Seagate

Complaints & Reviews on USAComplaints

USAComplaints currently maintains 31 historical complaints about Seagate, published between 2004 and 2012. No approved complaints have been published on this site during the last three years. For a current reputation snapshot, see the independent sources below.

• Warranty Replacement makes you pay or wait for THEIR faulty hardwarePublished Oct 31, 2012 · Historical consumer allegation
• Samsung Hard Drives This company make it "99% " IMPOSSIBLE to contact them, NO Customer Service, No tech Support, etcPublished Aug 27, 2012 · Historical consumer allegation
• Together, They Market WELL KNOWN FAULTY products. The only support they offer for this product is an additional $300.00 CHARGE... What a RIPP-OFF!Published Mar 19, 2012 · Historical consumer allegation
• Seagate Technology Click freePublished Feb 21, 2012 · Historical consumer allegation
• Excellence - FreeAgent Go Portable Hard DrivePublished Aug 5, 2011 · Historical consumer allegation
• Awesome Warranty SupportPublished Jul 6, 2011 · Historical consumer allegation
• Seagate Seagate FreeAgent Go External Hard drive through BeachCamera.com from Buy.comPublished May 17, 2011 · Historical consumer allegation
• Seagate Hard Drives - Serial number on hardware different from serial number on packaging!Published Feb 18, 2011 · Historical consumer allegation
• Seagate Support might be abusive - Seagate 1TB FreeAgent Desktop External Hard DrivePublished Dec 25, 2009 · Historical consumer allegation
• POOR PRODUCT - Seagate 1TB FreeAgent Desktop External Hard DrivePublished Jun 6, 2009 · Historical consumer allegation
• Do not buy seagate productsPublished Feb 20, 2009 · Historical consumer allegation
• Bad Drives, Consumer Abuse 2 months - replaced new seagate drive with refurb for $20, failed after 3 monthsPublished Jan 29, 2009 · Historical consumer allegation
• Warranty Scam - FREEAGENT GO 160 GB USB 2.0Published Jan 28, 2009 · Historical consumer allegation
• Unable to register to Seagate Customer websitePublished Dec 30, 2008 · Historical consumer allegation
• Nothing short of extortion by Seagate Data Recovery Services Toronto Ontario CanadaPublished Nov 7, 2008 · Historical consumer allegation
• External Drives FreeAgent and Maxtor Don't WorkPublished Jun 2, 2008 · Historical consumer allegation
• Worst company to deal withPublished May 16, 2008 · Historical consumer allegation
• External hard drivePublished May 16, 2008 · Historical consumer allegation
• Seagate refuses to uphold warrantyPublished Apr 14, 2008 · Historical consumer allegation
• Seagate Technology Don't buy... Seagate drives... They heat up and start ticking... Then they quitPublished Oct 7, 2007 · Historical consumer allegation

Complaint Themes

Each tag reflects a complaint's single primary theme (not every angle it raised), and complaints outside any problem theme — a positive report, or one later retracted by its author — aren't tagged. Counts may total less than the full complaint count above.

Independent Sources

Shown for context — not merged with USAComplaints' own numbers.

Contacts

• Official website: https://www.seagate.com/
• Seagate Contact Us (U.S. chat, service centers): https://www.seagate.com/contacts/
• Warranty and replacements: https://www.seagate.com/support/warranty-and-replacements/
• BBB-listed number (not a Seagate-published support line): (800) 732-4283 2 complaints mention this number

Locations

Seagate: drive warranty claims, replacements, data recovery and refunds (checked October 15, 2026)

People who search this page are usually owners of a Seagate, LaCie or Maxtor-branded drive that has failed, have a warranty or replacement question, or are unsure what a data-recovery quote covers. The routes and terms below are quoted from Seagate's own U.S. pages as displayed on October 15, 2026.

