Smart Premier 1-year free with Arlo Ultra DOES NOT WORK

[norm911]

I just spent $1000 on the 4-camera Arlo Ultra kit to replace an older Arlo system with no smart subscription. The one year Arlo Smart subscription did not activate when I added the new base station so I contacted support with ticket #40803998. After removing/re-adding the base station and all cameras they were still not able to figure it out. Their recommendation was to return the whole system and buy a new one? Doesn't seem to make any sense when everything is working well other than the lack of the free Smart subscription. I uploaded my receipt via chat to the support agent and asked that they activate my subscription manually, but they were not able to help me. The support agent ended the case by saying "I'll have to call you back on this" and I've never heard back. I can't help but feel cheated and misled after spending $1000 on this system! Really awful customer service experience.

[michaelkenward]

---

@jguerdat wrote:

You always get the free 7 day rolling  plam regardless of where you install.

---

Is that true with the Ultra system, which is the subject of this discussion?

Wasn't that a major issue after launch when people discovered that Ultras do not cloud record without a paid subscription?

Or is it just 4k recording that needs a paid subscription?

This FAQ, and the table, suggest otherwise:

Arlo subscription plans and cloud recording

Arlo Wire-Free, Pro, Pro 2, Go, Q, Q Plus, and Arlo Baby cameras all include 7-days of free cloud recording.

[jguerdat]

Yeah, yer right. Ultra doesn't get a free plan - I glossed over that.

[Vadim19]

Hi Jessica

I have recently bought locally in Russia and now trying to install a set of 3 Arlo Ultra cameras. Am I eligible to a free Arlo Smart Premier plan? If yes, could you please help to subscribe, as during installation I did not get any option to click and subscribe myself…

[jguerdat]

Check the FAQ here for the list of countries that can get the additional subscriptions. Russia isn't one of them.

[Vadim19]

OK, if a free Arlo Premier option in impossible, I would like to purchase the subscription. Could you please explain how to purchase step by step, as unfortunatelly I have tryied myself to do it from my account, but the system is not allowing me to proceed... Thank you

[michaelkenward]

---

@Vadim19 wrote:

OK, if a free Arlo Premier option in impossible, I would like to purchase the subscription.

---

Did you read the message you replied to from @jguerdat?

Did you check the FAQ they linked to?

Arlo subscription plans and cloud recording

You are in Russia. It is not on the list.

[lasermonkey]

Is it possible to create a vpn for signup to billing and then move off the vpn and operate as normal? Has anyone tried this?. Eg. Pretend as in US or Europe for vpn, sign up, move off von and record to cloud as per normal.

[Amaury59]

Can you please indicate how you contacted the support desk? Is it the technical support or the commercial department?
I have the same issue and technical support keeps replying that they can’t provide such coupon, only commercial department, but they are not able to give any commercial contact... really frustrating!! Thanks!

[lasermonkey]

Hi there,

the only way i was able to log a job at the time was via this forum. JessicaP a forum moderator logged it on my behalf with Technical Support.

It was a big of a difficult process:

i tried calling support to log the initial ticket, but the call system is flawed, at least what was used in New Zealand at the time, and an endless loop occurred each and everytime. I'm not sure if they resolved this. As well as that, the support rep on the chat system would not help and just closed the case as a kind of "this is just how it works" so long story short, JessicaP logged a job.

Once the job was properly logged to Technical support, the rep tried to close the case approx twice maybe, but i requested escalation to their manager, which didn't happen, but they actively started taking it seriously.

If it's two areas of the business, that's not your problem, that is a Arlo problem. Open a job with Technical Support and keep it open until they sort it out, regardless of what internal organisational issues they have. If they insist it's a "commercial problem" (new to me), i would also insist they open up a job with "commercial" people on your behalf so they can champion the case through to the result, which should be you a happy customer. While keeping your support ticket open.

Good luck! you'll need it with a bunch of patience 🙂

[JessicaP]

Hi Amaury59,

If you need to contact our support team, you can contact our team here: Arlo Support. If you have any troubles contacting our team, feel free to let me know through private message.

[Amaury59]

Thanks JessicaP but I already contacted them 6 times, they keep saying that the only issue will be using a VPN which is not an option here. 2 full days I try to fix this... and Tech support team, supported by their manager, keep saying that a coupon is not an option... which should solve all this. Can you see with commercial team or give me their contact please? Thanks

[JessicaP]

Thanks for reaching out to me. I responded to your private message and hope to hear from you soon.

[JehovasFitness]

Just bought the Ultra. Canceled my previous smart premier with my pro 1 and 2s... the ultra is all set up but the free 1 yr has not activated. Is there a delay?

[SpencerM]

Well I hate to add to the list here, but I also had just purchased the Arlo Ultra 4 camera system from Best Buy a couple of weeks ago and I could not figure out how to activate the free year subscription! I actually just recieved an email telling me that my current 1 year subscription is ending tomorrow and I will be charged for another year. What do I need to do?

Also, just so you are aware, I'm 99% positive that my computer has the most current Google Chrome and whatnot. I will double check, but that shouldn't be the issue.

[StephenB]

---

@SpencerM wrote: What do I need to do?

Contact support: https://www.arlo.com/en-us/support/contact.aspx