COMPLAINT LETTER

How To Write Complaint Letter

1. Language Focus
a. To make complaint letter, do not use words like “disgusted”,
“infuriated”, “enraged”, “amazed”, and disapointed etc. You can express
dissatisfaction by using this sentences :
1) This is the third time this mistake has occurred and we are far from
satisfied with the service you offer ...
2) Unless you can fulfil our orders efficiently in the future, we will have
to consider other sources of supply ...
3) Please ensure this sort of problem does not arise again ...
b. Don’t be so rude ( kasar ). In most cases correspondence between firms
takes place between employees in various departments. There is nothing
to be gained by being rude to the individual. So do not use sentences like
:
1. You must correct your mistake as soon as possible ...
2. You made an error on the statement ...
3. You don’t understand the terms of discount. We told you to deduct
discount from net prices not c.i.f prices ...
c. Use passive and impersonal structures instead. Example :
1) The mistake must be corrected as soon as possible ...
2) There appears to be an error on the statement ...
3) There seems to be some misunderstanding regarding terms of
discount. Discount is deducted from net prices, not c.i.f prices ...
d. Do not use words like ‘fault’ or ‘blame’, these expressions are not only
rude, but childish likes “It’s not our fault. It’s probably the fault of your
despatch department’. So you can use this sentence “The mistake could
not have originated here, and must be connected with the despatch of the
goods”;
e. A complaint letter or email needs to be short and to the point;
f. Find the command elements of a written complaints and they need to
stick to the facts – what their complaint is, how this has come about, what
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 they have done about it, what response they got, what information they
can provide in support of their complaint, what they want to happen next.
We also attach essential documents, the consumers should always
enclose the photocopies of documents like agreements, hard copies of
email received, earlier complaint letters, receipts, warranty, etc. to make
appeal strong and with proof of how incompetence of the system. Keep
original copies of all your letter, faxes, e-mails, and related documents.
g. Do not delay and do not apologize. Complain as soon as you realize a
mistake has been made. Delay do not only weakens your case, but can
complicate the matter as the people you are dealing with might forget the
details. Complain it in time, this is especially essential for complaints
regarding products which are covered under a warranty period. It
becomes more essential, when you have purchased anything from the
internet as these have time limit within which they accept defective parts
or products.

2. Explaining The Problem

If you think you know how the mistake was made, you may politely point it
out to your supplier. Sometimes when a mistake occurs several times. You
may be able to work out why it’s happening more quickly than the firm you
are dealing with. Example :

a. Could you tell your despatch department to take special care when
addressing my consignment? My name is C.J Williams. 101 Monmouth
Street Swansea. But there is a C. Williams at 110 Monmouth Street who
also deals in electrical fittings...
b. Could you ask your accounts department to check my code carefully in
future? My account number is 246-642 and they have been sending me
statements coded 642-246...
c. I think the reason that wrong sizes have sent to me is because i am
ordering in metric sizes, and you are sending me sizes measured in feet
and inches. I would appreciate your looking into this...

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3. Body of Complaint Letter

Letters of complaint usually include the following stages:

a. Opening
You should identify what the issue is and any relevant information that
you believe is important. Be sure to include the following information if
it's applicable to the situation: the date/time of the issue, location, name
of person on duty, name of product, what the problem was, your account
number, model number, price, warranty information and reference
number. Be sure to stick with the facts and avoid putting emotions into
your letter. In the opening, you should :
1) Describe the situation or background by using these sentences,

I am writing to inform you that the goods we ordered from your

company have not been supplied correctly.
I attended your exhibition Sound Systems 2016 at the Fortune
Hotel (22-25 January) and found it informative and interesting.
Unfortunately, my enjoyment of the event was spoiled by a
number of organizational problems.
I am a shareholder of Sunshine Bank and I am very concerned
regarding recent newspaper reports on the financial situation of
the bank. Your company is listed as the auditor in the latest
annual report of the bank, so I am writing to you to ask for an
explanation of the following issues.
I am writing to inform you of my dissatisfaction with the food
and drinks at the 'European Restaurant' on 18 January this year.

