HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1986-11-05, Page 39Regional Value Spotter, November 5, 1986
Page 9
Go Ahead, Complain.
By Phyllis Zsunsr
B t D ..t Right
is called the broken record. You
simply keep repeating your
claim, ad nauseam, calmly
answering all resistance with
logic, until the clerk is worn
down and a refund is
forthcoming.
Least effective is griping by
telephone, which can feel like
kill. "So you can imagine my punching a cloud. Without eye
chagrin..." contact it's hard to know if
Follow that with the facts of you're being taken seriously.
the case, omitting unnecessary Always demand the name of the
details that clog the real issue. person you're talking to. If you
Try to establish a rapport with suspect you're getting the
the recipient. "I'm in business runaround by being transferred,
myself and I know how I'd hate threaten to get back to him if
to have unhappy customers..." you don't get help.
And since most people only scan One woman got action from a
letters, he says, you should state lackadaisical clerk who couldn't
your demand twice — in the tell her when her rug would be
first paragraph and at the end. delivered, by saying, "I'm
Most effective of all, he says, going to call you every 15
is the P.S. He claims tests have minutes until my rug arrives."
proved that this is one of the Experts agree, thou'h, that
first things people read. "You many complaints could be
want to make a statement that avoided if people shopped more
will get someone to read the rest carefully.
of the letter." He suggests, "If I "Don't buy on impulse,"
don't hear from you by Friday I advises Arthur Best. "Get
shall be compelled to..." recommendations, listen to your
There are situations, of friends' experiences. Read the
course, where it's best to appear Consumer Union magazine,
in person to complain. Mal Consumer Reports. Ask
Cleland of the Better Business questions before you spend your
Bureau in Denver makes these money.
suggestions: "First seek the Always read the warranty
owner or the manager. Don't go before buying a product to see if
to the clerk. Most owners or,you're getting "full" or
managers have a responsibility "limited" warranty. Eight states
and also are concerned about the don't allow disclaimers on
company's image. They want to warranties. Stay alert. If you
know when they have a take your car in for repair and
dissatisfied customer. National sign the work sheet before the
surveys have shown that a estimate is filled in, you waive
customer whose complaint is your rights to complain later.
satisfied is likely to be a repeat The Federal Trade
customer." Commission advises using credit
Still, some stores make it hard cards to pay auto -repair shops.
to register a complaint. According to their 1983
Arthur Best tells of one case statistics, sloppy work and
involving a woman who kept ferocious business practices in
complaining about an unsightly auto -repair transactions bring in
joint in her new kitchen more complaints than any other
flooring. "She returned to the service.
store many times. She felt If your dispute involves a
foolish each time a repairman or credit card, the Fair Credit
an inspector or a salesman came. Billing Act says that consumers
It was a different person each must first give the seller a
time, so she had to repeat the chance to set things right before
story over and over. She felt
f you get a lemon,"
ii says Dale Carne,
"make lemonade.egi"
1
However, when the
lemon takes the form
of unreliable
products, snarled -up bills, late
deliveries, immobile bureacrats
or snooty clerks, you may find it
more satisfying to put the
squeeze on the seller than the
lemon.
On the average, only about
one-third of the people with
complaints about goods or
services actually speak up, says
Arthur Best, who conducted a
project on the subject for Ralph
Nader and later wrote about it in
a book called "When
Consumers Complain."
"A lot of people are
embarrassed to find they have
bought a lemon," he says. "It's
almost a reflection on
themselves."
There are other reasons for
not complaining, he adds.
People may feel it's not
worthwhile in terms of time,
money and emotion. Or they
fear embarrassment at having
what they consider a fair claim
rejected. Or perhaps they see
complaining as being
"obnoxious."
But complaining can be
effective without verbal abuse
and putdowns of others. The
most important rule for redress
is your willingness to speak up
once something has gone wrong.
And just as there are times to
complain and times when a
complaint isn't justified, there
also are right and wrong ways to
complain.
Actually, the art of
complaining isn't hard to loam.
Any good gripe — whether
made in person, by phone or in
writing — has five simple
elements.
1. State -the problem. Don't
ramble, almost apologetically,
conveying a murky idea of your
grounds. Get to the point right
away.
2. Have your facts straight.
Don't phone or write without
being clear on Tates, prices,
names (substitute descriptions of
people if you don't have names)
to back up your statements.
The -art\ of complaining
isn't hard to learn.
3. Make your request for
redress. Think about your goal
before you call, have a clear
idea of what you want, whether
it's a correction on a bill, a
refund, repairs or, if you're
merely ticked off, an apology.
Be explicit. Says the national
manager of Autocap, a group
handling disgruntled car -owners'
complaints, "Lots of people
gripe to get something off their
chests, but demanding a specific
remedy is much more
4. Set a deadline. Speak firmly
and act as if your time is
valuable. Give a brief but
reasonable time limit (say, 10
days) for how long you will
wait. Indicate your unwillingness
to let the matter be prolonged.
