Complaint Letter Successes

A question about : Complaint Letter Successes

Hi all MSE'rs

Wanted to start a post where peeps could share their experiences of writing complaint letters & whether they got any result (and more importantly any free stuff!)

Am a bit of a one for writing letters myself but have had mixed results. It seems some companies are only to keen to dosh out freebies whilst others, even when you have a really serious geniune complaint are downright mean.

Doesn't have to be complaint letters either, many companies give away free samples if you write and ask, particularly if you say something nice about them!

Looking forward to reading your stories....

Best answers:

• Arriva...I remember missing a concert a few years ago to a ridulously late bus. They sent me free ride coupons.
• I bought a can of Dettol disinfectnant spray and the nozzle snapped off. I rang the helpline and was given enough coupons to buy another one.
  I also emailed KitKat once as I had a stick of KitKat in with no wafer in. I got a cheque for £3
• Have had success with complaining about swizzler & matlow sweets multipacks which previously contained (crappy) sweets not referred to on the outside of the packaging - they sent me loads of sweets and a complete apology (and have now changed packaging to show pictures of the crappy sweets)
  Also once had some deformed mars bars choc ices and sent back packaging explaining they must have melted before we bought them and got back Ј10 worth of mars confectionary vouchers.
  My flatmate wrote to rimmel about a packaging project she was doing at uni and asked for some packaging 'blanks' but they sent her loads of free make-up
  GNER are rubbish though.
  Recently had a job interview in London which I travelled down with GNER .
  My train was delayed by some 5hrs, as a train in front broke down and blocked the track. Was stuck on the train, with no food or drink the whole time as we couldn't even get to a station. Was offered one free cup of tea and couldn't even buy any food as the train hadn't been stocked up yet and had sold out of the supplies it did have.
  {Did get to my interview in a competely rushed and dehydrated/starving state, fortunately company were very understanding but had to cut interview short as then had to rush back to get my train home to newcastle (was in london for less than an hour!)}
  Wrote to GNER and sent back tickets along with official form. Despite explaining about the above trauma and noting that whilst can understand that these things do happen don't think they really did all they could do sort out the situation quickly and certinaly should have provided food & drink, I requested a full refund + compensation.
  Was absolutely seething when got back bog standard letter and rail vouchers for 50% of the value of my ticket - apparently that is company policy.
• i found i large sharp peice of shell in a prawn sandwich bought in marks and spencers and i bleed from the cut it made in my tongue. i sent them a letter with the shell, packaging code and reciept and was sent i letter saying they were sorry for what happen they were taking the matter seriously and gave me 15 pounds m&s vouchers.
  I was really poorly after a meal at tgi fridays i e mailed them and they phoned me took all the details and looked into the matter fully and decided it wasn't there fault and i got nothing but i'm certain i was poorly from there food and refuse to eat there again.
• I have written to KP on a few occasions. I seems to always find irregular packets of crisps e.g. holes in the bottom of the crisp packets so thay tasted soft, cut in the wrong place so half a pack, etc. Last time this happened, they sent me £4 in vouchers. A few years ago, I found some tiny bits of bone in Bernard Matthews Turkey Ham, told them it made me feel sick, really disappointed etc. and got a letter of apology + a £10 cheque. But I have steered well clear of BM ever since My sister once found a mini bottle of perfume in a tin of Quality Street once but can't remember what she got.
• I emailed about Lillets that I had trouble getting open (the cellophane wouldn't come off) and they sent me £6 in vouchers
• I've had quite a few, I'm a complainer! (Don't like having to pay money for rubbish service).
  I complained to Pizza Hut because we were waiting for almost 40 minutes for a starter or a drink, and when we said we had to leave (to catch cinema screening) they were really rude! Got sent a Ј20 voucher we used on a much nicer buffet in a different restaurant.
  Another time my OH was refused coffee in McDonalds because the 'coffee machine wasn't working' and was then overcharged on his cola - only for the person next to him to be handed a coffee! We both got a free coffee and muffin
  Also Nando's. The food was expensive, disgusting and cold and the staff were atrociously rude. Complained and got another meal free a week later, where we had to have exactly the same thing, which again was cold, with a BONE in my chicken burger and the staff were even ruder than before. We didn't complain again as we didn't want another meal there and we've never been back since!
