Write a polite complaint letter that asks for one clear thing

What you'll need

• What you bought or asked for, when, and what went wrong
• What you want now (a refund, a repair, a correction), one outcome
• Any record you have: order number, amount, a photo described in words

Step 1: Get the facts out of the feelings

Help me write a complaint letter. First, do not draft it.
Ask me up to 5 questions so the letter can include: what I bought or requested, the date, what went wrong, what I already tried, and the one outcome I want.
If I don't know a detail, we will say so. Do not invent order numbers, amounts, or promises the company made.

Answer the questions with what you know. Skip anything you would have to guess.

Step 2: Draft short and specific

Now draft the letter.
- Under 200 words
- Polite and direct
- Order: what happened, the date and amount I gave you, what I already tried, the one outcome I want, and how to reach me (I'll add my phone or email myself)
- No threats, no insults, no legal citations
- If a fact was missing, leave a blank like [order number] rather than guessing

Step 3: Read it as if you are the person who has to fix it

Can they tell what to do by the second sentence? If the outcome is buried, move it up. Fill every blank or delete that sentence.

Here is my edited letter: [paste].
Point out any sentence that is vague, angry, or states a fact I did not give you.
Do not add a new demand.

Step 4: Send it through the company's own channel

Use the support form, the email on the receipt, or the address on the bill. Keep a copy. Attach the photo or receipt yourself. Do not include your password or full card number.

Director check: look before you use it

• Is every date, amount, and order number one you checked? A wrong number slows the fix.
• Are you asking for one outcome? "Refund or replacement or apology or compensation" is not a request they can grant.
• Would you be willing to read this aloud to a person? If a line is only there to vent, cut it.
• Are you stating a law you have not verified? Take it out, or check it with a qualified source first.

A thank-you, a refund note, or a credit-report dispute is a different letter. Use Write a letter for those, and stay here when the whole job is one complaint.

One extra tip

Paste your edited letter into a second free assistant, Claude if you drafted it in ChatGPT, and ask only: "Which sentence sounds angry or vague?" Do not let that second draft add a new demand or a dollar amount you didn't choose.