How to complain successfully
Dodgy shoes? Cold soup? Bad phone signal? These are all very valid reasons to complain, and you should always speak out if something's not up to scratch.
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When you've parted with your hard-earned cash for something, you're well within your rights to expect your money back if the service or goods aren't up to scratch.
But, it's often hard to get past the worry that you won't be taken seriously if you try to complain.
Ultimately, knowing how and when to complain is crucial. To help, we've put together a comprehensive guide to complaining successfully. Feel free to complain if it's not good enough.
How to make a complaint
Here is how to make a complaint and get results:
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Decide if your complaint is justified
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This might sound obvious, but picking the right time to raise an issue is just as important as actually making the complaint.
Whatever you're thinking of complaining about, don't do it if you're only looking to get free stuff out of it.
Not only will it be painfully obvious that this is your intention, but it could lead to you being banned from somewhere if you're busted.
Valid reasons to make a complaint
- You received a service (such as a massage or a haircut) that was inadequate
- Staff were rude or made you feel uncomfortable (e.g. in a restaurant or shop)
- You were served something very substandard or that didn't meet an expected level of health and safety (like if you found a hair in your meal)
- A product you bought was faulty or didn't work as it should
- A service or goods were delivered unreasonably late
- You were overcharged for something
- You were unable to return an item, even though you complied with the store's return policy
- A company hasn't satisfied all of its contractual obligations (e.g. you were promised 500 free minutes and unlimited texts, but only got the calls).
Note: If you're still unsure if your situation justifies a complaint, you can find plenty more details in our consumer rights guide.
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Consider what you want to achieve from the complaint
It's all very well knowing that the hot dog you ordered was delivered by a grumpy sod that made you feel about as wanted as a steak in a vegetarian restaurant, but you need to give the company some idea of what it would take to get back in your good books.
The three main resolutions for customer complaints are:
- Offering you an exchange or fixing the problem
- Refunding you for the goods or service
- Offering compensation.
While you may not be automatically entitled to compensation or a refund in every circumstance, it's more likely to be achievable if you know what you're looking for.
Have a think about exactly what you want to be offered in response to your complaint before you make it, and it'll make the process a lot easier.
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Research your consumer rights
Before you go in all guns blazing, make sure you've got all the facts first.
Write down a full description of the issue and research what your rights are. Try consulting our guide to your consumer rights and have a quick search on Google for advice on your particular situation.
Any photos, receipts or comments from witnesses that you can gather can help with your case – the more info and material you have when you make the complaint, the better chance you'll have of resolving the issue effectively.
If the complaint's about a purchase, try to state the exact time that you were in the store or making the order, too. This sort of info (combined with a description of the staff member who served you) can hugely help a company to decide whether further action needs to be taken.
The added bonus of this stage is that gathering all the info and writing it down can be kind of cathartic. Once you've blown off some steam doing this, you might even find it a bit easier to lodge your complaint without losing your rag.
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Stay calm when making a complaint
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We understand that you won't be at your happiest after a disappointing incident or purchase. However, remember that the people you're dealing with are human too, and they're just trying to do their job.
What's more, those involved will be much more inclined to help you out if you treat them with respect – even if you are absolutely fuming inside. After all, it's highly unlikely that they were directly responsible for the problem in the first place.
If you're calm and collected, you're also much more likely to explain your situation coherently and with enough detail for the issue to be resolved successfully.
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Complain as quickly as possible
You should always complain as soon as possible after the event to stand the best chance of getting a positive end result. This is especially true if you're complaining about faulty goods – and make sure you stop using them as soon as you notice there's an issue.
After all, would you really believe someone was distraught about the service they received in store if they only got round to complaining six weeks later? Or that a frying pan was totally unfit for purpose from day one, but it's obvious that they carried on using it for a fortnight?
If there's a reason you haven't been able to complain earlier, be sure to clarify this in your complaint.
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Follow a company's complaints procedure
At this stage, going straight to the manager or owner of the company to tell them their business is shambolic might feel tempting, but you can often sort out complaints much faster if you start at the source of the issue.
If your problem involves something that happened in a place where you were present or with something you bought in-store, you should first ask to speak to the person who (in your eyes) caused the problem in the first place.
In many cases, they'll be happy to solve the issue there and then, as the last thing they'll want is for the complaint to go further up to a manager.