• Start or check a warranty claim: the U.S. Warranty & Replacements page says 'If your product has stopped working, see below to open a warranty claim' and offers 'Start here to open a new warranty claim with Seagate's world class service department', a 'Check Status' form ('Check the status of an existing warranty claim') and authorized service centers.
• Distributor or reseller route: under the heading 'Exercising warranty returns within region' the same page says: 'In order to exercise warranty claim, please contact the authorized distributor or reseller you purchased Product from.' It adds that to claim within a jurisdiction or region the product must be bought from an authorized distributor in the same region, and that a product bought from an authorized distributor or reseller outside your region must be claimed 'with them directly'. Read both statements together with the start-claim form above; Seagate's page does not say which applies to a given purchase.
• Chat: the U.S. Contact Us page lists product and technical support chat as '24x5 Weekdays' in English ('7 p.m. Sunday-7 p.m. Friday, CST') and Seagate store support chat ('Need help with orders, shipping, or returns?') as 'Monday-Friday 8 a.m.-5:30 p.m., CST'. Its 'Product Support Escalation' form is for an existing case number. The page text we read lists chat, not a support phone number.
• Data is not returned and is not part of the warranty: the U.S. Seagate Limited Warranty says 'Seagate will not return your original Product to you' and that 'Data recovery, advance replacement option, or other warranty-related offerings or service plans are not covered under this limited warranty'. It also says Seagate 'may replace your Product with a Product that was previously used, re-certified and tested to meet Seagate specifications', and that the warranty period is 'the length of time indicated as part of your Product packaging'. The Warranty Return Policy (last updated November 9, 2017) says 'All data and software on your returned product(s) will be lost' and 'Any required data recovery service must be completed BEFORE requesting an RMA from Seagate.'
• RMA terms: the E-Commerce & RMA Terms say 'You must obtain an RMA before returning Defective Products'. For an advanced replacement the product must be returned 'within 25 days', otherwise 'a flat rate fee based on capacity may be assessed and charged to your credit or debit card ("Asset Recovery Fee")'; a return within 15 days after the fee may qualify for a partial or full refund 'at the discretion of Seagate'. The terms also say Seagate 'is not obligated to provide warranty service for Products returned to the wrong return center'.
• Rescue Data Recovery: the U.S. Data Recovery Services page offers a lookup 'to check that your drive is still in the Rescue service period'; the lookup 'will recognize Seagate and LaCie serial numbers only'. If a plan has expired or never existed, the page points to a 'preferred partner for discounted data rescue services'. It says 'If the recovery attempt is successful, you'll receive your recovered data on an encrypted storage device'. Check the plan terms for your drive before sending it in.
• Seagate Store purchases only: the Store Return Policy says items may be returned 'within 30 days of delivery for a full refund' and 'After 30 days, a product can only be replaced under warranty'; the return must ship 'within 15 days after the authorization of the return', and 'Most refunds are refunded within 7 days after processing is complete'. Purchases from other retailers follow those retailers' policies.
• BBB: BBB's Seagate profile points consumers to the 'Seagate Return Policy', 'Seagate Channel Limited Warranty', 'Seagate E-Commerce & RMA Terms' and 'Warranty and Return FAQs'; read the document that matches how you bought the drive (Seagate store, retailer or channel).
• If a claim is refused or stalls: keep the case number, proof of purchase and serial number, use the escalation form above, and consider a BBB complaint or a dispute with your card issuer. Several complaints in our archive describe rebate and warranty disputes that involved a retailer or a rebate processor as well as Seagate; those are third parties, not Seagate.

U.S. Commerce Department (BIS) settlement, April 2023

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) of the U.S. Department of Commerce announced on April 19, 2023 that it had imposed 'a $300 million civil penalty' on Seagate Technology LLC of Fremont, California and Seagate Singapore International Headquarters Pte. Ltd for shipments of hard disk drives to Huawei. BIS calls it the 'largest standalone administrative penalty in BIS history' and says the case covered 'more than 7.4 million HDDs subject to the Huawei FDP rule without BIS authorization'. According to BIS, 'As part of the BIS settlement, Seagate admitted to the conduct set forth in the Proposed Charging Letter'; the resolution also includes a multi-year audit requirement and 'a five-year suspended Denial Order'.

Seagate's Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended July 3, 2026 states that on April 18, 2023 its subsidiaries entered into a settlement agreement that 'resolves BIS' allegations regarding Seagate's sales of hard disk drives to Huawei between August 17, 2020 and September 29, 2021'. Seagate agreed to pay $300 million in quarterly installments of $15 million over five years beginning October 31, 2023, and to complete three audits; the filing says it has 'completed the first two audits'. This matter concerns export controls, not consumer products.

Who Seagate is

The registrant is Seagate Technology Holdings public limited company, incorporated in Ireland, whose ordinary shares trade on Nasdaq as STX. Its 10-K says 'Our principal executive offices are located in Singapore' and that it established Singapore as its principal executive offices in fiscal year 2024. SEC records show the registrant was previously named Seagate Technology plc (until May 2021). The filing describes Seagate as 'a leading provider of mass-capacity data storage' that sells mainly to cloud service providers, OEMs, distributors and enterprises, and also to consumers through its Edge IoT portfolio (network-attached storage, personal computing, gaming and backup drives). The company says it has operated for 'nearly 50 years'.

Seagate's fiscal 2006 10-K reports that on May 19, 2006 Seagate acquired Maxtor Corporation in a stock-for-stock transaction, including 'the right to use the Maxtor brand and other related trade names'. Complaints in our archive dated before that date about Maxtor-branded drives concern Maxtor as a then-separate company and are not counted as Seagate complaints on this page.

What reviewers and complainants say, and what our archive holds

BBB (as displayed on 2026-10-15): BBB profile for Seagate Technology, Fremont, CA: rating A+, not BBB accredited; '149 total complaints in the last 3 years' and '44 complaints filed in the last 12 months'; reviews tab 1/5 stars, average of 12 customer reviews. BBB's summary says complaints on file indicate concerns 'related to product quality and exchange requests'. Responses published on the BBB complaints tab are written in the company's name and describe individual matters as resolved or closed, or give a warranty determination.

