1 In pairs, discuss how an email complaining about a bad holiday experience to a friend, and to the company responsible might differ in language. Then read emails A and B and check your ideas.
A
Hi Amer, What a nightmare journey! As you know, we were getting a coach to the airport – save on some money – and it didn’t get off to a great start! Coach was half an hour late picking us up. Rain was forecast – and guess what – while we were waiting, down it came! In buckets! The next thing that went wrong was on the coach itself. You know how cold it was on Thursday? Well, the heating on the coach stopped working after ten minutes. How we didn’t all catch our death of cold sitting there in our wet clothes I'll never know! Then to top it all, there was engine trouble and the coach stopped on the motorway! We had to wait another hour for a replacement coach to arrive and then luckily we just managed to catch the plane by the skin of our teeth! Talk about cutting it fine. And not an apology from anyone! Will tell you more when I’m back. M
B
Dear Sir, I am writing to complain about a journey my family and I recently made on one of your coaches. Although your company had been recommended to us as reliable and offering good value for money, the service defi nitely did not meet our expectations. We had booked the coach to arrive at 8.15 which would have enabled us to arrive at the airport in good time for our fl ight to Italy. We were disappointed when the coach failed to arrive on time. In fact, it was in excess of 30 minutes late. The driver admitted to having fi rst gone to a completely different pick-up point. The second issue was with the heating system on the coach. You may remember that last Thursday was a particularly cold morning. Unfortunately, the coach’s heating system was faulty and did not work properly for the majority of our journey. Finally, to our utter disbelief, the coach suffered an engine problem and broke down on the motorway. This could not be repaired by roadside assistance and necessitated the driver arranging a replacement coach to take us the fi nal ten kilometres. What was, in my view, completely inexcusable, was that at no time were we offered an apology of any kind, either by the driver on the day, or by the company in the days that followed. I would like to express in the strongest terms, how deeply disappointed we were with your company’s service. Not only was it clear that the coach had not been properly serviced, but also that suffi cient care had not been taken over administrative matters, such as ensuring the driver had the correct address. While we were extremely fortunate in that we reached the airport just in time to catch our fl ight, we believe we should receive monetary compensation for the inconvenience we suffered and the disruption to the smooth running of our journey. Obviously, we hope that your coach service will be drastically improved for future customers.
Yours faithfully,
Malek Alhayek
Answers
Students’ own answers
2 Find formal equivalents for the following phrases in email B.
1 It didn’t arrive on time.
2 More than 30 minutes late …
3 The next thing that went wrong was …
4 You know that …
5 To top it all …
6 Not an apology from anyone.
7 Luckily …
8 By the skin of our teeth …
Answers
1 It failed to arrive on time.
2 In excess of thirty minutes late ...
3 Our second issue was ...
4 You may remember that ...
5 Finally, to our utter disbelief ...
6 At no time were we off ered an apology.
7 We were extremely fortunate ...
8 Just in time ...
3 Study the Writing box and add an example for each point from email B.
| WRITING | An email of complaint |
|
• Use clauses of concession to give balance. Although a short delay might be acceptable, ... 1................. • Use passives to be less direct and more formal. We were only informed of the timetable change ... 2................. • Remain polite and be assertive but not aggressive. I would like to emphasise that treatment such as this cannot be tolerated. 3................ • Use emphasis to strengthen your position. Never have I experienced such discomfort. 4.................. • Use initial comment adverbs: realistically, ultimately. Ultimately, the fault lies with the supplier. 5................... |
Answers
1 While we were extremely fortunate … to catch our flight, we believe we should receive …
2 The coach had not been properly serviced
3 I would like to express in the strongest terms, how deeply disappointed we were.
4 What was, in my view, completely inexcusable, was that at no time were we …
5 Obviously, we hope that …
4 Complete the adverb-adjective collocations from email B with the correct words.
1 deeply
2 drastically
3 completely
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1 disappointed 2 improved 3 inexcusable
5 Complete the collocations in the sentences with words from the box. There may be more than one possibility.
| flawed inaccurate mistaken obvious opposed overrated unjustified |
1 If you think I’m not willing to take my complaint further, you are gravely..............................
2 The information I received about flight departure times was wildly.......................,leading to me missing my plane.
3 The whole process of delivery was fundamentally......................, resulting in my new phone taking two months to arrive.
4 I found the quality of the shoes I bought to be vastly.........................., with them needing repairs after just one month.
5 Please understand that I am vehemently...........................to travelling with your company again after the way I was treated.
6 The way I was spoken to by the assistant was wholly......................and I was treated as a problem rather than a customer.
7 I think it is blindingly......................that there is a serious issue with your system.
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1 mistaken 2 inaccurate 3 flawed 4 overrated 5 opposed 6 unjustified 7 obvious
6 You go on a trip organised by a ferry company. Read the notes about the experience. In pairs, discuss how you would plan your email of complaint.
|
• both crossings delayed with NO explanation or apology • room – v. noisy, dirty; no wi-fi • free hotel bus – every three hours! • excursion – no translator; four hours and nowhere to have refreshments • got ill after eating meal on return crossing • request refund |
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Students’ own answers
7 WRITING TASK Use your notes from Exercise 6 to write your email of complaint.
Use the Graphic Organiser to help you plan your writing.
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Students’ own answers
