Step 5 Developing reading skills handling a complaint

5.1. When It Pays to Complain

A dissatisfied customer who complains is just as likely to remain loyal as a completely satisfied customer. This surprising state of affairs has been observed by British Airways, which has turned the handling of complaints into something of a science.

Charles Weiser, BA’s head of customer relations, calculates that about 13 per cent of customers who are completely satisfied with BA’s service may not fly with the airline again.

‘Perhaps they changed jobs, found a frequent flyer programme which better suited their needs, or maybe they felt it was time for a change of airline,’ he says, writing in the July issue of Consumer Policy Review, the journal published by the UK’s Consumers’ Association.

Half of all customers who experience problems but do not complain do not intend to use the airline again. This contrast with the customers who are dissatisfied but do complain - just 13 per cent of this group will defect, the identical rate of defection as the ‘satisfied’ group, says Weiser.

Clearly, it pays to encourage customers to complain, and to encourage complaints departments to turn themselves from ‘blame’ to ‘customer retention’ departments, he says. Weiser’s guide to satisfying complaints includes the following points:

Apologise and ‘own’ the problem. Customers do not care whose fault it was - they want someone to say sorry and champion their cause.

Do it quickly - customer satisfaction with the handling of a complaint dips after five days.

Assure customers the problem is being fixed. Complaints departments need to know their company inside out and work with front-line departments. Do it by phone. Many departments are frightened of the emotion customers often show when things go wrong, but customers appreciate a personal apology and reassurance the problem will be solved.

(from The Financial Times)

Task 1. Read the article and decide if the statements are true or false.

8. A dissatisfied customer who makes a complaint will usually fly again with British Airways.

9. About one sixth of BA’s satisfied customers defect to other airlines.

10. Both satisfied and dissatisfied customers will fly with BA again in about the same proportions.

11. BA gives money to customers if they complain.

12. Customers are anxious to find out who was responsible for things going wrong.

13. It is not a good idea to admit to being in the wrong.

Task 2. Sum up the information you’ve learned from the article.

Task 3. Comment on the following issues.

1. Have you ever complained about a problem while travelling?

2. How did the person you spoke to react to your comments?

3. What action was taken to solve your problem?

4. How satisfied were you with the result?

5.2. Dear Travel Agent, Please Stop the Cows Staring at me...

Task l. Read the text and answer the questions.

Where did the story about the cows happen? What is the story an example of?

For the next few weeks, tour operators will be soiling through the annual deluge of complaints. Ron Wheal, head of customer relations for Britain’s biggest holiday company which took more than a million abroad this summer, says, 'Holiday makers are complaining about petty silly little things.’ 'Such as?’ The fact that their hotel is next to a road. How do they expect to get to their hotel if it’s not next to a road?’

Perhaps one of the most common complaints is that the holiday fails to live up to the brochure promises. A family from Berkshire with two young children were attracted by a two-week package in a three-star hotel that was described as 'friendly’ and ‘particularly suitable for families with children.’ It offered ‘cots, baby minding, high chairs and early suppers? When they arrived, the hotel was not up to three star standard, the staff were rude and the promised facilities for children were practically non-existent.

An initial complaint which had been sent to the holiday company by the family was answered with an ‘exgratia’ payment of £30. With the help of a consumer magazine, the family issued a summons claiming £500 - which the holiday company eventually met in full.

One of the big travel successes of recent years has been the ‘gite’ holiday (a gite is self-catering accommodation in France, often on a farm). The director of the Gite de France’s London office recently received a telephone call from one client furious about the cows that passed in front of her gite. Was she complaining about the mess? ‘No, she was angry because the cows used to stop and look in at her as they went past the window.’

Britain’s biggest seller of long-distance holidays says that the majority of its complaints come from people who have chosen the wrong sort of holiday. People who fail to do their research could find themselves in the Caribbean during the hurricane season.

Mr. Wheal says that if someone really wants action over a spoilt holiday, 'they should try to sort it out with a holiday company representative there and then.’ Those who complain to the tour operator on their return and are unhappy with the response, can take their case to the Association of British Travel Agents (BTA) which will provide conciliation facilities free of charge.

Task 2. Now read the article again and say if the following statements are true or false.

1. Ron Wheal thinks that most of the complaints his company receives are reasonable.

2. I lie most frequent complaint is that a holiday is of a lower standard than expected. The family from Berkshire expected that someone would be available to look after their young children.

3. The first thing they did was to write a letter of complaint to the company.

4. The company paid £500 as soon as they received the letter.

5. If you stay at a gite, you have to prepare your own meals.

6. The gite client complained because she was afraid of cows.

7. The long-distance holiday company suggests that holiday makers, should find out about the area they intend to visit.

8. Mr Wheal advises people to deal with problems as soon as they occur.

9. He suggests that people with complaints should contact A BRA as they return home.

Task 3. Find the synonymous word or phrase in the text.

1. large quantity (usually of water);

2. unimportant;

3. holiday including travel and accommodation;

4. beds for small children;

5. almost unavailable;

6. sent out an order to appear in court;

7. paid completely;

8. very angry;

9. storm with strong wind;

10. a service which helps to bring agreement between two people or groups of people.

Task 6. Say what you have learned from the text about

a) different reasons for complaints; b) best ways of handling complaints.