letter of complaint

[student07]

Hi, I am writing my first letter of complaint. Could someone please have a quick look at it, I am bit unsure about the English wording. Thank you!

Dear Sir or Madam,
With this letter I would like to make a complaint in connection to train 564, scheduled for 9.02 am, 1st of December 2007, from Edinburgh Haymarket to London Euston.

Because of reasons not specified to the passengers, the time of departure of the above mentioned train was delayed for two hours.

I was therefore not able to reach my connecting train from London Euston to Paris, which was scheduled for 5.10 pm. So I was forced to change my original booking which cost me an additional sum of £ 20.

I contacted your customer service representative at London Euston station who advised me to write a letter to headquarters.

Relying on the Regulation Xyz I ask you to compensate for my expenses of £ 20.

Furthermore I am writing to complain about your customer service in relation to the incident. Not only were the passengers not informed of the reasons for the delay, service staff were also highly unfriendly when I inquired about the estimated time of arrival.
Arriving at the desired destination in time is the main service I expect when buying your product. Therefore, when this cannot be provided, I should at least be able to expect adequate treatment by your service staff.

Please send me the above mentioned sum within 15 days after receipt of this letter on the bank account below.

I look forward to your reply

Yours faithfully

[David L.]

Someone beginning to read your letter would redirect it internally to the Complaints Department, where it might well sit for a while. It is only way down that we read you also happen to want a refund of monies!

Sorry, but I would suggest that you redraft the letter, stating that you are requesting compensation for the extra cost of your journey, and the grounds for your request (the lateness of the train).
Then, you could write a separate letter of complaint if you feel really strongly about it; or in the first letter, after you have have made your request and given your grounds, then let fly and complain!

[student07]

Thank you very much for your reply. I will do that. However I am also wondering whether there are any English mistakes in the letter, since I will use some of the wording for my other two letters.
Thank you

[David L.]

Go ahead and write it. I'll put in a 'notification' telling me when you've reposted, and I'll help you tackle that then.
Good for you!.. or as the Australian in me would say, "good onya mate'.

[student07]

Well my first letter would then simply state

Claim for Compensation according to Regulation Xyz.
Dear Sir or Madam,
With this letter I would like to claim compensation according to Regulation Xyz for the amount of £ 20.
Because of reasons not specified to the passengers, train 564, scheduled for 9.02 am, 1st of December 2007, from Edinburgh Haymarket to London Euston was delayed for two hours.

I was therefore not able to reach my connecting train from London Euston to Paris, which was scheduled for 5.10 pm. So I was forced to change my original booking which cost me an additional sum of £ 20.

Relying on the regulations, I ask you to compensate for my expenses of £ 20.

Please send me the above mentioned sum within 15 days after receipt of this letter on the bank account below.

I look forward to your reply

Yours faithfully

And in my separate letter of complaint to customer service I would write:

I am writing to complain about your customer service in relation to train delays or cancellations.

1st of December 2007, because of reasons not specified to the passengers, train 564, scheduled for 9.02 am, from Edinburgh Haymarket to London Euston was delayed for two hours.

I was therefore not able to reach my connecting train from London Euston to Paris, which was scheduled for 5.10 pm. So I was forced to change my original booking and spend an additional sum of £ 20. Furthermore I had to spend an extra hour an a half at the train station.

Not only were the passengers not informed of the reasons for the delay, service staff were also highly unfriendly when I inquired about the estimated time of arrival.
Arriving at the desired destination in time is the main service I expect when buying your product. Therefore, when this cannot be provided, I should at least be able to expect adequate treatment by your service staff.

Yours faithfully

[David L.]

Dear Sir or Madam

re Claim for Compensation, Regulation Xyz.

I wish to claim compensation in the amount of £ 20, as per Regulation Xyz.

For reasons not specified to the passengers, the Edinburgh Haymarket to London Euston train 564, scheduled for 9.02 am, 1st December 2007, was delayed for two hours.

As a result, I was not able to make my connecting train from London Euston to Paris, which was scheduled for 5.10 pm. To change my booking to a later train, I incurred an additional charge of £ 20.

Please send me the above mentioned sum within 15 days after receipt of this letter on the bank account below.

This involves an electronic bank transfer for which their accounts department may not be geared up with respect to this kind of claim. It is more likely that a cheque will be sent to the address you quote on your letter. Hence :

I would prefer that the monies be credited to my bank account, and provide the necessary details below. Failing this, cheque for compensation may be forwarded to my address as above.

I remain

Yours faithfully

IF YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TRAIN TICKET ENCLOSE THAT AS PROOF OF TRAVEL
And in my separate letter of complaint to customer service I would write:

I am writing to complain about your customer service in relation to train delays and cancellations.

On 1st December 2007, your Edinburgh Haymarket to London Euston train 564, scheduled for 9.02 am, was delayed for two hours. Not only were the passengers not informed of the reasons for the delay, but my enquiry as to the eventual time of arrival was met with a brusque couldn't-care-less attitude on the part of your staff.

As a consequence, I was unable to make my international train connection from London Euston, scheduled for 5.10 pm. Adding insult to injury, I incurred a £20 change of booking fee and forced to wait an extra hour-and-a-half at the train station.

Customers expect and depend on the reliability of your service to reach their destination on time. When this cannot be provided, I should at least be able to expect more friendly and informative treatment by your service staff.

Yours faithfully

[student07]

Thank you