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| By Max Power - ConsumerFight.com I have used this technique several times against companies that like to give me the famous "runaround" regarding refunds of money, crediting my account, warranty disputes, service disputes, or other types of "unfair business practices". This only works against "real" businesses and not some fly by night place that is totally scamming people fraudulently then are nowhere to be found. If that is your situation your only solution is to file a complaint with the FTC, the Attorney General and If you want to waste your time also file with the BBB. To start lets assume you have tried everything to get a refund (or a service remedy, a credit to your acct., to fulfill a warranty, etc.) and have not received satisfaction. If you keep getting the "runaround" and/or your calls or e-mail's are not answered its time to put "plan B" into action. Call customer service and ask for the legal department. This alone may get you to the right person to solve your problem. If you reach someone that has the authority to help you, always give them a time line to solve your issue: "If my issue is not resolved to my satisfaction within 3 days (or 2 days, etc.) I'm prepared to go forward with other remedies". The problem with customer service is the person on the line (if you reach a human) probably could care less about your problem. They usually just read a prepared script. Unless you get a real supervisor you probably won't get very far and God help you if your call winds up in India or Jamaica with someone who's accent makes it difficult to understand what's being said. ( thats another story for another time ) Still no progress after the time limit? It's time to FIGHT BACK the ConsumerFight.com way. Take the following action. You are going to send a letter to the Legal Department. This is going to be a threat of a lawsuit which gets amazing results. Type out a letter with the heading "NOTICE BEFORE LAWSUIT". Then in the body of the letter explain what your issue is all about. BE SPECIFIC. Give details of what you have done so far in trying to solve the issue such as dates and times you have already called or e-mailed them. Next explain what you want them to do. Again BE SPECIFIC. If you will only accept a refund then state that in the letter. If you are willing to accept a credit state that. Next write "If you still refuse to solve my issue I would like to have a judge decide the outcome of this dispute since your company has decided to ignore me several times to resolve my issue". Next state exactly what date you will file the paperwork for the lawsuit if your issue is not resolved. I like to give them about 2 weeks from the date you mail the letter as this gives a large company time to get to the letter and shows you are serious and not unreasonable. My experience has been your issue is usually handled by a corporate representative instead of a lawyer. They save them for serious litigation. Mention how you would like them to contact you such as by phone, letter or e-mail. Try to keep the letter no longer than 2 pages if possible and include a copy of any records of calls and/or e-mail's if you have any. Be sure to sign, date and make a copy of everything. Go to the Post Office and mail the letter Certified with Delivery Confirmation, return receipt. This has worked about 95% of the time for me and many times for my friends and acquaintances. It all depends on your particular situation. One thing is certain. The expense involved of sending a representative to a small claims case is usually prohibitive for a large company and forces them to make a decision about your issue. The last time I did this was in November of 2007 and within 3 days of mailing the letter, I received a phone call from the corporate office saying they would credit my account that day because I was a "valued customer". Why wasn't I a "valued customer" at the beginning of my issue? This involved an early termination fee of $175 with Sprint that I refused to pay. I also added some other costs to be compensated for their terrible customer service handling of this issue. SEE THE ACTUAL LETTER BY CLICKING ON THIS LINK ( only personal information Iisremoved) Only a very small percentage of consumers will actually take the time to write this type of letter. Companies know this. They also know most consumers make "empty threats" but stop short of any type of follow through. It only costs a few bucks to try this so you really have nothing to lose. If you get no response or they still wont budge (very unlikely) you can still go through with the lawsuit. It's cheap, easy, and just actually filing it and them receiving the paperwork for the lawsuit may also work. Check our links page to get information on complete details about filing a lawsuit in Small Claims Court. I have been to small claims court several times, it's easy and cheap and I only lost once (It was a stupid "Commissioner" Judge.) |
THE MOTHER OF ALL DEMAND LETTERS or " My Method of Getting a Refund FAST " |