How to complain

oilyrag

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with apologies if this has been posted before...

Below is a copy of a letter that won a competition in UK as complaint letter of the year...have a laugh and read on.
Complaint Letter of the Year. The British do have a way with words.... A real-life customer complaint letter sent to NTL (to their complaints dept....)

Dear Cretins,
I have been an NTL customer since 9th July 2001, when I signed up for your 3-in-one deal for cable TV, cable modem, and telephone. During this three-month period I have encountered inadequacy of service which I had not previously considered possible, as well as ignorance and stupidity of monolithic proportions. Please allow me to provide specific details, so that you can either pursue your professional prerogative, and seek to rectify these difficulties - or more likely (I suspect) so that you can have some entertaining reading material as you while away the working day smoking B&H and drinking vendor-coffee on the bog in your office:

My initial installation was cancelled without warning, resulting in my spending an entire Saturday sitting on my fat arse waiting for your technician to arrive. When he did not arrive, I spent a further 57
minutes listening to your infuriating hold music, and the even more annoying Scottish robot woman telling me to look at your helpful website....HOW? I alleviated the boredom by playing with my testicles for a few minutes - an activity at which you are no-doubt both familiar and highly adept.
The rescheduled installation then took place some two weeks later, although the technician did forget to bring a number of vital tools - such as a drill-bit, and his cerebrum. Two weeks later, my cable modem had still not arrived. After 15 telephone calls over 4 weeks my modem arrived... six weeks after I had requested it, and begun to pay for it.
I estimate your internet server's downtime is roughly 35%... hours between about 6pm -midnight, Mon-Fri, and most of the weekend. I am still waiting for my telephone connection. I have made 9 calls on my mobile to your no-help line, and have been unhelpfully transferred to a variety of disinterested individuals, who are it seems also highly skilled bollock jugglers.

I have been informed that a telephone line is available (and someone will call me back); that no telephone line is available (and someone will call me back); that I will be transferred to someone who knows whether or not a telephone line is available (and then been cut off); that I will be transferred to someone (and then been redirected to an answer machine informing me that your office is closed); that I will be transferred to someone and then been redirected to the irritating Scottish robot woman...and several other variations on this theme.
Doubtless you are no longer reading this letter, as you have at least a thousand other dissatisfied customers to ignore, and also another one of those crucially important testicle-moments to attend to. Frankly I don't care, it's far more satisfying as a customer to voice my frustration's in print than to shout them at your unending hold music. Forgive me, therefore, if I continue. I thought BT were [--word removed--], that they had attained the holy piss-pot of god awful customer relations, that no-one, anywhere, ever, could be more
disinterested, less helpful or more obstructive to delivering service to their customers. That's why I chose NTL, and because, well, there isn't anyone else is there? How surprised I therefore was, when I discovered to my considerable dissatisfaction and disappointment what a useless shower of [--word removed--] you truly are. You are sputum-filled pieces of distended rectum -incompetents of the highest order.
British Telecom - wankers though they are - shine like brilliant beacons of success, in the filthy pus-filled mire of your seemingly limitless inadequacy. Suffice to say that I have now given up on my futile and foolhardy quest to receive any kind of service from you. I suggest that you cease any potential future attempts to extort payment from me for the services which you have so pointedly and catastrophically failed to deliver - any such activity will be greeted initially with hilarity and disbelief quickly be replaced by derision, and even perhaps bemused rage.
I enclose two small deposits, selected with great care from my cats litter tray, as an expression of my utter and complete contempt for both you and your pointless company. I sincerely hope that they have not become desiccated during transit - they were satisfyingly moist at the time of posting, and I would feel considerable disappointment if you did not experience both their rich aroma and delicate texture. Consider them the very embodiment of my feelings towards NTL, and its worthless employees.
Have a nice day - may it be the last in yourmiserable short life, you irritatingly incompetent and infuriatingly unhelpful bunch of [--word removed--].

John
 
In reality....

..most firms, on receiving that, wouldn't go beyond the salutation line before dismissing it as a "Politically Incorrect & immediately abusive letter" and consigning it, with complete justification in my view, to the rubbish bin.

Incidentally, Cretinism is a brain disorder brought about by a thyroid deficiency and not a term to be used in a frivolous context where it might cause offence to sufferers or their families. The late Bernard Levin was severely castigated - even sacked by the BBC when he referred to the then Prime Minister as"a Cretin and an Imbecile" on air some years ago.

First rule of complaining is to (initially) be exteremly polite and not give any grounds for being accused of being abusive. Right from the first two words this example fails 100% in these respects. It is in the same vein as the shabby ""comedy entertainment" programmes spewed out by BBC Radio4 in their 1830 evening slot most evenings. Witless drivel.

Who organised this competition? Please let us know so that their services can be avoided in future.

Steve Cronin
 
Re: In reality....

Ah damm ... I thought I could've been a cretin ... but I discovered it was MYXEDEMA as it occured in adulthood .... well - assuming I've grown up that is! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

As to causing offence to the sufferers and families it really is taking the buiscuit ... "Offensive terms" should be taken within context and the only people that should be offended are those to whom the term was directed and not over sensitive people, who should really stop looking for people trying to put them down and get on with their life.
 
However

Isn't it just the minority that are complaining? The rest of us just shrug and get on with it ...

How does it go?

Sticks and Stones may break my bones etc etc etc ...

I understand there are some derogatory terms that perhaps should not be used but this PC nonsense has gone too far
 
Excelllent

Having been passed onto ever more disinterested Budget Insurance customer service executives and occasionally "accidently" cut off, I have to say that perhaps I should have had this chap write me a letter of complaint, does he do this on a commission basis ?

Victor Meldue Lives !
 
Re: In reality....

Sorry, I hadn't considered the possibility that it might be genuine. I momentarily considered Googling for the organisers of Complaint Letter of the Year but decided life is too short.
 
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