Alternatively, if your complaint is about a product and the store has a customer services department, it's worth going straight there first – it's their job to keep you happy!
If your issue involves something you bought online, then the first port of call should be to check the company's website or social media for a customer service email.
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Complain in person or write a formal letter
If your complaint is about an item you bought from a shop, get yourself down there in person rather than doing it over the phone. It's far harder for someone to ignore or overlook your complaint if you're making it face-to-face.
If there's absolutely no other way for you to contact them than over the phone, keep a full record of the conversation by jotting down the most important points. And make sure you get the name of the person you're dealing with.
Writing a formal complaint
Putting your complaint in writing is a good shout if you can't physically go there – that way you've got solid proof of all communication. This could be via letter (if you're old school) or email, addressed to the relevant person.
If the company does decide to send you some free things or money in the post, the whole process will be much easier if you include your full details in your complaint. This will be covered if you're writing a formal complaint letter, as your address should be written at the top.
Make sure to include any statutory rights you feel have been broken in your letter, and ask the company (politely) to get back to you within a reasonable time frame so you're not left hanging. This also makes it much easier to chase up if they don't stick to the date.
Lastly, check your spelling. Bad spelling doesn't excuse a company for not dealing with your complaint properly, but it will help give a good impression and show you're serious about your issue.
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Make a complaint on social media
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If you're a confident writer and feel like you have a strong case, you might even want to try your hand at writing a viral complaint or making a complaint video that could gain thousands of views.
No business likes to receive complaints on social media for all to see (although everyone gets them), so they're more likely to want to be seen to offer a solution ASAP to protect their image.
If your matter is too elaborate for 280 characters, or it's a more personal matter, simply send them a direct message about your complaint.
Still no reply? Badger them on all their social media channels until you get a response (but don't use aggressive language!). If you're still having no luck, send a formal letter to the company's head office. Which brings us to our next point...
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Contact the company's head office
You can attempt to contact someone very high up by searching for their email address on this website. Alternatively, you can try to guess (e.g. [email protected], [email protected] or [email protected] etc.).
You may notice a profile picture pop up next to an email address when you type it in – this shows you are using a valid email address and is (hopefully!) the intended recipient.
The higher up you take your complaint, the more people you'll end up speaking to. It's always useful to be able to reference how you've tried to resolve the problem already, as this shows how seriously you're taking the complaint and avoids any "he said, she said" situations.
What to do if your complaint is ignored or dismissed
If your complaint is ignored or dismissed, you can do the following:
Go to an ombudsman
An ombudsman is a form of ADR scheme (Alternative Dispute Resolution scheme) which you can reach out to if you've exhausted all other options and are still not getting anywhere.
The ombudsman will only act if an admin or service error has occurred, so you can't go to them if your complaint is more about a difference of opinion (bad customer service, for example).
Major UK ombudsman services
- Energy Ombudsman is the place to go if you have any unresolved complaints with your gas and electricity.
- Communications Ombudsman can help you resolve any disputes with your phone company or broadband providers.
- The Financial Ombudsman Service resolves disputes between financial services such as banks, insurers and lenders, and their customers. They'll give you an unbiased opinion and have the legal powers to correct any wrongdoing.
- The Office of Independent Adjudicator (OIA) deals with issues with higher education providers in England and Wales. If you're thinking about filing a complaint against your university (like this graduate), you may want to get in touch with them. For students in Northern Ireland, you can reach out to NIPSO, and in Scotland, you can get in touch with SPSO.
These are some of the leading ombudsman services, but there are different types of ADRs for different sectors. For complaints in other areas, a quick Google should bring up the relevant contact.
Take your complaint to a small claims court
If your complaint involves a breach of contract, you can try to take it to a small claims court. The maximum amount you can claim for with small claims is £10,000 in England and Wales, £5,000 in Scotland (through this simple procedure) and £5,000 in Northern Ireland.
Speak to Citizens Advice
Finally, if you're really struggling to get anywhere with the company, then you might want to look into taking legal action – depending on how serious the claim is.
If you've exhausted all the options available within the company itself and still aren't happy, there are people you can go to for help.
The Citizens Advice Bureau offers free advice to anyone on money, legal or other issues and you can either call, email or pop into a local centre to chat with them.
If all else fails and you're stuck with any goods you don't want, you could always try these great swapping sites.
