November 6, 2011

McDonald's complaint letter

I wrote the following letter - and mailed it - earlier this month. I've decided to post it because I didn't receive a response from the company. Maybe now I will...

McDonald's Restaurants of Canada Ltd. 

McDonald's Place

Toronto, ON
M3C 3L4

October 3, 2011

Dear sir/madam:

I would like to begin this letter by making it clear that this is the first time I have written to a company with a complaint. Usually, I simply explain my grievance to as many people as possible, and hope that word of my frustration spreads. This time, however, I feel it is necessary to ensure my voice is heard.

For the last eight years, I have not eaten fast food at any chain restaurant – McDonald’s included. It is not a type of meal that appeals to me.

This past summer, I discovered your Dollar Drink Days promotion. It was an unusually hot July afternoon, and my coworker took me through the drive thru. She ordered me a vanilla iced coffee – even though I politely declined – and grudgingly I drank it.

It might have been a combination of the heat, my overall exhaustion, or the employee who mixed the drink, but I can honestly say it was the best iced coffee I have ever had in my entire life. Period.

I have driven to McDonald’s (even when the nearest location was nowhere near my destination) almost every single day since that initial encounter in July. My purchase is the same every time – a large vanilla iced coffee – and some of the employees at the branch near my home have even started to recognize me. I realize that I’m not buying full meals from you, but I am still a paying customer who likes a product.

Enter my frustration.

After work today, I drove through McDonald’s as I normally do to order my iced coffee for the drive home from work. When I was handed the beverage, I knew something was wrong immediately. The liquid was completely discoloured, and looked more like milk chocolate than the caramel tone I was accustomed to.

I asked the employee at the window if something was off with the beverage. He rolled his eyes, curtly replied “no,” and shut the window. As I explained earlier in this letter, I really enjoy your product, so I knocked on the window. When the employee opened it, I asked if he could remake my drink. He rolled his eyes again, and said “lady, there is nothing wring with it.” Then, he closed the window again.

Fuming – and slightly embarrassed at having been denied – I drove away. Sticking the straw into the drink as I entered rush hour traffic, I took a cautious sip.

Awful. Simply awful.

The coffee was either burnt or very, very old. Either way, it was definitely not drinkable. I considered turning around and returning to the McDonald’s branch, but decided against it. At that point, I just wanted to get home. I also decided against calling the branch and complaining, because I didn’t want to encounter another employee who was as rude as the one at the drive thru window.

All I purchase at McDonald’s is iced coffee. It is the best I have ever had – until today – and rivals every single high-end coffee shop I have ever visited. McDonald’s is pushing to be recognized as a coffee shop in addition to a restaurant, and I was on board with this shift. Now, I am frustrated and unsure how to proceed.

I don’t know if I will continue to purchase iced coffee at your branches anymore. I’m very disappointed – both in my treatment by your employee and in the condition of the beverage I purchased. It should have been a no-brainer – make the customer happy and mix another drink.

My email address is amanda.hope@live.com. I would love to hear from you.

Sincerely,
Amanda Hope

17 comments:

  1. Great letter! I made my own complaint to McDonald's this past summer (the branch near my home has spelled Nikola Tesla's name incorrectly on their mural), and I was ignored via Twitter. I had to complain several times, via DM and publicly before my complaint was properly acknowledged. They said there was nothing they could do about it.

    So, I've simply decided not to visit the branch again. And I may not visit any other branch, either. Unlike you, there isn't a specific McDonald's product I've fallen in love with. Generally any meal I have at McDonald's is somewhat disappointing anyway, so it's only a meal I choose in desperation.

    I hope they respond to you, because the "customer service" you received was appalling. It'd cost them a nickel to make your beverage over again, and that's what should have happened.

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  2. I used to work at a McDonald's in high school, and yeah, the go-to solution for a dissatisfied customer was always throw free things at them. I did it a lot [bitchy people!] and it usually worked [except for the time I had a McFlurry thrown at my head]!

    The only thing I can think of is the employee that shot you down was having a bad day, but that is still no excuse. You're request was not complicated in the least. It would have taken him literally 30 seconds to make another drink for you.

    I'm surprised they haven't responded to you... a massive corporation like McDicks should have an army of people waiting to satisfy you. How long has it been since you sent the letter?

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  3. Amanda Hope6/11/11 6:33 PM

    It has been almost a month since I sent the letter. I used to be a manager at Tim Hortons, and we did the same thing - free stuff to satisfy the customer.

    Maybe they thought my letter wasn't serious? I plan to keep tweeting them until they reply :)

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  4. Auntie Gail7/11/11 2:53 PM

    How about bombarding their head office with phone calls to the CEOs each day?

