ANGLICKY S EKONOMEM
BUSINESS LETTERS
UNIT 13
In this, the second series of business letters we will look at the language used in letters of complaint and how to reply to such letters.
LETTERS OF COMPLAINT
In writing a letter of complaint there are two major things to remember.
Firstly do not take a long time to write the letter. If you are sure you have a genuine reason to complain then write the letter immediately. A quick letter of complaint will help the person dealing with the problem to find the appropriate documents and therefore answer your letter. Also do not apologize for complaining as this will weaken your argument.
The second point is to be polite. Remember you are probably writing a letter to an individual in a department who did not personally make the mistake and if you antagonize them by being rude or impolite you will only make the problem harder to solve.
The company which made the mistake is in business to serve their customers and will probably want to correct the mistake as quickly as possible. So be polite but firm.
Opening a letter of complaint
We wouki tike to inform you...
I cm-writing to camplMn abmt...
lam writing with with reference to order Na6453/F .'.whichwe^received' yesterdayi - ?'..*?■■..?
There appears id be an error in the latest invoice you sent us.
If a mistake is being repeated or is particularly annoying you may want to express dissatisfaction. This is quite acceptable but again be polite.
Expressing Dissatisfaction
The next part of letter should explain the problem. Explaining the problem
There appears to be an error in the invoice.
There seems to be some misunderstanding concerning terms of payment.
Deliveries hayebeen-arriving, on average, four days behind schedule.
If you have realized why the problem is happening it will help the supplier if you tell them about it and offer a solution. By offering a solution you may help the supplier to correct the mistake as quickly as possible.
i
Suggesting a Solution
The best solution would beforme to.., 1 think the probi^m is with your aecmnts procedure. If you,,, f thihtrwe eon overcome this mistake by., Asmplesolutioti/wouldbe...-. •
REPLYING TO LETTERS OF COMPLAINT
The most important point to remember when replying to letters of complaint is that your customer is annoyed and the quicker you solve the problem the more likely it is that they will continue to use your company. So do not delay in answering letters of complaint.
The second point is that you must be very polite. It is necessary to acknowledge, the letter promptly and to thank the customer for informing you of the problem.
Opening a letter of reply
informing
Weare mpiying-tayour letter fjf lfrSgptember^ m which you told us...
Sometimes a letter of complaint will need time to be investigated. But remember that you need to keep your customer happy. So if you need time to investigate tell your customer what you are doing.
Giving yourself time to investigate a complaint
Unfortunately we can not giveyowanitmnediate answer to your letter, but we are investigating thejUuation and will reply to you shortly.
We heed to send thefoodsfor fest$ tp our factory in Btivariajattdas soon-as theie^hqv&btmcpmpleted j&WH inform you $JfomM&-y, ■
A$ this i's the. first time we have had such a problem we need to thorottghly investigate the situfuion, ;
but we wiU repfyto your letter .....
>•> as soon as possible...
If a complaint is justified you should explain the mistake to the customer and also inform them of how you intend to solve the problem. This will give the customer the confidence to continue dealing with you and will make them feel that they are a valued client.
This Utheiecpn)i^^^0stake.has occurred and we are far from nap0tyi0ih&service you offer.
This problem has occurred twice now. Please ensure that it does not happen again.
- These mistakes are causing us serious problems and if - you-can not fulfill our order efficiently we will have to consider other sources of supply.
WedreveryaVs<0ainJed.JK'^ ofthetait ••; tm:<^nsignments.
EKONOM 13/1994 □ 63
ANGLICKY S EKONOMEM
Explaining the mistake
The mistake was due to ... The reasons for the mistake were v The problem arose because ... The error was due to . . .
Solving the problem
The goods have been withdrawn and we will replace the material sent to you.
We are taking these models out of production and calling in all those that have already been supplied.
The computer has been reprogrammed and there should be no further problems.
We have checked and found the error in our accounting procedures and we do not anticipate any further problems.
EXPLAIN LETTER OF REPLY
When you close a letter of reply you should state that the mistake was an exception and you should, of course, apologize to the customer.
Closing a letter of reply
In closing we would like to apologize for this error and also point out that this error will not occur again.
Finally, may we confirm that this mistake was exceptional and should not occur again. Please accept om apologia for the inconvenience caused.
We are pleased to be able to inform you that this fault will not be repeated and we would like to thank you for your patience. We look forward to hearing from you again.
This problem has now been rectified and will not happen again. Thank you for pointing out the problem and we look forward to your next order.
Of course not all complaint are justified and if, after careful and thorough investigation, you decide that a complaint is not justified you should be firm but polite in rejecting it. If you reject the complaint make sure you give a clear explanation of why you think the complaint was not justified. Remember you want the customer to continue doing business with you.
EXAMPLE LETTER OF COMPLAINT
Yoto Importers Canary Wharf Isle of Dogs London E14 71R
Barrack Toys East End Road London E4 5QT
10/9/93
Dear Sir/Madam
I am writing to complain about order No. 356/Y.
We had ordered one hundred Gameboy machines but on
unpacking the order we found only fifty sets.
This is the second time such a mistake has occurred and the
delay involved in sending us the extra units is causing us
serious problems.
I am not sure how these mistakes are occurring but I think we can overcome the problem by double checking the ordered amount each time.
I look forward to a speedy reply to this problem.
Yours Faithfully
Ron T. Brown Managing Director
Yolo Importers Canary Wharf Isle of Dogs London E14 7IR
12/9/93
Barrack Toys East End Road London FA 5QT
Dear Mr. Brown i Thank you for your letter of the 10th September informing us of the discrepancy in order No. 356/Y.
The mistake was due to an error in the despatch department which we have now solved.
I have instructed our despatch department to send you the missing items immediately.
I agree with your proposed solution to this problem and I am enclosing our new fax number which should make ordering from us more convenient and reliable.
In closing I would like to apologize for this error and also point out that it will not occur again. We look forward to your next order.
Yours sincerely
Ms. P. Wagner Sales Manageress
SLOVNÍK:
polite rude
consignment
behind schedule
thoroughly
to justify something
to rectify a mistake
zdvořilý hrubý, drzý faktura zásilka zboíl po tennínu důkladně, naprosto ospravedlňovat něco napravit chybu
By Jon Glendining &
Tomáš Hadrbolec 3D Language Services
Tel.: 684 62 54
64 □ EKONOM 13/1994