A letter of complaint
Do the preparation task first. Then read the text and tips and do the exercises.
Preparation
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing to express my dismay at the service at your Eden Hill branch on Saturday 14 January.
I often collect prescriptions from the pharmacy on behalf of my grandmother, Mrs Elaine Bingham. On this occasion there were two prescriptions: one for 10 x 50 mg Kendomol and one for 50 x 100 mg Leoprone. I was served quickly even though there appeared to be only one pharmacist on duty. However, as I was leaving I saw that I had been given 500 mg tablets of Kendomol. This is ten times stronger than the prescription called for.
If I hadn't noticed the difference between the prescription and the actual tablets, my grandmother could have taken a dangerous overdose of Kendomol. I would be worried about getting any future prescriptions at Eden Hill.
The pharmacist apologised and corrected the mistake but I wanted to bring it to your attention. I think it happened because there were not enough staff on duty. I understand that mistakes happen but there needs to be a minimum of two pharmacists at all times so all prescriptions can be checked.
I hope you can take steps to make sure this mistake does not happen again.
Yours faithfully,
Roger Bingham
Tips
- Focus on the most important facts. Don't give unnecessary background information.
- Make sure you include:
- the reason for writing (e.g. I am writing to ...)
- what went wrong
- what you would like to happen now.
- Complaint letters are usually written in a formal style.
- Use passives to be less direct and more formal, e.g. I was served quickly.
- Use Yours faithfully to sign off if you don't know the name of the person you're writing to.
Dear Sir/Madam,
I'm writing to express my dissappointment/dismay about the cashier at Birth supermarket.
I went there yersterday morning to make some shopping with my wife who is five months pregnant. We were welcomed nicely by the guard. After finishing our shopping, we noticed there was a long queue and the service was too slow. So I requested to skip the line since my girl was tired and she couldn't stand for a long time. So spoke up and explained the situation to all customers who were waiting on the queue as me and my wife and most of them wer agree to let us skip the line. Then an old man expressed his disagreement and the cashier, just because of him, refused to let us skip the queue.
Because of that, my wife spent 30 minutes waiting and got exhausted after getting home.
Even thougth we have to respect the elderly, it doesn't mean that we have to lose our humanity in some exceptional situtations. It shouldn't happen again.
Yours faithfully
Paul KENGNEN
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing to express my strong dissatisfaction with the legal services I received from your office in Kropyvnytskyi on Monday, March 27.
As a client seeking professional legal assistance I entrusted your firm with an important matter. The lawyer assigned to my case was polite and initially assured me of their competence and attention to detail. However upon further review of the work provided I discovered serious issues key legal aspects were overlooked, documents contained inaccuracies and the overall quality of representation did not meet professional standards.
Had I not identified these problems in time the consequences could have been significant, potentially leading to financial loss and negative legal consequences for my case. This situation undermined my confidence and disrupted the proper handling of my legal matter.
When I raised these concerns I received an apology and an explanation that the situation resulted from an oversight. While I appreciate the apology I believe that legal professionals must exercise a higher level of diligence and responsibility. The legal field requires precision and reliability, and such mistakes can have serious consequences for clients.
I trust that you will take the necessary measures to ensure that similar situations do not occur in the future. I look forward to your response regarding this matter.
Yours faithfully,
Marina Dariienko
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing to express my strong dissatisfaction with the equipment I purchased from your branch in Kropyvnytskyi on Monday March 23.
As a journalist who regularly works with professional gear, our team decided to order a camera and a set of microphones. The sales assistant, Elizabeth, was very polite and assured us of the high quality of the materials. However, upon returning to the editorial office, I discovered that the equipment was defective: the camera would not focus properly, and the microphone, which seemed to work during the initial check, failed completely indoors.
If we had not noticed these issues in time, we would have faced significant financial loss and, more importantly, our professional activities would have been disrupted. We would not have been able to conduct our work to a high standard.