  Finally when I was much younger my mum bought me a maltesers easter egg, when I opened it there were no maltesers in it - I wrote my very first complaint letter and got Ј5 in Mars (all products) vouchers, was overjoyed!
  You should always complain when you've had a bad experience otherwise it will continue and others will be ripped off too.
• Has some success with washing powders, arial, bold and comfort. All for genuine problems, getting 3-7 pound in vouchers for each complaint. Got a cheque from ginsters for finding bone in a pasty
• My Dad is the one for writing complaint letters! The most memorable was when he wrote to Marks and Spensers about a packet of dry roasted peanuts. He clearly stated that there was nothing wrong with either the nuts or packaging, just that he thought they were the worst he had ever tasted. They apologised anyway and sent him a Ј10 voucher!!
• I have complained bout a few things...
  Sainsburys I complained that I was waiting 30 minutes in the queue and then sent me 20 quid gift voucher.
  Innocent Smoothies, had a smoothie that tasted fizzy as if it was off, and I got a case of mini smoothies.
  Twinings Tea sent two boxes of tea bags after all the tea bags in one of my boxes was split.
  If you find something wrong, its always good to write to them, because it gives them feedback, and you get compensated. My mum always told me never to settle for second best!
• I bought a pack of chapatis from ASDA yesterday. I went to open them this morning to make my daughters' lunches for school (they have them as wraps cos they're not as big as tortillas) and they were ALL stuck together. They just ripped when I tried to seperate them.
  What should I do? Take them back to the shop, email them or somethng else???
• As there are so many complainers here . has anyone got a good template letter to use for complaing?
  i got to write to mcdonalds as the last 3 times my order is wrong as i dont always check while im there ..you do try to trust them . so i go home . problem is its a 2 mile drive each way . and not funny when you got a hungrey family
  any tips please
• I Complained to Kimberley Clarke about Andrex Toilet roll... There were no perforations in one roll, and got about £7 in vouchers back.
  Also complained about Huggies Nappies and got about £10 back in vouchers.
  Wrote a Complimentary letter to OzKleen about their Bath Power cleaner and got Two Large Bottles of two other products and about 30 leaflets with money off vouchers in the post the next day!
• I caught my finger in a petrol pump the other day - to me it was dangerous, i handnt even gripped on it properly, do you think it's worth writing a letter, i know its not faulty goods, but it bloody hurt, to the point where i cried the whole way home (sad i no)!!
• I've had several vouchers from Tesco customer services over the last few years for the following
  Last bag of crisps sealed into the multi-pack outer - happened several times
  Only 29 roses instead of advertised 30.
  Pull cans that wouldn't open.
  Huggies have sent vouchers when the velcro pull tabs have just pulled off.
  ~And just remembered that we got a free night at Premier Travel Inns when we got appalling service in the restaurant. (They managed to get something wrong at evening meal, breakfast, morning coffee and lunch. At breakfast, they ran out of milk and still brought the pot of tea!!!)
• Procter and Gamble - got Ј5 worth of vouchers for Always products when I complained that some I bought hadn't been 'finished' properly.
  Muller - Got Ј10 vouchers when I complained that a mullerlite tasted odd
  Simmers - got a hamper selection when i complained about a hair baked into a biscuit
  Royal Mail - I have had more books of first class books than i can remember for complaining about my terrible postal service
• i am a bit of a complainer myself and in these days of emails its even easier.. my latest successes are :-
  a free night in a superior room at the hilton brighton metropole cos i said the room we had a few weeks ago was not up to what i had expected of a hilton.. i even got free wine and chocs in the room and breakfast
  3 free bottles of wine from tesco as i complained about a rude member of staff when i pointed out there were jars on the shelf with mould on them
  a free coffee for my friends and i as we had to wait so long to pay
  refund from earls court over the debacle that was santa world this year
  previous years i have complained alpen had changed its fruit/oat ratio and got Ј10 in vouchers
  i have to say i also write and compliment people on good service as well as complain and i never make anything up... i dont think you can have a standard complaint letter but always be polite and point out any positives as well as negatives
  HTH