Conclude any phone call with a
restatement of what's been
agreed upon. "So 1 can expect
delivery by Saturday?" If
someone appears unable or
unwilling to help speedily, go
above his head.
5. Make a threat that you're
prepared to carry out. Some
possibilities: You will stop
payment. You will end your
patronage. You will tell other
people how badly you've been
treated. You'll go to small
claims court. Virginia. Knauer,
White House adviser on
consumer affairs, once stated she
felt small claims court should be
used more. "It's a very useful
avenue of redress; no attomey is
needed and the cost is small."
Above all, says Best, keep
photocopies of every letter you
send and a notation of all
telephone conversations. Careful
records may become vital,
especially if negotiations are
prolonged.
In general, letters are the most
effective way to complain,
according to Best and other
authorities, because you can
discuss tangled and protracted
disputes in an -organized fashion.
Face-to-face gripes often fail
because you take out your anger
on a clerk or bank teller who
doesn't have the power to
correct the problem.
Some complaint experts
believe you should launch your
missile directly at the head of
the company, on the theory that
even if he doesn't read it, it will
arrive in the customer -relations
department via the "head
cheese" and achieve more
respect.
Richard Viguerie, one expert
in direct-mail advertising, has
honed letter -writing down to a
science. He says the first
paragraph of a complaint letter
should be brief, summarizing the
problem succinctly but
dramatically. Example: "I'm
very distressed by a billing
problem that your company
refuses to correct." •
Follow that with a surprise
compliment, he suggests. "Over
the years I've always had good
service and..." Elaborate a bit.
"In fact, I recall one
effective." occasion... Then go for the
they weren't taking her
seriously."
Although such encounters can
be daunting, there are certain
techniques that hasten results.
Be nice, the Better Business
Bureau advises, because that
encourages helpfulness. When
you're courteous it boots your
chances immeasurably.
But if you're standing in the
middle of a shoe store and the
clerk won't respond to your
reasonable, calm request, try
raising the decibel level of your
voice. Other customers will
notice and start moving away.
The shopkeeper is likely to take
your complaint more seriously.
Another technique developed
by assertive -training specialists
capping the asparagus spears in
a can, apparently the vengeance
• • of a disgruntled employee.
Chronic complainer Connie
Beckes, a legal assistant, doesn't
believe in letting the company
off the hook for such offensive
products. She faithfully writes a
letter for each infraction, and
has found over the years that her
grumbling has often paid off in
double portions in return.
Lately, though, she's found
that companies are slacking off,
sometimes only sending an
apology, at best a coupon for
another package of the same
product (useless if she didn't
like the product in the first
place).
"Grieve for the days," she
says, "when the companies you
expected to care always did."
payment is withheld. The
credit-card issuer must then
investigate the complaint before
dunning for payment.
In the final analysis, the
ultimate solution to disputes may
be to simply refuse to pay the
bill. According to a booklet
published by the Federal Trade
Commission, withholding
payment is "the only realistic
Ieyerage consumers have."
Should you elect to declare "1
won't pay," hang on to the
disputed merchandise until you
receive a written adjustment
offer you'll accept, and write a
detailed letter. If the seller
doesn't respond to your letter
within two weeks, write to your
local Consumer Affairs office,
or file in small claims cowl.
Fortunately, most companies
are anxious to keep customer's
good will. According to the
U.S. Office of Consumer
Affairs, the success rate for
requests for exchange or refund
is high — about 88 percent.
If the dealer is recalcitrant,
the next step is the
manufacturer. (Get the address
and name of the top officer in
"Standard & Poor" at the
library.) If that doesn't work,
contact any or all the following:
• The manufacturer's trade
association (listed in
"Encyclopedia of
Associations").
• Your state and local
consumer -protection agencies (in
phone book under "Consumer
Complaints").
• A newspaper or television
station consumer -action line.
• The local Better Business
Bureau (results here can be
spotty, as some BBBs don't
press hard on complaints).
Not all complaints registered
are monumental. They are the
ordinary, min -of -the -mill
annoyances we encounter in our
daily lives. A wad of gum
shows up in a cottage -cheese
carton. Rolls of plastic wrap
don't unwind properly. One
consumer found the finger tips..
of a set of rubber gloves neatly
TIPS FOR THE COMPLEAT
COMPLAINT
Do:
• Read and understand a
contract before you sign.
• Get a copy of the
agreement.
• Hang onto all paperwork:
invoices, work orders, estimates.
receipts, canceled checks.
• Take your complaint to the
top, and bring documents.
• Be specific as to the nature
of your complaint and how you
want it resolved.
• Be aware of agencies
designed to help you.
Don't:
• Spend money without
asking questions.
• Pay until you're sure.
• Sign anything without
thinking.
• Buy without comparing
prices from other sources.
• Pay too much in advance. ■
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Bart DeVries
PHOTOGRAPHY
Portrait, Wedding and Commercial
on location or studio
137 Thames Rd. East, Exeter
Phone: Bus. 235-1298 9:00 - 5:00
Res. 235-0949 after business hours