Writing Letters of Complaint and Adjustment

Summary

In society, many of us simultaneously maintain roles as civilians, consumers, employees, family members and colleagues. In all of these roles, effectively communicating and responding to complaints and bad news is an important skill to build good relationships, or repair ones that are at risk. In this assignment, I crafted a ‘complaint letter’ that described faulty products I received from an electronics company, and a response letter from the company that attempted to resolve the unfortunate situation. These response letters are sometimes called ‘adjustment’ letters in the technical writing field. The main technical writing skill used is the ‘Writing with You’ attitude, where the writer must prioritize the needs and situation of the reader rather than placing themselves as the most important subject in the correspondence. The following example also shows how to write without using condescending language or harsh imperative verbs, while still maintaining clarity and minimizing ambiguity.

Letter 1: Complaint Letter

Shakti Ramkumar
A and K Mining Ltd.
Vancouver, BC
P.O. Box 45678

November 10, 2018

BC Computers
2629 West Mall
Vancouver, BC

Dear BC Computers:

Last week, I placed an order for eight NavCom 1 devices to be delivered to A and K Mining offices by November 10th, in time for an off-site project commencing December 3rd. Upon delivery, I noticed that three out of eight devices were damaged, with detached outer casings and one with a chip on the glass front. As my colleagues will be using the devices for specialized field projects, it is important that all eight devices are in perfect condition.

A and K Mining has been a longtime customer of BC Computers, and we have always had exceptional service and received high quality products. We look forward to resolving this issue and ensuring that systems are put in place to avoid similar situations.

To resolve this issue, we would like to request that some or all of the damaged NavCom 1 devices are replaced before December 3rd, as that is the last possible date before our company’s project begins off-site.

Thank you for your urgent attention to this order.

Best,
Shakti Ramkumar

*********************************

Letter 2: Bad News Letter or Adjustment Letter

BC Computers
2629 West Mall
Vancouver, BC
(604) 123 – 4567

November 12, 2018

Shakti Ramkumar
A and K Mining Ltd.
Vancouver, BC
P.O. Box 45678

Subject: Regarding damaged NavCom 1 units

Dear Ms. Ramkumar:

We received notice this morning that three out of eight NavCom 1 devices shipped to A and K Mining Exploration Ltd. arrived in a damaged condition. We would like to apologize for this situation, as the quality of our products and your satisfaction are our highest priorities. We have taken several measures to ascertain the cause of the damage to ensure it does not occur again.

We have checked with the technicians at our manufacturing unit, who ensured us that all eight NavCom 1 units complied with design standards upon testing. We have also reviewed the quality control records of our shipped products and confirmed that all devices were in satisfactory condition when loaded onto the delivery trucks. We have attached a copy of these quality control reports for your review.

Our investigation into the matter leads us to conclude that the damage to the three units must have occurred during transport and delivery. We will be working with Pacific Transport, our longtime carrier, to determine where and how the damage occurred and make any changes to the process as needed.

In the meantime, we would like to replace your three damaged devices, with complementary shipping and handling. We currently have two completed NavCom 1 units in our inventory, which will be shipped to A and K Mining Exploration Ltd. immediately and will arrive in time for your departure to Northern BC on March 3rd for your on-site evaluation. As for the third device, please let us know immediately whether all eight devices will be required on the departure date of December 3rd. If so, we will work overtime to produce the final unit and have it shipped to your preferred location by December 3rd.   If the third device is not needed for March 3rd, we would like to offer you a 10% discount on this order, as a gesture of goodwill.

We are grateful for A and K Mining’s ongoing partnership with BC Computers, and we look forward to assisting you with your projects.

Kind regards,

J. Watson

Jim Watson

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