Mastering Formal Letter Writing

Writing a Formal Letter of Complaint

• The letter is a formal complaint about the service received on a holiday with Feel Free Travel.
• The complaint is specific to the accommodation and food on an 8-day tour of Greece.
• The writer highlights that the brochure promised "clean, mid-range hotels" but the Olympia Hotel was dirty and the Opera Hotel was in a noisy and unsafe part of town.
• The brochure also stated that all meals were included, but the food served at the hotel restaurant was not up to standard.
• The writer used connectors, such as "Firstly" and "Secondly", to move from one problem to the next.
• Passive voice was used to explain what happened to the writer, for example, "I was shocked by the food that we were served".
• Reported speech was used to describe information from the brochure, such as "your brochure said that we would stay in 'clean, mid-range hotels'".
• The letter is structured into paragraphs, with the first introducing the complaint and giving essential details such as the location and time.
• The next paragraphs give further details of the problem, using connectors to move from one issue to the next.
• The letter ends with a statement of what the writer wants to happen next, such as "I feel that I am entitled to a refund to compensate for this terrible service".
• Adjectives are used to show the writer's feelings, for example, "extremely disappointed" and "very anxious".
• The writer is advised to use a calm and polite tone to make the letter effective.