Hi, I have a fairphone 1 and my battery inflated. I read that this is very dangerous and also the battery does not fit anymore into the phone. My question now is if I can get the battery replaced since it happend to just get inflated without me doing anything wrong. I would be very thankful for an answer. 
Charlotte
Please read the official support article by Fairphone:
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thank you very much!!
Hi,
my FP1 battery has become bloated now too. Although mine is about 3 years old now. is this an ongoing issue with the FP1 batteries? Do we know why this happens?
I have ordered a new battery and am continuing to use my old one until that arrives. I have not dropped my phone often nor do i keep it in humid environment. But I am wondering if the new battery will do the same thing and if it is under warranty, any ideas?
thanks Jo
It can happen to all lithium batteries (I’ve recently even had a 10-year-old Nokia BL5 bloat). It seems they become more susceptible with age / charging cycles (which my FP1 battery has had more of than the Nokia battery above). I’m not sure whether FP1 batteries are more or less susceptible. Also, if I recall correctly, Fairphone changed the manufacturer of the battery and the new battery has a slightly larger capacity - so if there was a problem with the first batch of batteries, it may not be there for current batteries.
This really isn’t recommended, but if you insist of doing so then please don’t charge it unattended/overnight: It’d be a shame it fails and burns down the house with or without yourself in it.
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thanks Johannes. Do you know what the warranty on a new battery is?
I would assume the Fairphone1(U) spare parts warranty (2 years), unless the webshop tells you differently during the process. The Fairphone 2 warranty mentions a different warranty period for the battery, but I haven’t read anywhere that the warranty duration was also changed for the Fairphone 1 battery.
I will just copy my Facebook Conversation in here cause i wont type all that again 
After 5 weeks of waiting , i cant believe the fairphone support / service is still so bad , or doesn’t get it.
spoiler
July 1 , 2016My fairphone 1 second battery in bloating again 
Dear Pascal,
Thank you for your message. We wil answer it as soon as possible.
In the meantime, have a look at om. Maybe you find something that interests you there!
Best,
Douwe
Community Manager.
can u take my data from the first bloating situation and i send u the pictures ?
JUL 6TH, 5:14PM
Dear Pascal,
Thank you for your message. We wil answer it as soon as possible.
In the meantime, have a look at . Maybe you find something that interests you there!
Best,
Douwe
Community Manager.
ups sorry wrong link i have sent you an email
JUL 11TH, 8:47AM
Soo ?? what about bloatet battery?
Dear Pascal,
Thank you for your message. We wil answer it as soon as possible.
In the meantime, have a look at Maybe you find something that interests you there!
Best,
Douwe
Community Manager.
AUG 2ND, 9:13PM
Dear FP Team ,
I am waiting over 1 MONTH now (1.7.2016) for a response on my second “bloating battery” problem i need my phone for work.
I was one of the first supporters and that service is really disappointing.
My ticket number: #113725
Was is happening at your support Team ?
all the newsletter and emails about fp2 and stuff but you dont support the costumers that only made the Fairphone Company happend ? Thats sad
Dear Pascal,
Thank you for your message. We wil answer it as soon as possible.
In the meantime, have a look at https://forum.fairphone.com. Maybe you find something that interests you there!
Best,
The Fairphone Team
Dear FP Team ,
I am waiting over 1 MONTH now (1.7.2016) for a response on my second “bloating battery” problem i need my phone for work.
I was one of the first supporters and that service is really disappointing.
My ticket number: #113725
Was is happening at your support Team ?
all the newsletter and emails about fp2 and stuff but you dont support the costumers that only made the Fairphone Company happend ? Thats sad
AUG 3RD, 11:35PM
??
Hi Pascal, thanks for your message. We are not here right now, but we’ll get back to you soon!
TUE 6:57PM
Dear Pascal,
We are really sorry that your Fairphone battery is failing like this. This swelling is probably the cause of the issues.
Please do not use or recharge this faulty battery again and discard the battery at a local recycling point! You can not send it over the mail anymore.
Since the manufacturing warranty of the FP1 has expired (2 years after delivery), you can purchase a new battery in our webshop.
It might be that you need to register again as we changed webshops in the meantime and could not migrate all data from the old to the new system. Apologies for the inconvenience this may cause.
