Come Fly With Me

I used the MADE model yesterday to write a letter of complaint. It was on behalf of my mother who endured a torrid time on a recent holiday. 

I won’t go into the details of what happened and the company’s pathetic response but let’s just say it’s been quite a . . . Saga.

I thought I’d use the experience to highlight a few things I’ve touched on before in these emails but using this experience I’ll put them all together. 

I’ll cover:

1. Why you should complain
2. When to complain
3. How to complain
4. Who to complain to
5. What to expect

Come Fly With Me

From the very start of her trip my mother experienced a catalogue of failures by the holiday company. Their response was effectively a shrug and a whole load of admin for her to contend with during and after the holiday. Not great.

1 - Why You Should Complain

The main complaint is that she was left completely alone on arrival in Malaga at 1am. She needs Passenger Assist and they didn’t turn up. Her suitcase was missing. The holiday representative didn’t show up and the transfer taxi knowingly left without her. She ended paying 150 euros for a taxi and got to the hotel at 3.30am.

There are plenty of reasons in that one single paragraph to make an official complaint so I won’t share any further details. But trust me, it got worse. 

Why complain though? At the very least because she paid for a service that they didn’t provide. Any company that prides itself on passenger care needs to know what went wrong.

They need to be informed so that they can change their systems, ensure it doesn’t happen again and they can consider how to provide an appropriate response.

2 - When To Complain

If you’ve decided to complain then you should do so at your earliest opportunity. 

My mum didn’t do this. She did what many people do when faced with a difficult situation, she tried to put it to the back of her mind, soldier on and enjoy her holiday. 

If too much time passes a company can easily say “Well, you didn’t make a fuss at the time.”

I completely understand why people sometimes don’t address things there and then. I’ll not bother complaining about a crap meal if it’s going to be more of a hassle and the meal is just one part of a fun day. It can be better overall to suck it up and never darken their doors with your presence or money ever again.

But waiting isn’t ideal when making a complaint. So because the situation hadn’t been raised immediately as a clear and overt complaint I decided that the complaint should come from me. 

3 - How To Complain

How you complain is very important. I only learned about the situation after I picked my mum up from Gatwick on her return. Knowing that she hadn’t made a timely complaint could reduce its impact. But I had only just learned about the situation. So the complaint is from me.

I was furious. Which is fine, but it doesn’t mean you should be loud and shouty in your complaint. I’d suggest the exact opposite. 

Channel your anger. This is exactly the time you need to put emotion to one side and follow a template. I use the MADE model and it does the work for you.

You’ll remember that the MADE model is made up of:

M - Message. “I am writing directly to you on behalf of my mother who recently endured appalling treatment whilst on a (company name) holiday.”

A - Action. “I would like you to address the matter personally because the attempts by (company name) staff so far have proved to be inadequate and are only causing further work and distress for my mother.”

D - Detail. A matter of fact chronological timeline of events interspersed with my considered, but always calm, thoughts about them. Just the 1500 words. 

E - Evidence. Flight times and numbers. Names of hotel and hotel staff. Receipts for purchasing replacement clothes and toiletries.

Within the MADE model you’ve provided everything the company needs to act on a complain and structured it in a way that will help them act. It offers them no wriggle room for squirming out of an ‘appropriate response’.

4 - Who To Complain To

Normal channels of complaint are there for a reason and they’re often very responsive. But sometimes they’re not. On occasions where you get messed about or ignored I go straight to the top.

My mum had already spoken to a company employee who agreed that the situation needed to be addressed. Yet three days after my mum arriving home there had been no contact from that person or anyone else from the company.

Time to complain - bypass the layers and go straight to the top of the food chain.

Find the name of the Chief Executive and write to them. If it’s a letter you’re writing then address it Personal and Private. This will ensure that there is a good chance they will open it themselves. Or if not perhaps their private secretary will and it will get dealt with promptly. 

These days I search online for the email of the CEO. It’s usually available. I use that email address and also cc the complaint to their standard ‘[email protected]’ to ensure it gets to the company.

Write a clear but succinct header line. This is what I wrote. 

“FAO Mr (name of CEO): Iain Smith - (name of company) Holiday Ruined - Response Required”

It will get to them. They will take a look at it, see from the structure of your complaint that you are serious and organised, and not just angry and rambling. They will hand it to the right person and say “deal with this now”.

That’s been my experience for the last twenty years of using this model of making complaints. 

Don’t get me wrong, I’m really not Mr Angry. I don’t sit writing letters all day but when I do I expect it to be dealt with. Going to the top expedites a resolution. 

Having said that you have to know what you want the outcome to be. What do you want the resolution to be?

5 - What To Expect

You have to let them know what it is you expect them to do. If you are writing to get things off your chest and don’t say what you want then they won’t know what to do. 

Usually I have a very specific response in mind and will say so. (By the way if you want a payment then make sure you use the word ‘goodwill gesture’ rather than ‘compensation’.)

For this particular complaint I wasn’t sure what I wanted the outcome to be. Also it’s a little mixed as I might want one thing for my mum, but my mum might want another. And I didn’t want to discuss ideas with her and suggest something, only for that not to happen or cause more stress.

So I phrased my desired outcome with two lines. One near the start:

“I am very much looking forward to hearing what you think should be done to address this situation and how you think you will be able to make amends to my mother.”

And a second at the end:

“I am looking forward to your prompt response to this letter and to hear what you think an appropriate response would be.”

This is deliberately vague and puts the ball in their court for making amends. It also taps into the negotiation technique of never being the first person to name the price.

Also I’m genuinely intrigued as to what a multi million pound travel company who prides themselves on providing hassle free holidays for the older generation think is an ‘appropriate response’ to my complaint.

A Quick One

I sent my email at 15.16 yesterday. The reply from the CEO landed in my inbox at 17.47. 

Speedy responses have been the norm whenever I’ve employed this model for making a serious complaint.

The CEO explained that they were very concerned about the complaint and emphasised how seriously they took it. They promised to look into it as a priority and “revert with a full response and any additional appropriate actions within the next 24 hours.”

The Battle Nevermore

This week’s Top Tip is to choose your battles. Well, actually it’s to let most stuff slide. Most things really aren’t worth the hassle and you could be spending time doing fun stuff instead. 

But on those few events that need addressing, my advice is to go in hard. Use the steps I’ve shared and the MADE model. 

Even using my method it still took four hours to write that complaint and it was a tedious, onerous task. But I think it is a worthy cause and a battle I’ve chosen.

Hope you find today’s email useful if you ever need to make a complaint.