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  5. To Whom It May Concern

    I want to draw your kind attention that I have been treated badly in McDonald by your employee and manager. I am one of the regular customers of Porirua McDonald and I live opposite door of that store. It was on Sunday, 1st of July 2012, at 10.55 pm, when I wanted to enter the main entrance; I saw the manager Bryce closed the door in front of me. On the main door it says that the ‘main door’ will remain open till 12 midnight. I was very hungry at that time and I was not happy that Bryce will lock the door in front of me even he saw I wanted to come in. Then I went to the Window of McDonald to order Chicken Mccheese for the “loose change” deal. The young girl who was there behind the window counter found talking with her friend outside and said that I am not allowed to get ‘loose change’ deal because it is 3 minutes pass 11 o clock. I explained that I came right before 11 pm to get the deal but the guy who closed the door could not allow me to get it in time. She said that she does not care what I said but can confirm that I am not going to get that deal. Her friend was also trying to intervene in the matter by making unnecessary mocking comments. I said to him that I was not talking to him and then the girl was bit rude and asked whether I wanted to place an order or not. I said that I only want ‘loose change’ offer and according to me, I came to McDonald just before 11 pm. I then requested her to talk to the manager and thus Bryce (I came to know the name from then) turned up and said the same thing. He also explained that because there was less staff in the store, he closed the main door before 12 midnight. When I said that according to the policy, you are not supposed to do that, he replied with rudeness that he did not care what I say. He can do whatever he thinks as a manager of the store. I also explained him that I live just opposite your door and being a regular customer I should not be treated like this. I also added up that I cannot sleep some of the nights because the customers outside the Window of McDonald shout, yell and beep the horn of the car. I also informed him that I am going to report it to the head office about it and he welcomed me to do that. Then I purchased a Cheese burger and at the time of leaving the window, I heard that girl was swearing on me to the Manager Bryce. I felt very humiliated and stressed by that mistreatment and could not sleep in the night. The burger I had was also not made properly as it was squeezed when I opened the wrapper. I had a stomach cramp after eating that burger in the night. The next day when I came to work in the airport, my fellow colleague said that next time I go to the McDonald; they may spit on my burger. He said that is the nature of the employee of McDonald, that if any customer make any complaint against them, they will spit on their burgers when they order in the future. Now, if that is true, I am quite dependant on McDonald, Porirua because most of the time I have my dinner from there.

    Now, as a respectable and reputed company in the world market, I believe that my complaint should be dealt with serious concern by McDonald. I also want to add that I bear all the discomfort of staying opposite to McDonald especially in the weekend because of the noise of the drunk customers and then I have been treated badly by the employees. I am planning to make a complaint to the city council with my neighbors that we cannot sleep properly in the night because of the customers of McDonald.

    I hope you will treat this complaint as urgent as possible. If I do not get any justice or satisfactions from this complain, I want to go to the concerned department to raise my issues.

    Thanking You

    With Best Regards

    Ujjal Ghosh (0225266411)
    12, Kenepuru Drive, Porirua
    Wellington

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  7. I was at the Mc Donalds located at 1185 E. Cumberland Street Dunn, NC 28334 Tel# 910-891-1293 Store#37410. The customer was sitting on the opposite side from the children playground section and her daughter who was playing in the 3 year old section told my grand daughter that she could not play in the play ground area of McDonald's. the young lady appear to be around 14 years old and not 11 years old. The mother approached me about her daughter and asked me did I say her daughter couldn't play in the playground, however it was the opposite. the next thing I know a manager was in my face asking me did I say that her daughter could not play. Yes I told her if my 3 yr old grand daughter can't play then she certainly can't play. McDonald's need to pay more attention to their playground area and it will keep down conflict. I am writing the headquarters about this.

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  8. Its Mcdonalds. Chill

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  9. apparently the Mcdonalds in Sahuarita, Arizona is on all the Local Law enforcement don't eat while in uniform list. They arrested too many of the workers and had strange issues with the food.

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  10. So much bad service in johar town .I was call 11 clock for ice cream but no one come still 12 clock again call him and order them . shit service .

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  11. My mom fell at McDonald's on October 14, 2017 and scarred her knee. She's also having back problems. Her slipped a disk in her back also, the X_Ray shows that also. Now she's having problems with both her back and knee. I bandaged her up in the parking lot. We called McDonald's about it. They told us they'd have an insurance adjuster called. Well when he did call, he was rude and asked us to send the pictures of where she fell. I emailed him the pictures yesterday. The next day he had a nerve to call my mom today and told her there wasn't any reason why she should've felt because it wasn't wet. Keep in mind my mom is 64 years old. The garbage can where she was trying to through garbage anyway at was too far back for her to reach and too far up for her to step at which caused the fall in the first place. That's was the reason why she fell. On top of that there are a number of reason why she could've fell. But he was too blind to see that. The insurance adjuster's name is Neal Patel and he's a real asshole. But this is why I'm making the complaint. We're going to take legal action against this!

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  14. Hi am complaining about the paper straws they are absolutely rubbish and can't get my drink through the straw so they need go back to plastic straws instead of paper straws

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  15. I had 20 nuggests and u have gave me the shits thanks alot u born idle crack pot

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  16. ScMmer

    You sincerly pissed of customer

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