CC unit 7, complaints and adjustments (contd)

Replying to letters of complaintPoints to remember when replying to letters of complaint:  Complaints should be answered promptly.. Replying to letters of complaintPoints to remember w

Commercial Correspondence

Unit 7

Complaints and Adjustments (contd)

Replying to letters of complaint

Points to remember when replying to letters of

complaint:

 Complaints should be answered promptly.

 Emphasize solution rather than the error

 If unjustified, be firm but polite, and try not to

offend.

Replying to letters of complaint

Points to remember when replying to letters of

complaint:

 Explain how the matter will be put right or has been rectified.

 Never blame staff.

 Reassure the customer of future good service, to build loyalty.

Parts of a replying letter

Four to five parts:

1. Opening

2. Asking for time to investigate the complaint

3. Explaining the mistake/ Rejecting a

complaint

4. Solving the problem

Asking for time to investigate

the complaint

• While we cannot give you an explanation at

present, we are looking into the problem and will contact you again shortly.

• Would you please return samples of the items you are dissatisfied with, and I will send them

to our factory in Mumbai for tests.

Explaining the mistake and

telling what has been done

• The mistake was due to a fault in one of our

machines, which has now been corrected.

• There appears to have been some confusion in our addressing system, but this has been

sorted out.

• As we are sending out orders promptly, I think these delays may be occurring in transit I shall get in touch with the haulage contractors.

Solving the problem

Having acknowledged your responsibility, you

should put matters right ASAP, and tell your

customer that you are doing so.

• Replacements for the damaged goods have been sent by parcel post this morning It will not be

necessary for you to return the damaged goods; they may be destroyed.

Solving the problem

• Please would you return the whole consignment

to us, postage and packing forward, and we will ask the shipping company to come and inspect the damage so that they can arrange

compensation.

Rejecting an unjustified

complaint

Be firm but polite Deny responsibility but try to give explanation of the problem.

• We have closely compared the articles you

returned with our samples and can see no

difference between them Therefore, in this case

we are not willing either to substitute the articles

or to offer a credit.

• Finally, may we say that this was an exceptional mistake and is unlikely to occur again Please

accept our apologies for the inconvenience.

• We are sure that you will be satisfied with the

replacements and there will be no repetition of the faults Thank you for your patience in this matter, and look forward to hearing from you again.

Practice 2

1 Unfortunately we are unable to arrange for

delivery of the replacements within the period

of time you require We will therefore

reimburse (refund) you the money by T/T

2 We are very sorry to hear about the damage to

part of the consignment No PK1953 that we

sent you last month

3 You will find enclosed a list of the damaged and

missing articles, and these boxes will be put to one side until we receive your instructions

5 Because the goods were seriously damaged and cannot be sold (retailed) even at a discount, we would like to know whether you want us to

return them or hold them for inspection

Practice 3

High Technology Co Ltd

36 Ba Trieu Street, Hanoi, Vietnam Telephone and fax: 048-38269743

Practice 3

We are writing with reference to the consignment

of 500 air conditioners, model AL309, under the above order shipped on the SS White Lotus which arrived at Hai Phong port on 15 December 20 .

On examination, the consignment was found in a

representatives from Vinacontrol in Hai Phong to

Practice 3

• Out of (Of) the 500 air conditioners ordered, only

495 were delivered; 05 were missing.

• 03 of the delivered units were seriously damaged

in transit due to poor (substandard) packaging.

We enclose herewith the Survey Report and the

photos of the damaged goods and must ask you to send the missing units not later than 05 Mar 20 as

we urgently need them to complete delivery to a star hotel, 4 km to the South of Hanoi, which is due

5-to open by the end of March 20 .

Practice 3

We are holding the three damaged units at your

disposal You could either send someone to pick them

up or have them repaired and sell them off We

would also be grateful if you could reimburse us by T/T to our account at Vietcombank the compensation

of US$2,730.00 for these three units (US$ 910.00 per unit) with all the expenses to your account.

We look forward to your early satisfactory solution Yours sincerely

Practice 4

PHUONG NAM Co Ltd

36 Ba Trieu Street, Hanoi, Vietnam Telephone and fax: 048-38269743

Practice 4

We are writing with reference to the consignment

of electronic appliances under the above order

shipped on the MV Red Lotus On arrival at HP

port on 20 May 2010, it was found in a short and damaged condition

We asked representatives from Vinacontrol in HP

to make a survey report which shows:

Practice 3

• Out of 250 fridges ordered and also stated in

the packing list, only 235 were delivered, 15

were missing.

• 20 of the 150 boxes containing air-conditioners

were broken, and the air-conditioners were

damaged beyond repair.

• 200 ordered Sony colour TVs were missing/ not

delivered.

Practice 3

We enclose the Survey Report and must ask you

to send immediately the replacements for the

missing fridges and broken air-conditioners with all the expenses to your account, so that we can complete our sales to our local customers in time

If these goods do not arrive before 15 July 20

we will refuse (reserve the right to refuse) to take delivery of them and must ask you to pay a

penalty which is double the value of the goods.

Practice 3

We regret to inform you that we have to cancel the contract regarding the 200 colour TVs, which

we ordered for sales during the 1 May occasion

As it is now 29 May and they have not been

delivered we would like to lodge our claim for the liquidated damages which are 10% of the

contract value.

We look forward to your early satisfactory

solution.

Yours sincerely