Letters of complaint, adjustment and apology

Reasons you might write to complain about:

delays wrong shipments damaged goods missing parts defective merchandise billing errors late deliveries faulty equipment rude employees warranties

 The purpose of a letter of complaint is not to express anger, but to get results. It is important to avoid a hostile or demanding tone. Such a letter must be calm and polite, yet firm. Avoid words such as infuriated, enraged or disgusted.

A letter of complaint should include:

Specific details of the problem, such as the condition of the merchandise or the specific error made. Details such as product model and serial number, order and delivery dates, the order or invoice number, the account number, the method of shipment, and so on, should be offered. A course of action you would like the recipient to take to resolve the problem

Dear Sir or Madam:

I have just received the November statement of my charge account (NO. 059-3676). The statement lists a purchase of $83.95, including tax, which I am sure I did not make. This purchase was supposedly made in Department 08 on November 12, but because I was out of town the week of the tenth and no one else is authorized to use my account, I am sure the charge is in error. I have checked all other items on the statement against my sales receipts, and they all seem to be correct. I am therefore deducting the $83.95 from the balance on the statement and sending you a check for $155.75.

I would appreciate you looking into this matter so that my account may be cleared.
Sincerely yours,

Dear Name:
On March 1, we ordered and subsequently received one case of handsaws, model 88b. We paid for the order with our check no. 7293, a photocopy of which is enclosed. When we decided to order these saws instead of model 78b, it was at the urging of your sales representative, Harold Saunders. He assured us that the new saws were more durable and efficient than the old model. However, we have now had the saws on our selling floor for three weeks, and already six have been returned with broken teeth by extremely dissatisfied customers. We are therefore returning the entire order of 88b saws and would like to be refunded for their full purchase price plus shipping expenses. Yours truly,

(Complaint about a delivery)

Dear Name: We are sorry to inform you that your delivery of 28 fourdrawer chests (Model H95white finish) on February 19 has given us cause for serious complaint. They were delivered in substandard condition and cannot be fixed. We have been doing business with your company for the past four years and have always been satisfied until today. For that reason, please let us know as soon as possible what your company intends to do to rectify this situation.

Sincerely,

(Complaint about a wrong item shipped)

Dear Name: On June 14, I ordered an answering machine with a built-in telephone (Article No. 172AM-TE) from your Summer Sales Catalog. On opening the parcel, I found that it did not contain the ordered item. Instead it contained an entirely different machine. I am therefore returning the item for replacement.

Sincerely,

Dear Name:
I am writing for the third time to complain about the color photocopying machine you installed in our office only three months ago. This machine has not met our staffs high expectations. Contrary to the description in your sales and instruction booklets, the colors (at least of our color copier) are not real. In addition, your service representative who has examined this machine on various occasions has not been able to correct this continuing serious problem.

We expect you to deal with this problem without further delay. Sincerely,

Dear Jack
How are you? Im busy as usual. Ive just got back from London.

I was wondering if you could help me. I bought one of your TX308 phones and I have a problem with the power unit. The phone works well, but when I plugged the charger in last night, there was a strong burning smell, and smoke started to come from inside the charger. I enclose the charger so you can see.
Some of my colleagues told me that they think they saw a notice in the newspaper last week, asking customers to return their TX308 chargers because of a fault. Is that right? Could you get it checked for me and see if you can get it replaced? Many thanks! Hope youre ready for the holidays. I really need one!

Thanks again

Letters of adjustment and apology

a letter of adjustment should acknowledge the complaint, offer an apology, and explain what the company is doing about the complaint. Also point out that the fault or the error seldom occurs. If you believe that a complaint is unreasonable or unjustified, a polite but firm answer must be given. In the event that no justification exists for an error, a problem or an unpleasant situation, a straightforward admission of that fact often has a disarming effect upon the recipient of such a letter. A sincere letter of apology for bad behavior, an oversight, an error, a discourtesy, or a mistake plus the valuable words "I am sorry"often go a long way to smooth relations with a disgruntled customer.

(Reply and apology for a damaged desk)

Dear Name:

We are sorry to learn about the damage to the four-drawer desk that you purchased at our store in Philadelphia on September 26. Our delivery-person informed us that the damage probably occurred during the shipment from the furniture manufacturer to our warehouse in Wilmington, Delaware.
Meanwhile, we have ordered an exact replacement from the manufacturer and expect that delivery will take place within one month. As soon as the desk arrives, we will telephone you immediately and will arrange a convenient delivery time. We regret the inconvenience this has caused you.

Sincerely,

(Reply and apology for damaged CD-payer)

Dear Name: We are sorry your automobile radio-compact disk player arrived in a damaged condition. As described in your letter, the damage apparently happened during shipment. A replacement will be delivered to your home on Wednesday morning, April 17. Our driver, who delivers the replacement, is authorized to pick up the damaged radio CD player. We regret your inconvenience and thank you for your understanding and cooperation in this unfortunate matter. Sincerely,

(Reply and apology for a billing error)

Dear Name:

I have received your e-mail of April 9 and regret the error on your bimonthly invoice. When this invoice was made up, two items had been duplicated on invoice 778, with the result that your company was overcharged $1311.29. I have deducted this amount from your invoice and will mail you a new one for the correct amount of $11,430.88. Thank you for bringing our billing error to our attention. Again, I apologize for the inconvenience this has caused you. Sincerely,

(Reply and apology for defective coffee machine)

Dear Name:

Thank you for your fax of July 30. Of course, we are deeply concerned when one of our customers is not satisfied with one of our products. Our company takes great pride in trying to produce only top products. Unfortunately, we sometimes fail.
If you return the defective cappuccino coffee machine to the dealer who sold it to you, he will replace it with a new one. However, if you prefer, we are also willing to refund the purchase price to you. We are sorry to have inconvenienced you and offer our apologies. Sincerely,

Dear Name:
Thank you for your e-mail of June 17 pointing out the error in our invoice No.A-531 dated January 9. We would like to apologize for this billing error and we are sorry for any inconvenience that our error has caused you. We try our best, but occasionally errors do slip by our accounting department. Therefore, we have cancelled the old invoice and now enclose a revised invoice for the correct amount.

We would like to thank you once again for bringing this matter to our attention. Sincerely,

Dear Tom
I am sorry that youve had problems with your TX 308 charger. Your colleagues are correct- some of the chargers have a small problem in them which can cause them to overheat. This is probably what has happened to your charger. Ive arranged to send you a new one immediately.

Unfortunately, I wont be going on holiday soon. Ive only just come back! Hope you have a good time wherever youre going.
Best wishes Jack

Dear Sir or Madam

I am writing about the poor quality of your mobile phones.

Last week, I purchased a model TX308. among the many features of the telephone, the sales assistant said that the body of the phone would survive a fall to the ground. Yesterday, however, I placed the telephone on the roof of my car. I drove away, then in the mirror, I saw the telephone fly off the roof and fall to the ground. I stopped to pick it up but found it in pieces. The screen is smashed, and the battery has broken in half. I enclose the telephone.
I would therefore like to request that you refund my money for this telephone, or give a suitable replacement. Yours faithfully

Dear Name
Thank you for your recent letter about your TX308 mobile phone.

I am sorry to hear you were disappointed with the telephone. Unfortunately, we cannot give you a refund because, although the TX308 can survive a fall, this does not cover falling off a car roof at high speed. If you look in the guarantee you will see that we refer to a fall of no more than a metre.
I am sending your telephone back to you now. If you take it to a local mobile-phone shop, they may be able to give you some credit for the telephone, if they are able to use some of the parts. With apologies

Yours sincerely