, they do nothing but scam people, once they make a sale, they ignore you totally! The only way I was able to correspond with anyone is catch them on the chat line at: http://freedomlegbrace.com/Freedom_Leg_Walking_Leg_Brace.html When I did catch some one on the chat line, I asked why they did not return my calls or emails with a return authorization no. they claimed my authorization no. was emailed to me on April 19, 2012. which was a lie, but they did give me the number which I used to return the item fed-x signature required. Joel Smith, the owner signed for the returned item but never refunded my money or made any acknowledgement that he was going to, I've been trying to get any one with the company to correspond with me to no avail. I urge any one that has been taken by these jerks to keep sending them messages. Here are some ways you can do that, first leave negative feedback on http://www.amazon.com/ next you can make negative comments on the following Facebook pages: FWD Mobility - Freedom Leg, Joel N Smith
Founder and President at FWD Mobility, Patricia Ann Steele-Smith, and Marlana Smith, they are all family and in on the scam.
I will never give up up warning people of this company, until I get my money back!
My Mom is so upset about all this we returned ours in August and received a tracking number from the UPS stating the fwd mob. received the product back and we have not received anything back. I am sending them e-mails and trying to contact them and NO ONE will help me or my family.
They same thing happened to My Mom. We are all really upset about this. I am going to contact the Better Business Bureau also. my e-mail is chelseamirarchi@catholichealth.net
did you ever get your refund. I am now facing the same issue
I had no problem getting the refund. Their customer service was nice and friendly and within 10 days I had the refund.