Complaint Letter

Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro - UFTMLíngua Inglesa VICamila BelmonteLívia Zocca

What is it?

•A letter written by a consumer to a manufacturer or retailer regarding a problem with a product or service. This type of letter is written usually with the expectation that corrective action will be taken and is used when other attempts (ie. phone contacts, e-mail, etc) have failed to rectify the situation.

Warm-up

Have you ever complaint about anything? Did you have your problem solved? What

did you do?

Which kind of product or service do you think it is worth complaining about?

8 Tips for Writing Complaint Letters

• Before writing the letter, make sure that you have the facts straight and that your complaint is legitimate.

• Type your letter if possible. Use a spellchecker, or have someone proofread your letter. If it is handwritten, make sure it is neat and easy to read.

• Generally keep your letter short and concise. Write short paragraphs, and almost always keep your letter to one page. However, do include all important facts. Include important dates or places (for example, when and where you bought the product or received the service), and include any additional relevant information you can (such as the product number or type of service).

• While writing your letter, remain diplomatic and courteous at all times. No matter how justified your complaint may be, do not allow your letter to become angry, sarcastic, or threatening. Keep in mind that the person that reads your letter will often not be the person responsible for the problem.

•

•Try to put yourself in the other person's place, and write your letter accordingly.

• Include copies of any documentation relating to your complaint. Do not send original documents.

•Keep a copy of the complaint letter for your records.• If your complaint letter does not bring about the

results that you hoped for, consider writing another letter with a firmer tone, or try writing to someone higher up in the chain of command.

• 45 Milton Street,• Cambridge.

• 25 October, 2002• Fitness Prducts Ltd,• St Helier,• Jersey JE6 9NJ• Dear Sir/ Madam,• I am writing to you about a Tour de France exercise bike (serial number 39879) which I

bought from Mogul Megastores on 29th September for $499.99. I enclose copies of the guarantee and receipt.

• In your advertising you claim that, by using the exercise bike for ten minutes a day, you would lose at least two kilos a week. I have been using the bike for a month now and it is as though I have done no exercise at all. In fact, the more I use the bike, the more weight I seem to put on, despite following the instruction manual carefully.

• Even worse than that, the bike is extremely badly made. The speedometer stopped working after a week and the machine that measures heartbeats must also have broken since it gave readings of over two hundreds beats per minute when I was cycling at full speed. I was so worried that I went to the doctor, who told me not to worry as my heartbeat was perfectly normal. However, the final straw came when the pedals broke just as I was cycling at full speed. As well as falling off the bike and nearly breaking my arm, I pulled a muscle in my thigh, which has caused me considerable pain and meant that I have had to take three days off work.

• When I took the exercise bike back to Mogul Megastores, not only did the manager refuse to refund my money, but said that he wouldn not repair the bike either. He was also extremely rude and treated me as if I was stupid to have bought the bike in the first place.

• I would like you to refund my money as soon as possible and I suggest that you pay compensation for the injuries I have received. Unless I receive a satisfactory reply within the next three weeks, I will have to take further action. I have already been in contact with my local consumer protection office in order to ask for advice and they have recommended me to take legal action, if I do not get full satisfaction.

• I look forward to hearing from you.• Yours faithfully,• Jeffreys• A . N. Jeffreys (Mr)

How to write it?• Greeting: Dear Mr Scott, (if you know the person's name) // Dear Sir/ Madam, (if you don't know

the person's name) • Introduction: give your reason for writing and specific information about the product or service,

including where and when you bought it. • Reasons for the complaint: write one or two paragraphs saying why the product was misleading

and what went wrong with it. • Reactions to your complaint: say what happened when you took the product back or

complained for the first time.

• Your demands: say clearly what you want the company to do. State further action that you will take if your demands are not met.

• Formal ending: the most formal ending for a formal letter is 'I look forward to hearing from you.‘ • Signing off: Yours sincerely, (if your letter starts with Dear Mr... or Dear Ms...) // Yours

faithfully, (if your letter starts with Dear Sir/ Madam) Sign your name and print it clearly.

• 45 Milton Street,• Cambridge.

• 25 October, 2002• Fitness Prducts Ltd,• St Helier,• Jersey JE6 9NJ• Dear Sir/ Madam,• I am writing to you about a Tour de France exercise bike (serial number 39879) which I

bought from Mogul Megastores on 29th September for $499.99. I enclose copies of the guarantee and receipt.

• In your advertising you claim that, by using the exercise bike for ten minutes a day, you would lose at least two kilos a week. I have been using the bike for a month now and it is as though I have done no exercise at all. In fact, the more I use the bike, the more weight I seem to put on, despite following the instruction manual carefully.

• Even worse than that, the bike is extremely badly made. The speedometer stopped working after a week and the machine that measures heartbeats must also have broken since it gave readings of over two hundreds beats per minute when I was cycling at full speed. I was so worried that I went to the doctor, who told me not to worry as my heartbeat was perfectly normal. However, the final straw came when the pedals broke just as I was cycling at full speed. As well as falling off the bike and nearly breaking my arm, I pulled a muscle in my thigh, which has caused me considerable pain and meant that I have had to take three days off work.

• When I took the exercise bike back to Mogul Megastores, not only did the manager refuse to refund my money, but said that he wouldn not repair the bike either. He was also extremely rude and treated me as if I was stupid to have bought the bike in the first place.

• I would like you to refund my money as soon as possible and I suggest that you pay compensation for the injuries I have received. Unless I receive a satisfactory reply within the next three weeks, I will have to take further action. I have already been in contact with my local consumer protection office in order to ask for advice and they have recommended me to take legal action, if I do not get full satisfaction.

• I look forward to hearing from you.• Yours faithfully,• Jeffreys• A . N. Jeffreys (Mr)

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References:•HARRIS, M.; MOWER, D.;

SIKORZYNSKA. Opportunities Upper Intermediate. Pearson Education, 2004

•http://elc.polyu.edu.hk/cill/eiw/complaint_letter_constructor.htm

•http://www.writeexpress.com/complaint.htm

•http://www.howtocomplain.com/info/cl-template.shtml

•  http://www.writinghelp-central.com/complaint-letter-samples.html