Finally, I’d like to apologise for our late reply. We are experiencing a huge backlog at the moment but we are taking drastic measures to solve this and provide you with the service you deserve. We explain more on our blog: sorry-to-keep-you-waiting-an-update-from-customer-support/ Thanks again for your patience and support!
Greetings from Amsterdam,
Daria
As i postet b4 , you send out bloating batteries again and again and tell me , that the wareanty of my phone has expired ?
even after the first bloated battery , the 2nd bloated again
now you want me to buy one ( which will probably bloat again ?
Is this for real ? Thats the answer for an allready known and ongoing problem to let the supporter pay for faulty batterie instead of changing the manufactorer or let him pay for the faulty batteries ??
iam waiting 5 weeks for that answer??
WED 9:53AM
Hi Pascal,
could you please provide us the order number of the battery sent to you?
Plerase notice:
- If you have a FP1 (Fairphone 1 first batch):
Since the manufacturing warranty of the FP1 has expired (2 years after delivery), you can purchase a new battery in our webshop.
It might be that you need to register again as we changed webshops in the meantime and could not migrate all data from the old to the new system. Apologies for the inconvenience this may cause.
- If you have a FP1U (second batch):
Our support team will inquire if you have a FP1 or a FP1U.
Provide the serial number of the battery (14 digits, located below the barcode on the back of your battery) and the serial number of your Fairphone (located inside your Fairphone behind the battery).
We will require you to fill in a inquiry where you can add a photo of the bloated battery. We will send you the link after you contact us, but please inform us immediately after the inquiry is completed.
We will begin the battery replacement procedure for you as soon as possible.
Regards,
Sergio
IT EN
☆ Fairphone || Buy a phone, join a movement!
✆ Mon & Tue 10:30-18:30 and Wed, Thu & Fri 09:30-17:30 CET under +31 20 788 4400
WED 12:01PM
You can see the picture and all details vial my ticket number:
My ticket number: #113725
Hi,
we can not send you a new battery.
If you have a FP1 (Fairphone 1 first batch):
Since the manufacturing warranty of the FP1 has expired (2 years after delivery), you can purchase a new battery in our webshop.
It might be that you need to register again as we changed webshops in the meantime and could not migrate all data from the old to the new system. Apologies for the inconvenience this may cause.
Regards,
Sergio
IT EN
☆ Fairphone || Buy a phone, join a movement!
✆ Mon & Tue 10:30-18:30 and Wed, Thu & Fri 09:30-17:30 CET under +31 20 788 4400
As i postet b4 , you send out bloating batteries again and again and tell me , that the wareanty of my phone has expired ?
even after the first bloated battery , the 2nd bloated again
now you want me to buy one ( which will probably bloat again ?
you paid for all the bloatedt batterie the chinese company that produced faulty batteries ? and now you want me to buy one ?
WED 5:37PM
Hi,
we can not send you a new battery.
If you have a FP1 (Fairphone 1 first batch):
Since the manufacturing warranty of the FP1 has expired (2 years after delivery), you can purchase a new battery in our webshop.
It might be that you need to register again as we changed webshops in the meantime and could not migrate all data from the old to the new system. Apologies for the inconvenience this may cause.
Regards,
Sergio
IT EN
☆ Fairphone || Buy a phone, join a movement!
✆ Mon & Tue 10:30-18:30 and Wed, Thu & Fri 09:30-17:30 CET under +31 20 788 4400
Stop the copy paste please
Usually there is a obligingness that good companys provide
especially when its a crowdfunded project !!! And you send out bloating batteries
how comes that in 20 Years of cellphones in my life i never had a bloating battery before but the FAirphone company send me not 1 but 2 bloating batteries yet ?
MON 10:26AM
???
Dear Pascal,
Thank you for your message. We wil answer it as soon as possible.
In the meantime, have a look at . Maybe you find something that interests you there!
Best,
The Fairphone Team
Usually there is a obligingness that good companys provide ! Especially a company that i crowdfunded in the first place , which bought faulty batteries and shipped them several times to the costumers … !!!
@Douwe how can you just send out faulty batteries , and let us “the supporters” then pay for them instead the company that sold you these faulty / bloating batteries again and again ?
I understand your frustration - it’s annoying when you experience repeat problems - but for clarification (edit: this shouldn’t be read as an official statement - I don’t work them):
- If you got the first replacement battery as a warranty replacement, then the warranty of the replacement expires on the date the original warranty would have expired. So even if the battery is less than 2 years old it can still be out of warranty.