When I returned to the store, the assistant apologized and explained that she had accidentally provided faulty equipment from the warehouse. While I appreciate the apology, I believe that staff should be more attentive. Modern journalism depends heavily on reliable technology, and such mistakes can be very damaging to our work.
I trust that you will take the necessary measures to ensure that such situations do not occur in the future. I look forward to hearing from you regarding this matter.
Yours faithfully,
Tetiana Kuprieienkova
Dear Mr Jones,
I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with the maintenance service at Harber Branch on Monday 15 March 2026. I asked the team to check my car’s temperature and cooling system. After 20 minutes, the engineer said the car was ready and that the inspection had been completed. In addition, the reception team confirmed that the issue had been repaired and that the cooling system had been tested. However, after leaving the branch and heading to work, I found that the engine temperature had increased and the red warning light had come on after 30 minutes. I returned to the team to have the issue checked again, and I was told that there was no water in the cooling system. Furthermore, the team mentioned that it was the engineer’s fault for not rechecking the system properly. Although the issue was eventually solved, I am concerned about the carelessness of the maintenance team. I would like to request compensation and a refund of the payment. I am writing to bring this issue to your attention and to ask that the quality control system be reviewed.
Yours sincerely,
Mohamed
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing to express my dismay at the service at your Eden Hill branch on Saturday 14 January.
It was given to me 150 mg of a medicine called Atentah, but I was supposed to buy 150 mg of Venvanse. Which could have been a huge mistake because these two medicines are very different and If I had some heavy psychological disorder, I could have gotten worse.
I want you to have a conversation with your employees about that. This cannot happen again.
Yours faithfully,
Beatriz.
Dear Madam,
I'm writing to express my dismay regarding the service I received from 10 to 12 August at The Grand View Hotel.
On this occasion, I had previously booked a double room with a sea view at $150 per night, as the advertised price online indicated.
Unfortunately, when I arrived, I noticed I was given a single room overlooking the parking lot. Also, the air conditioning did not work during my entire stay. I called the hotel staff, but my requests were ignored, and they did not fix it. Finally, when I checked out, I was charged $200 per night.
This issue has ruined my entire holiday experience, and it has made me doubt the quality and reliability of your service.
I would be grateful if you could issue a partial refund and take steps to make sure this does not happen again.
I trust that you will improve your service and solve this matter promptly.
Yours faithfully,
Tabatha Zarza
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing to express my dismay at the service at your Fortuna shop on Tuesday 1 July.
I have ordered left hinge conditions of angular velocities for Nissan Almera with ABS. I was served quickly even thought there appeared to be only one sales manager on duty. However, as I was leaving I saw that I had been given the spare part I've mentioned before but for car without ABS.
If I hadn't noticed the difference between two spare parts ABS wouldn't be working, that could lead to dangerous consequences. I would be worried about getting any future requests for spare parts at Fortuna shop.
The sales manager apologised and corrected the mistake but I wanted to bring it to your attention. I think it happened because there were not enough staff on duty. I understand that mistakes happen but there needs to be a minimum of two sales managers at all times so all request can be checked.
I hope you can take steps to make sure this mistake does not happen again.
Yours faithfully,
Sergey Dmitriev
Would this sentence ever be correct in English, even if it sounds old-fashioned or something similar:
"For no wise, law-abiding spouse would become an accomplice to gold smuggling."
I'm especially curious about the first part.
Hello Aona,
Yes, that is a correct sentence. It's very formal and literary in style but is correct.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Dear Sir/Madam,
I'm writing to express my dismay with the service at Bokis.com at 14. January.
I ordered several books from your internet service Bokis.com, but when they arrived the package was broken, and two of the books were water damaged. I called customer service but they said the package must have been broken after they sent it. In the rules and regulations at Bokis.com it specifies that the company takes responsibility for the package right on to the deliverance.
On the background of this I would like a refund for the two books that were damaged, or preferably, new copies of the two books sent to my address with a reduced price because of the delay and damage compensation.
I hope to hear from you soon
Yours Faithfully
Sam Bingham