Trustpilot (as displayed on 2026-10-15): seagate.com, 470 reviews, score 1.5, unclaimed profile; Trustpilot says it does not fact-check reviews.

Our archive: 31 complaints dated 2004-2012 name Seagate as the subject (five more mention it as a brand and are not counted as Seagate's own). By keyword: 10 involve mail-in rebates (most handled by retailers or rebate processors such as Parago), 17 mention warranty, RMA or replacement, 13 describe drive failure, 12 mention support, customer service or data recovery. Two posts are favourable reviews of Seagate warranty support. The archive is a set of unverified submissions and is not a statistical sample of Seagate customers; BBB and Trustpilot figures are separate sources and are not added to our own counts.

Court cases involving Seagate

Consumer class action over Barracuda 3TB drives. A class action filed on February 1, 2016 against Seagate Technology LLC in the Northern District of California (Nelson) alleged that Barracuda 3TB and Backup Plus 3TB drives were defective (complaint, Doc. 1). A second action (Ginsberg, No. 16-cv-00612) was consolidated with it by order of May 6, 2016 (Doc. 38) as In re Seagate Technology LLC Litigation. The docket shows an order on January 22, 2019 denying plaintiffs' renewed motion for class certification (Doc. 200); no class was certified. On May 2, 2019 the named plaintiffs filed a notice of 'voluntary dismissal with prejudice of this action as to Seagate Technology, LLC, pursuant to Fed. Civ. P. Rule 41(a)(1)(A)(ii)', stating that each party would bear its own costs (Doc. 218), and the court entered an order dismissing the case the same day (Doc. 219).

Securities class action. Per the 10-K, In re Seagate Technology Holdings plc Securities Litigation (N.D. Cal., No. 3:23-cv-03431) alleges violations of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act for a class period of September 14, 2020 to April 19, 2023. The 10-K says the parties agreed to a settlement in principle on April 3, 2026 for $175 million (about $70 million to be paid by insurers). Lead counsel's case page says the term sheet was 'executed as of April 20, 2026' and the stipulation of settlement was entered on May 29, 2026. The court preliminarily approved the settlement on July 7, 2026. As of October 15, 2026 the CourtListener docket shows settlement and attorney-fee filings on September 18, 2026 (Docs. 182-184), objections filed on September 29 and October 2, 2026 (Docs. 185-186), and a July 23, 2026 order denying the class-certification motion as moot 'without prejudice to them being refiled if the settlement is ultimately not approved'. Lead counsel lists October 19, 2026 as the claim filing deadline, October 27, 2026 as the exclusion and objection deadline, and a settlement hearing on November 17, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. before Judge Rita F. Lin. The settlement is not final. This concerns investors, not drive buyers.

Patent and antitrust matters. The 10-K also lists patent suits against Seagate (Lambeth Magnetic Structures, filed 2016, with the Federal Circuit having vacated a judgment for Seagate on September 17, 2025 and remanded; Godo Kaisha IP Bridge 1, filed 2024) and a suit brought by Seagate against suspension-assembly suppliers (Seagate v. Headway Technologies). In that suit, per the 10-K, the district court on November 17, 2023 granted NHK's FTAIA motion for partial summary judgment on reconsideration, 'denying the majority of Seagate's antitrust claims'; on January 8, 2026 the Ninth Circuit reversed that decision and remanded, and NHK 'has since petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for certiorari'. These are commercial matters and are not consumer complaints.

Is Seagate Legitimate?

Seagate Technology Holdings plc is an SEC registrant that files annual and quarterly reports, trades on Nasdaq under STX, and publishes warranty, support and returns pages on seagate.com. BBB lists Seagate Technology with an A+ rating and no accreditation; BBB and Trustpilot also display complaints and low review scores about product failures and warranty handling, which are individual allegations that we have not verified. This page does not rate Seagate; compare the sources above and check warranty terms for your own purchase channel.

Court & Public Records

Related Complaints

Names this company in a role other than the primary subject — not necessarily current or complete.

• Named as a brand of this company: Allhdd stalling refund on RMA - Seagate Saviio 450GB and 900GB
• Named as a brand of this company: Do not buy it!
• Named as a brand of this company: The hard drive broke, and I got burned!
• Named as a brand of this company: Ripoff maxtor! They are selling products, example external hard drives that brake within a year and offer no suport what so ever & say they cannot help but still continue to sell these products which I say is illegal!
• Named as a brand of this company: Rip-off! Did not fullfill $40.00 rebate promise on Seagate Hard Drive

Company Relationships

• Affiliated with: Maxtor Corporation
• Affiliated with: Seagate Technology LLC

Frequently Asked Questions