How to Complain - The Essential Consumer Guide to Getting Refunds, Redress and Results!

4 ENSURING YOUR COMPLAINTS ARE EFFECTIVE

Follow these guidelines and you’ll never be palmed off again with excuses, contravention of laws and no refunds. Feel empowered and get complaining effectively.

Act quickly

Don’t waste weeks moaning, complain that day but remember to ensure you are calm if complaining in person or on the ‘phone! So, although I say act quickly, don’t act immediately if you are still really annoyed with someone, or something, that has happened and the company is at fault. Wait to write or ‘phone until you are calmer but don’t leave it so long you forget the facts.

What do you want?

Before you make contact, work out what you are entitled to and what you want. These may be two different things too! Say what you expect as recompense. Is it an apology, a refund, something for inconvenience or compensation? Be reasonable but assertive. Be prepared to come to an agreement. Generally speaking if you accept an offer of compensation it will mean that you cannot ask for more later on.

Telephoning

Use the telephone if you are comfortable doing this. Some people prefer this, finding it easier. But I rarely ring and always refuse if a ‘phone call is offered. This is because I get heated (raise your voice and you’ve lost!), there is no record for future use, no proof of what was said and you’ll forget something. Emails/letters provide time to reflect, ensure you don’t forget anything and provide you with a record of correspondence which cannot be denied. If you do ‘phone ensure that you get the full name of the person with whom you are talking, making a note of date, time and details of the conversation during the call. Always follow up in writing unless the ‘phone call resolves the problem. Get the name of the person to whom you should address the complaint to reduce the likelihood of your letter being passed around.

Validity

Ensure your grievance is valid. Don’t waste your time sending pointless correspondence with little weight - it won’t get you anywhere. They need to know that you are serious. You don’t want to be seen as an Extreme, Serial or Opportunist Complainer.

Company procedures

Be mindful of company procedures regarding complaints such as insurance claims, to ensure that you remain entitled to compensation. Certain companies such as suppliers of energy have their own procedures and you must follow these or risk delays in dealing with your complaint. Following two stages of internal complaint procedures for example before writing to the ombudsman. The ombudsman is likely to see in the company’s favour if you have not followed procedure for correctly notifying it of your issues.

Initial complaint

Try to sort things out through Customer Services/the Manager first. If you are still not happy, then go to the CEO. You have more reason to go to the top if you have a complaint which has already been poorly dealt with than if you go straight there. Look up www.ceoemail.com for contact details for CEOs.

Correspondence

The easiest way to complain is by email and you can select “send a delivery receipt”. However, if you write a letter, particularly if you need to post evidence which can’t be emailed, ensure that you send the letter recorded delivery.

Good English

Use good English! PLEASE! Poor grammar and spelling show you in as poor a light as the company to which you are complaining. You also won’t be taken seriously and anything you have to say will be taken with a pinch of salt if you can’t get your own house in order! The complaint handler may also make judgments about you if you can’t write well and then you are unlikely to be able to take the matter further, to court for example. Ask for help from friends or family if necessary to help compose a letter.

Be formal. Use “Yours sincerely” when you know the person’s name and “Yours faithfully” when Dear Sir or Madam. No “love from”s - I’ve seen it!

Be polite

Remember that the people you are dealing with are usually not the people who have annoyed you and they are more likely to respond positively if you are polite. I am tempted to be sarcastic in nearly every letter I send but rarely does the complaint warrant it. Only use it after careful consideration and if it adds some humour. Never ever swear! Be rude and they can understandably refuse to deal with you. When the ‘phone goes dead and you think the call centre person has hung up on you they probably have if you were shouting at them. If you ask for the recording of the call to be listened to by a senior member of staff and expect the call centre member of staff to be reprimanded think again. (Unless of course you weren’t rude and they were in the wrong!)

Be objective

Don’t accuse and insult with phrases such as “…she was stupid,” use words and phrases like “…it appeared to me that…” Do however state facts. Don’t make personal remarks about staff, they serve only to distract attention from the actual complaint.

Describe events

Bullet points are useful and make it very clear, especially when dates are involved. The easier you make it for the reader the easier it will be for them to resolve the matter for you. Be succinct.

If the complaint is long, summarise the points (e.g. 10 phone calls, 2 visits, 2 letters, wrong information etc.) Stick to the facts.

Deadline

Set a deadline for when you expect to hear back and let them know what you will be doing if you don’t receive a satisfactory response. For letters/emails I believe 7 working days to be adequate. A longer deadline is needed sometimes. For instance if you are seeking repairs to your house. Keep to those deadlines yourself in any follow up. Be aware of deadlines in some companies’ complaints procedures.

Legal rights

Exercise your legal rights and use the relevant laws and legal jargon wherever possible. Showing that you know and use your legal rights appropriately means that you will always be taken seriously. Make sure you use the correct years and phrases. All the ones you may need are in this book. Quote them.

Reference numbers

Use reference numbers where appropriate. Make it easy for them to find your case by quoting booking references for example.

Evidence

Collect all the evidence you might need, such as invoices, receipts, adverts, witness statements etc. Keep copies of everything; you may need them if you have to take the matter further (Senior Management, Small Claims Court etc.)

Send copies where appropriate. For example, if a faulty washing machine has destroyed some clothes, send pictures of the clothes. As well as the refund on the washing machine you are entitled to compensation for the clothes.

Always try and obtain the name(s) of anyone you are complaining about, who gave you advice, wrote to you etc. and use these names in any correspondence.

Loyalty

Point out what a good customer you are and how, for example, you have always found the company to be really good in the past. This shows that you are a frequent customer so they are less likely to risk losing you.

Amounts

Some people advise suggesting a suitable amount for compensation/redress if you feel confident in doing this - and can back up your reasoning. However, I personally hate doing this because I always feel that I’ll go in for the wrong amount. Usually a company offers more than I think and if a company offers much less than I think the complaint warrants then I will respond with my reasoning. A safer option I feel.

Don’t apologise

Never ever apologise for complaining! If your complaint is valid then you are owed something and the company should thank you for bringing it to their attention so that they can improve service for all customers.

Taking things further

Inform them that if you are not happy you will take the matter further using the relevant people and organisations e.g. Financial Ombudsman, Trading Standards, Small Claims Court, the company’s own complaints procedure, the media, review sites - even The Complaining Cow’s Blog! You really only want to threaten if you are sure that it will have the desired effect and you are prepared to spend the time and effort taking it further (Small Claims Court for example).

If in your first correspondence to customer services you have indicated that you will take the matter further and you do remain dissatisfied, be persistent and go back and complain again, explaining why you remain unhappy. Go to the CEO explaining why and that you trust s/he will agree and resolve the matter speedily. If they don’t, carry out the threat to go to the ombudsman, Small Claims Court etc. and don’t be afraid of doing so.

Negotiating

When negotiating amounts write “Without Prejudice” on your correspondence, this means that they cannot be used in court. Ensure that you don’t put this on your other correspondence. Whilst you have legal rights, you also have a legal obligation to keep your claim reasonable.

Agreements

Ensure...