Parents plan to sue because toy didn’t work right
For many people, Hatchimals just went from being the holiday season’s hottest toy to being one of the most heartbreaking presents around.
Dozens of parents are now speaking out about malfunctioning Hatchimals after their children unwrapped the toy and realized they could not convince the robotic critters to hatch.
One of the things that made Hatchimals one of the most in-demand presents this holiday season is the hatching process. Hatchimals are sold still encased in their eggs. Users have to play with and nurture the egg for up to an hour, listening to the cooing Hatchimal inside as it pecks its way out of the shell.
However, according to many parents, the hatching never occurred — and at least one is now threatening to sue the maker of Hatchimals.
Nicole Kijurina, a mother in Canada, told Business Insider that she purchased three Hatchimals. She kept two for her daughters, and donated one to a family in need.
“Of course no good deed goes unpunished,” Kijurina told Business Insider. “To my surprise both of my Hatchimals for my girls did not hatch. One just kept [flashing] red eyes [through the shell] and the other wouldn’t spin or move. I ripped the eggs open as requested by both my girls who were crying and heartbroken, because let’s face it, the hatching is the best part.”
If Spin Master — the creator of Hatchimals — does not respond to Kinjurina’s email asking for assistance by January 3, she says she plans to file a class action lawsuit against the toy maker seeking compensation.
Kinjurina isn’t alone in her struggles. The toy maker’s Facebook page has been flooded with angry comments.
“The gift was given and excitement raged… excitement turned to depression and sadness,” reads a comment from one disappointed buyer. “My granddaughter tapped and turned upside down her egg for hours. She followed the steps and after half a day it would not hatch… I was devastated. Had waited forever to see her smile and instead was greeted with a frown and a ‘it won’t hatch Papaw.'”
Excuse me for having no sympathy. I bought Wendy a well reviewed tablet this Christmas with an integrated keyboard. The touch screen didn’t work so I did what I thought any normal person would do, I contacted the company’s tech support and they processed a warranty return (the retailer is sold out of them so we can’t do an exchange).
Others said that their Hatchimals did hatch — but only after a long effort.
“It’s bad! My nephew went to bed crying last night about his hatchimal that we have been trying to hatch since Christmas day!” one Facebook user said. “It just was sleeping in the egg, we hatched it ourselves this morning and it’s still just snoring and not doing anything else.”
Toys break. Technology doesn’t work well. At the end of the day, you return the product to the store and you exchange it. Stop using social media to whine about it and we need to stop covering this as news.