LETTERS OF COMPLAINT

Question 1.

You recently stayed in a hotel in a large city. The weather was very
unusual and the heating/cooling system in the hotel was inadequate.
Write a letter to the manager of the hotel. In your letter:

 Give details of what went wrong

 Explain what you had to do to overcome the problem at the time
 Say what action you would like the manager to take

You should write at least 150 words. You do NOT need to write your own
address.
STEP 1 | ANALYSE THE QUESTION (True or False)
1. The topic of the letter is the hotel manager.    
2. The topic of the letter is the heating/cooling system in the hotel.    
3. The function of the letter is to advise.    
4. The function of the letter is to thank the manager.    
5. The function of the letter is to complain.    
6. You must explain what the problem was.
7. You must explain what you did to overcome the problem.    
8. You must explain what you want the manager to do.    
9. You must be impolite to the manager.    
10. Each bullet point in the task prompt should be an individual paragraph.    
11. The letter must be informal.    
12. The letter must be formal. 

STEP 2 | THINK OF DETAILS

1. Who you are writing too.
Do you know the name of the manager?
2. Where the hotel was.
What city was it in?
3. What the exact problem was.
Was the room too hot or cold?
4. What you did to improve your situation and overcome the problem.
Did you solve the problem or move to another hotel?
5. What you want the manager to do.
Do you want a refund or something else?

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STEP 3 | WRITE THE LETTER
Initially   ·  In order to   ·  However   ·  propose   ·  complain   ·  faithfully  
·  In addition to this   ·  look forward to   ·  thankful   ·  even though

Dear Sir/Madam
I am writing to (1)………….…………….. about the temperature of the room in the King’s Hotel from the
14th-20th of August this year. I booked and paid for the room in your famous hotel on the internet and
was expecting excellent quality and service. (2)………….…………….., the temperature in London was
unusually high and the room, located close to the kitchens, was uncomfortably hot. It was so hot that I
could not sleep and the heat made me quite dehydrated and sick. I was unable to enjoy my stay and
had to change hotel.
(3)………….…………….., I complained to the reception staff but they were unhelpful. I asked to be changed
to another room but I was not allowed to change, (4)………….…………….. there were obviously rooms
available. (5)………….…………….. , I asked to speak to you directly, but the staff made excuses about why
I couldn’t speak with a manager. After 2 nights at the King’s Hotel, I felt fed up and quite unhealthy. (6)
………….…………….. make the most of my holiday to London, I moved across town to the Queen’s hotel,
where I was given a room with AC and the staff were very pleasant and helpful.
I (7)………….…………….. that you reprimand your reception staff and give them further training for how to
deal with this type of problem. I would also be (8)………….…………….. for a full refund for the nights of
the 16th-20th August in which I had to stay at a different hotel.
I (9)………….…………….. hearing back from you and receiving my refund.
Yours (10)………….……………..,
Mr. B. Phillipson

COMPREHENSION TASK
Write NO MORE than 2 words to answer the following questions.
1. Do you know the name of the manager? ………………………….
2. What city was the hotel in? …………………………
3. Was the room too hot or cold? …………………………
4. Did you solve the problem or move to another hotel? …………………………
5. Does the writer want a refund or something else? …………………………
VOCABULARY TASK
Below are useful phrases for writing a formal letter of complaint. Match each phrase with the function.

1. Dear Sir/Madam A. Demanding action

2. Dear Mr. _____ / Dear Ms. ______ B. A greeting when you know the receiver’s
3. I am writing to complain about + noun phrase family name
4. I propose that + noun phrase C. Ending
5. I would be thankful for + noun phrase D. The reason for your letter
6. I would be appreciative if + clause E. Close before signature
7. I look forward to + verb ing/ noun F. A greeting when you don’t know the
8. Yours faithfully, receiver’s name

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Question 2.
You recently bought a piece of equipment for your kitchen but it did not work. You
phoned the shop but no action was taken. Write a letter to the shop manager.

In your letter,

1.  describe the problem with the equipment

2. explain what happened when you phoned the shop
3. say what you would like the manager to do

 Correct the mistakes which have been highlighted in the following letter.
Dear Sir or Madam:
I am writing to complain about the Magic Bullet mixer grinder I bought from your store. I placed
the order online in June 15, 2018 and received the shipment 3 days before.

The appliance seemed to be in good condition when it was delivering to home. However, when I
switched it off, the blender did not work. I tried to fix the problem by the help of the instruction
manual, but my efforts did not resolve the issue. I ring up the customer support number and the
local service center number, but no one answered the phone. I have trying to reach the customer
support for the past 4 days with no success.

The product has one year warranty on the motor and one month replacement guarantee for any
manufacturing defects. I am closing the photocopies of the bill and the warranty card along with
this letter. Please arrange on a replacement of this product at the earliest or a full refund.

I would also like to suggest that your company should work on providing better customer
support. I am totally satisfied with the way your support staff treat your customers.

Expecting prompt action

Yours sincerely

Ravi

Question 3.

You recently bought an item of clothing from a shop. You discovered that it had a fault and returned
it to the shop for replacement or refund. However, the assistant told you that this was against the
store's policy.

Write a letter to the store manager. In your letter:

 explaining the problems you have had

 Ask for a refund or exchange on the item.

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 Make all the changes and additions necessary to produce, from the following sets
of words and phrases, sentences which together make a complete letter.

Dear Sam,
1. This/neighbour, David/ I drop/this line/talk/your dog Lisa/caused/troubles/me and my family.
2. Considerate as/you/ already asked/niece/Lily/take care/dog/you/away.
3. I/not/think/Lisa/doing/good job.
4. Lisa/left alone/most time/no adequate food/water/resulting/her excessive barking.
5. I/almost everyone around/neighbourhood/annoyed.
6. Worse still/Lily/come/every other day/the little cutie/have to/confined to the house/ whole day.
7. This/cause/her/bark/more.
8. I/wondering/you/ask/Lily/come/look/Lisa/daily.
9. Or if/she/busy/study/my little son Johnson/take over/duty.
10. You/call me/when/come back/we/discuss/problem/further.
Best wishes,
Giovanni Bianchi

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Dear Sir or Madam,

I  am a regular customer of ‘Splash’ store. I am writing this letter to inform you that my recent
shopping experience was not satisfactory at all.

I purchased a shirt from your shop last week. At first, I didn’t see any defect on the shirt’s exterior
when I tried it in the store; but, when I reached home, I noticed brown stains on the interior of
the shirt after closer examination. Then, I went back to the shop to ask for a replacement or
refund; however, I was told by the assistant that the store has no such policy.

I would like to make a request for an exchange or a refund of the shirt since it was faulty before
my purchase. I am asking for an exception this one time only as I am a loyal customer of the
store.

In the meantime, please do let me know if you need any additional information.
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I look forward to hearing from you soon.
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