- If you purchased a replacement battery, there would be a new warranty period (as it then would have its own warranty period).
So depending on that, support could be legally correct in their answer. Whether that’s also what feels right, is something that can be debated.
Usually companies provide a warranty of just 6 months as Lithium batteries have a tendency to fail/degrade over time. Having 24 months of warranty is actually quite a big thing. The ‘problem’ with crowdfunded companies is that they often can’t afford to go beyond the terms they state (which are already generous on the FP1 warranty) - though the big companies rarely actually do this either (unless they get really good media coverage for doing so, which is why it sometimes seems they do, or are forced to by a regulator).
I’ve recently had an old Nokia battery bloat. When I calculate back how often it’s been charged, it’s been charged less that my current FP1 battery. So it actually performed worse than the FP1 battery. What I mean is, that it depends on what batteries and use scenario you’re comparing it to - it’s easy to get a distorted picture. Bear in mind that the power draw (and charging current) can be a lot higher on smartphones, which can lead to problems sooner. The larger batteries in modern phones can also be more susceptible to physical shock and heat. All of this can contribute to why you’re seeing less use than expected.
2 Likes
Do u want to deny that there are hundres of cases “known issues” bloated batteries ?
I never heard of any case like that for other companys , and even if there were cases like that, I as one of the first 5000 supporter which made the fairphone project possible exspect , that i get a working batterie (longer than 1 or 1.5 Years ) without bloating.
If batteries are again and again faulty , get the money back from the production company of the batteries.
How many faulty batterie has been there since the first fairphone ? Is it just me getting the 2nd bloatet battery ?
Nope, the battery may still be problematic, or there may have been bad batch of batteries at some point. It could be that the battery is more susceptible to damage by some design fluke. I personally don’t believe the comparison with feature phone batteries in terms of lifetime is as straightforward as it may seem, hence the comment about that above.
In terms of hundreds of cases: I’d actually expect there to be > 700 cases so far, based on 60.000 phones out there + replacements for normal battery wear over time and a 1% manufacturing defect rate (which has previously been cited as acceptable as for DOA’s for a smartphone as a whole here - the rates for failure in the first year are higher, so it’s a conservative estimate). If it is a manufacturing defect, that’s exactly what the warranty is for - you get replacements/repairs for manufacturing defects for the period the device is guaranteed. That’s still not counting the cases where the battery was replaced after it was mistreated (dropped / exposed to heat / etc).
If it’s any use, they changed manufacturers (and probably design, given a higher capacity) early this year / late last year (probably as all manufacturing switched around when they went with a different partner for the FP2):
Full disclosure: I must be very lucky - I’m still managing by charging the phone once every two days (I could probably stretch it to longer) on the original battery (and yes, I’m one of the first 5000): it’s held better than I expected it to, given the use it gets.
3 Likes
Hi everyone,
I had same problem with swollen FP1 battery,
I decided to buy a new one, but shipping costs , for Italy, are too high and disproportionate:
quite 19€ for the battery and more than 36€ for shipping…there is something wrong!
I checked courriers costs and prices are around 9/12€ and not 36€!
Do you have any answers about this?
Thank you so much!
Any replies?
Thanks
Giuseppe
Lithium batteries shipped outside of an appliance are increasingly treated as dangerous goods. Couriers seem to either not want to carry them, or charge high prices. So the price may be what the shipping company is actually asking.
Note that this is a community forum and support staff don’t read most/any of what is going on. So if you want an ‘official’ answer you’ll need to contact Fairphone support as they’re the only ones who can really answer your question.
2 Likes
I got my bloated battery replaced June 2015, now it’s bloated again (and I’m not using the phone very much, no games/gps etc.). Warranty is over and I have to buy a new battery.
Somehow sad to see that this manufacturing failure has not been fixed. I’ve had battery problems for a while already so it seems like I have to be prepared to buy a new battery yearly to keep the phone running… 
1 Like
Maybe you unfortunately received a battery from the old batch (see this post to find out which batch you got).
I’d at least contact their support and ask if you can get another replacement.
2 Likes
It’s the old one yes, support says as stated in support section that I have to buy it on my own because warranty has exceeded. But at least a self bought battery from the new batch might last longer if it’s a new one…
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