Gladys Hung
Spring 2013

Letter of complaint – example
(p. 64)
I am writing in reference to the delivery of
MP3 player, order #J396, which was received today.
Unfortunately, you sent us the wrong quantity. You sent us 20 K60 MP3 players, but we ordered 30. I have attached a copy of the order form for your reference.
I would be grateful if you would send ten more players as soon as possible.

 Wrong goods received
 Poor service
 Unsatisfactory quality of goods
 Late delivery
 Non-delivery
 Damaged goods
 Prices not as agreed

What should you say in a letter of complaint?
 Refer to order / product / issue.
 State reason for complaint.
 Suggest possible causes of the problem.
 State action(s) you require the other company to take.

 Do not delay your complaint.
 as this will weaken your position and the supplier may have difficulty in investigating the cause.

 Do not assume that the supplier is automatically to blame.
 They may have a perfectly good defense.

 Confine your complaint to a statement of the facts.
 Followed by either an enquiry as to what the supplier proposes to do about it, or a suggestion of how the matter can be rectified.

 Avoid rudeness.
 This would create ill-feeling and cause the supplier to be unwilling to resolve matters.

Refer to order / product / issue.
(p. 65) a.
I ’ m writing to complain about your latest shipment.
b.
I ’ m writing about a problem with the installation of computer network software.
c.
I ’ m writing in reference to order
#XJ4311.
d.
I ’ m writing to complain about the redecoration of our corporate headquarters.

Refer to order / product / issue with more details (p. 66) a.
I ’ m writing to complain about your latest shipment, which was delivered this morning.
b.
I ’ m writing about a problem with the installation of computer network software, which was completed last week.
c.
I ’ m writing in reference to order #XJ4311, which arrived on Friday.
d.
I ’ m writing to complain about the redecoration of our corporate headquarters, which was finished yesterday.

 No apologizing tone
 No emotional terms
 No rude or personal comments
 Don ’ t use the words like fault or blame .

No emotional terms
 We are very amazed that you made the same mistake for three times.
 This is the third time this mistake has occurred and we are far from satisfied with the service you offer.

No emotional terms
 Your service makes us feel disgusted.
 Unless you can fulfill our orders efficiently in the future, we will have to consider changing to another supplier.

No emotional terms
 We are very infuriated about the problem you caused us.
 Please ensure that this sort of problem does not arise again.

No rude or personal comments
 You must correct your mistake as soon as possible.
 The mistake must be corrected as soon as possible.

No rude or personal comments
 You made an error on the statement.
 There appears to be an error on the statement.

No rude or personal comments
 You don ’ t understand the terms of discount. We told you to deduct discount from net prices, not CIF prices.
 There seems to be some misunderstanding regarding terms of discount. Discount is deducted from net prices, not CIF prices.

Don ’ t use the words like fault or blame .
 It is not our fault. It is probably the fault of your dispatch department.
 The mistake could not have originated here, and must be connected with the dispatch of the goods.

Exercise - correcting the following sentence.
1.
It ’ s not our fault.
a.
Maybe it ’ s not our fault.
b.
There appears to be some error … ..
2.
Your product is rubbish.
a.
It seems your product is no good.
b.
Your product is not as good as I have thought of.
c.
Your product is not satisfactory.

Exercise - correcting the following sentence.
1.
You made an error on your price list.
 There appears an error on your price list.

Exercise - correcting the following sentence.
1.
It ’ s incredible that you forgot to cover instructions with the consignment.
a.
You forgot to cover instructions with the consignment.
b.
There are no instructions with the consignment.

a.
We regret to inform you that the shipment arrived late. The promised delivery date was January 22, but it arrived February 6. We enclose a copy of the order.
b.
Unfortunately, you sent us the wrong model. We ordered TS400, but we received TS300. I am attaching a photocopy of the shipping order.

 I ’ m sorry to say that the work was unsatisfactory. The plastic casings was scratched in several places.
Please find enclosed photographs of work.

 Unless we receive the order within the next week, we will cancel the order.
 If we do not receive the order within the next week, we will cancel the order.

Complete each unfinished sentence.
1.
If we don ’ t hear from you, we ’ ll assume there are no problems.
 Unless we hear from you, we ’ ll … ..
2.
We cannot accept your order without a letter of credit.
 Unless you send us a L/C, we cannot accept your order.

Complete each unfinished sentence.
3.
We can ’ t give you a fifteen percent discount because your order isn ’ t large enough.
 If your order is large enough, we will give you a fifteen percent discount.
4.
On receipt of your order, we ’ ll dispatch the goods immediately.
 As soon as we receive your order, we ’ ll … .

Complete the following sentences
1.
Unless the consignment (arrive) by the end of next week …
2.
Unless the items (be/wrap) with extreme care … .
3.
If the colours we specified (be) not in stock …
4.
If this transaction (be) successful..
5.
We (be) able to give you a discount if …

Sentences with grammatical errors
-1
 Unless the consignment arrives by the end of next week, we can ’ t deliver the goods.
 Unless the items are wrapped with extreme care, we ’ ll place it elsewhere.
 Unless the items are wrapped with extreme care, we will return the products.

Sentences with grammatical errors
-2
 If the colours we specified are not in stock, please send the alternatives.
 If the colours we specified are not in stock, we want another colours with same goods.
 If this transaction is successful, we can dispatch the goods immediately.
 We will be able to give you a discount if your goods are perfect.

Sentences with grammatical errors
-3
 We will be able to give you a discount if we order goods large enough.
 If this transaction is successful, we will have 5% discount.

 Unless the items are wrapped with extreme care, we will place the large order.

 Ask for a refund
 Ask for a replacement
 Claim for a compensation
 Ask for apology
 Ask them to give guarantee
 Ask for a reasonable explanation
 Ask them to correct their mistake

a.
Items b.
Ensure c.
Replacement d.
Inspect

 Is customer always right?
 Acknowledge a complaint promptly.
 If the complaint is unreasonable, point this out politely and in a way that will not offend.
 If you are to blame, admit it readily, express regret and promise to put matters right.

 Never blame any of your staff; in the end you are responsible for their actions.
 Thank the customer for informing you about the matters.

 Thank your customer for writing to you
 Refer to the problem and apologize
 Give an explanation for the problem, if possible
 Explain how you are going to help the customer
 Write a polite conclusion

Dear Mr. Watanabe
Thank you for your letter dated October
26 concerning your recent order. We are sorry to hear that you received the wrong order. Apparently, this was caused by a processing error. We will send you the correct items free of delivery charge.
Once again, please accept our apologies for the inconvenience, and we look forward to serving you again in the future.