2) Describe the problem, example:

On 10 June 2016 we placed an order with your firm for 12,000

ultra super long-life batteries. The consignment arrived
yesterday but contained only 1,200 batteries.

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 Firstly, I had difficulty in registering to attend the event. You set
up an on-line registration facility, but I found the facility totally
unworkable.
You sent us an invoice for $10,532, but did not deduct our usual
10% discount.
We have found 16 spelling errors and 2 mis-labelled diagrams in
the sample book.

3) Describe the effect of this error :

This error put our firm in a difficult position, as we had to make

some emergency purchases to fulfil our commitments to all our
customers. This caused us considerable inconvenience.
Even after spending several wasted hours trying to register in
this way, the computer would not accept my application.
I am therefore returning the invoice to you for correction.
This large number of errors is unacceptable to our customers,
and we are therefore unable to sell these books.

4) No need to open your letter by apologizing for the need to complaint

(“We regret to inform you ...”, “I am sorry to have to write to you
about ....”) because these are weakens your case.
b. Content
State what you would like to resolve the situation. If you received poor
service, you could request an apology or a coupon. If a product
malfunctioned, you could request that you could exchange the product
for a new one or request a refund.In Content you should :
1) Describe the Solution

If you think you know how the mistake can be corrected, let your
supplier know. Example :

If i send you a debit note for $18.00 and deduct it from my next
statement that should put the matter right...

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 The best solution would be for me to return the wrong articles
to you postage and packing forward rather than send a credit
note. You could send six replacements which would probably
be easier than adjusting current accounts...
I am writing to ask you to please make up the shortfall
immediately and to ensure that such errors do not happen again.
Could I please ask you to look into these matters.
Please send us a corrected invoice for $9,479
I enclose a copy of the book with the errors highlighted. Please
re-print the book and send it to us by next Friday.
2) Warning (optional)

Otherwise, we may have to look elsewhere for our supplies.

I'm afraid that if these conditions are not met, we may be
forced to take legal action.
If the outstanding fees are not paid by Tuesday, 28 June 2016,
you will incur a 10% late payment fee.

c. Closing
Thank the reader for the time. You can also throw in some compliments
about something you liked about their company's product or service.
These are examples for closing sentences:

I look forward to receiving your explanation of these matters.

I look forward to receiving your payment.
I look forward to hearing from you shortly.

4. EXAMPLES OF COMPLAINT LETTER

( complain about organized problem in event)

Dear Sir/Madam

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I attended your exhibition Sound Systems 2016 at the Fortune Hotel from 17
- 20 June and found it informative and interesting. Unfortunately, my
enjoyment of the event was spoiled by a number of organizational problems.
I explain each of the problems below.

Firstly, I had difficulty in registering to attend the event. You set up an on-
line registration facility, but I found the facility totally unworkable. Even
after spending several wasted hours trying to register in this way, the
computer would not accept my application. I eventually succeeded in
registering by faxing you.

Secondly, the exhibition was held at one of Hong Kong's most prestigious
hotels, but frankly the venue was better suited to a medium-sized business
conference than to a large exhibition open by registration to the public. The
lack of space led to serious overcrowding in the venue, particularly at peak
visiting times (i.e. lunch times and early evening). On one or two occasions I
was also seriously concerned about the physical safety of attendees.

The final point I want to make concerns product information. It is very

enjoyable to see and test a range of excellent sound systems, but it is also
important to be able to take away leaflets on interesting products, so that
more research can be done before deciding which system to buy. However,
by the time I attended the exhibition all the leaflets had been taken.

Could I please ask you to look into these matters - not only on my behalf but
also on behalf of other attendees, and in fact on behalf of your company, too.

I look forward to hearing from you.