Canadian carries have reacted swiftly to the recall of the explosion-prone Samsung Galaxy Note 7 with Bell, Rogers, Telus, Eastlink, Videotron, Koodo, MTS and SaskTel all confirming today that they’re suspending sales of the smartphone.
“After a thorough investigation conducted by Samsung, Telus has been advised by the manufacturer that it has found a battery cell issue in Samsung Galaxy Note7 devices,” said the carrier’s representative.
“Consistent with Telus’ policy of putting customers first, and because our customers’ safety is an absolute priority, we have suspended sales of the device across all Telus corporate, dealer and retail locations, as well as online. We are working closely with Samsung to ensure the replacement experience is as convenient and efficient as possible for our customers.”
A Bell representative issued a to-the-point comment echoing the sentiment: “Bell has suspended sales of the Galaxy Note 7 and we are contacting all customers affected by the issue. We’re working with Samsung to ensure these customers receive replacement phones as quickly as possible.”
MTS, which is in the midst of an acquisition by Bell Canada, stated it was offering a full refund: “Our customers’ safety is extremely important to us. MTS has suspended all sales of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 effective immediately, and we are proactively reaching out to our customers who purchased the device to offer either a timely exchange for an MTS loaner device or a full refund.”
While Rogers shared, “After being notified by Samsung that they have stopped selling the Galaxy Note 7 due to reported safety issues, we immediately suspended shipments and sales of the device in all our stores and through our website. Samsung is working on a replacement program and we’ll continue to work with them to ensure the process is seamless for our customers. In the meantime, customers can visit their nearest Rogers store to exchange their Note 7 or get a loaner device.”
The reports of the Note 7’s 3,500 mAh battery heating up and exploding began earlier this week, causing Samsung to at first delay shipments of the handset and then issue a full recall of the phablet device on September 2nd.
“To date (as of September 1st) there have been 35 cases that have been reported globally and we are currently conducting a thorough inspection with our suppliers to identify possible affected batteries in the market. However, because our customers’ safety is an absolute priority at Samsung, we have stopped sales of the Galaxy Note7,” said Samsung in a statement.
Canada is one of ten countries affected by the recall. The company states that customers will be able to replace current Note 7 with brand new ones in coming weeks by calling 1-800-SAMSUNG. This is a large hit for the company, considering it has already sold 2.5 million devices worldwide.
Update – September 3rd: Telus has detailed two replacement options for Note 7 owners:
1. Customers who would like a new Note7 and are willing to wait for a replacement device, can bring their current Note7 into their nearest TELUS location and receive a similar Samsung loaner phone while they wait for their new Note7. Customers can expect to receive their new Note7 in the next couple of weeks.
2. Customers who would like to exchange their Note7 for a new smartphone can do so as well, by bringing their current Note7 device into their nearest TELUS location and purchasing a new device of equal or lesser value, for example, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge.
Related: Samsung recalls Note 7 smartphones in Canada over explosive batteries
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