1 Unit 12 Complaints and Adjustments ( 抱怨与调停） 山东财经大学 李金萍

2  Reasons for buyer's complaints in business might be: 1) The wrong goods may have been sent; 2) The quality may not be satisfactory; 3) The goods may have been delivered damaged or late; 4) The prices charged may be excessive, or not as agreed.  Basic Knowledge

3  Rules for the sellers deal with a complaint: 1. If the complaint is justified, admit it,express your regret and promise to put matters right. 2. If the complaint is not justified, point it out politely and in an agreeable manner. 3. If you cannot deal with the complaint promptly, acknowledge it immediately. Explain the reason and promise a fully reply later. 纠正、改正 正当的、合理的 告知已收到

4 1. Identifying the problem, e.g. We have received the goods under our Order No.123 and it did not contain all the items ordered. 500 dozen man's shirts under our S/C No.1005 were received yesterday. To our regret, the quality is not up to your usual standard. structures of Letters of complaints:

5 2) Explaining the problem, and if possible, giving evidence (facts, sample, surveyor ’ s report, etc.), E.g. ● The packing inside the case was too loose with the result that there was some shifting of contents and several cups and plates have been broken. The attached list will give you details 。 ( 详 情见随附的清单） 检验报告 / 鉴定报告 货物

6 ● The boxes were badly broken, having evidently been damaged in transit. On closer examination of the contents, we found that there was a shortage of goods: 200 pencils, 50 pens and 25 rules were missing. 破裂、破损 损坏

7 3. Suggesting a solution Please send us 24 dozen towels Art No.EE/101 to replace the 24 dozen towels Art No.BE/101 sent in error with our order No.112. Although the quality of these goods is not up to our usual standard, we are prepared to accept the goods if you will reduce the price by 20%.

8 1. acknowledge receipt of the complaint immediately, e.g. Thank you for your fax of 22 Sept. complaining about the damaged goods received in order No.112. I am sorry that there has been a delay in the delivery of Order No Replying to a complaint

9 2. Apologize if you are to blame, e.g. ● I am so sorry about the shipment of wrong goods. ● This is entirely our mistake and we apologize for the trouble it has caused you.

10 3. Give an explanation, e.g. ● The wrong sum in the invoice was due to an oversight. ( 疏忽） ● The delay was due to an unexpected strike at the harbor. ● We regret the delay which was due to breakdown of machinery. （机器故障）

11 4. Promise to put things right, E.g. ● We have already arranged the shipment of the missing goods. ● We will replace the broken items with new ones. ● Replacements for the damaged goods have been sent today.

12 5. Restore confidence and maintain goodwill, e.g. ● We are confident that the replacements will meet your requirements. ● The error was due to a fault in the computer system which we now have put it right.

13 1. Thank the buyer for calling your attention to his dissatisfaction and express regret over the incident. 2. Give reasons for refusal. Demonstrate with hard facts, let him refer from your letter his reponsiblity. If the complaint is not justified:

14 3. In order to build up your and your company’s image. It is advisable to suggest a compromise and meet your customer halfway. 4. End on a friendly note.

15 Dear Mr Li Thank you for your prompt delivery of our order No On examining the shoes we found that the finish is poor because the coloring varies. We have sent you a parcel with some shoes to show you how inferior the finish is.  Specimen Letter 1 Complaint about the inferior quality 抛光 低劣的、劣质的 着色不均匀着色不均匀

16 However, if you are willing to grant us a discount of 35%, we might be able to find an outlet for the shoes. Please let us know whether you find this acceptable. Yours truly Walker & Peltza Ltd (signature)  Grant sb a discount  allow sb a discount 给予折扣

17 Dear Mr Hudson Thank you for your letter of August 15 reporting the patchiness of the color on the shoes. This kind of coloring is still in fashion. Judging by modern Chinese design, we took it for granted that Chinese ladies would be attracted by this finish.  Specimen Letter 2 Reply to an unwarranted complaint 斑点、斑块

18 The same shoes are also made with even coloring, but, unfortunately, the differences could not be seen so clearly on the pictures in our catalog. We appreciate your offer to find a market for the shoes at a discount of 35%. Considering the good quality and fashionable style of the shoes, we regret that we cannot grant you such a big allowance. However, as this was our first transaction with you, we shall be glad to allow you a reduction of 10%.

19 Should you prefer to return the shoes, please inform us of your decision and we shall ask our shipping agents to collect and return them to us. Despite this regrettable incident we hope that you will continue to do business with us and we shall do our best to give special attention to your orders. Yours truly (signature)

20 Dear Ms Brown I was extremely sorry to hear of the broken boxes and shortage of goods under your order No.234. We have checked the order and the poor packing you described was due to problems we have had with a new packing  Specimen Letter 3 Reply to an warranted complaint 包装不良 包装缺陷

21 material. This new material is not strong enough for packages like this. Your future orders will be packed in sturdier material in order to prevent this from happening again. We understand you need the missing items urgently and have already arranged the shipment of the missing pencils, pens and rulers. You will get Strong =Sturdy: 结实的、牢固的 Order: 订单，订购的货物

22 them well before schools start. If you need any further help, please call me personally on or me at Yours sincerely

23 Exercises  Useful Expressions