Margaret Garcia at the Wise Bread blog shares her stories of consumer product woe and notes that in three separate cases, phone calls and emails led to half-hearted apologies, but ink-on-paper letters got her and her family free replacements:

(My husband has) bought the same model of New Balance running shoes four times and they've all worn and cracked in the exact same place. He called and complained a few times, but his last letter earned him a pair of new New Balance shoes free.

What companies have shown you true remorse with free gear when you wrote them? How do you phrase a letter to make sure it gets heard? Let's hear your tips and strategies in the comments. Photo by ivanatm.

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For many people, banks are large corporations which can be intimidating to deal with. But if they make a mistake or start giving you bad customer service, you'll need to speak up. Here are some tips from Lifehacker tipster Paul Fenwick, who recently got his mortgage provider to reverse a $400 charge they'd put on his loan without notice.

Paul's advice? Take notes, be unfailingly polite but persist in escalating your complaint, and be prepared to take your case to the ombudsman (BFSO) or appropriate body (such as VCAT in Victoria).

"As it happens, I've never had a case go to either the BFSO or VCAT, and that included our dispute with RHG. Why? Because it's much cheaper for the dispute department to roll over on a $400 dispute than it is to go through all the time and expense of a legal process. Even if they win, the time taken to bring a dispute through VCAT will end up costing them more than $400. This sort of process tends to be a very reliable way, albeit a somewhat time consuming one, to resolve a dispute with most large organisations."

Check out Paul's blog for the full story. And if you liked his hack, check out his previous Lifehacker tips - including how to declutter the web using Greasemonkey, and how to hack the best seat on an airplane. Thanks for the tip, Paul!

Beating up banks - a tale of success [Paul Fenwick]

While many call centres these days record support calls, it can help you to keep them accountable (and keep track of your account details) if you keep notes on any support calls you make.
You don't need a word-by-word transcript, but here are some basic facts you can note down:

• the date and time of your call
• the name of the operator
•  any specific details related to your call such as dates, times, or payment amounts discussed
  
• if they say anything which seems odd or wrong to you, make note of it. For example, a staffer at one ISP told me it didn't matter what phone provider I used, I'd be able to get their internet regardless. It seemed odd, and sure enough, when I rang back the next day to connect, I was told that I had to be with Telstra or a Telstra wholesaler to get their service.

Having these notes to hand can make any followup support calls much easier for you and the company you're calling.

My other advice is to ask questions to clarify anything complex, and repeat it back to them. Saying "So if I understood you correctly, the situation is..." can help make sure you're both on the same page.

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There's nothing like the feeling that you've just paid far too much for something — or, even worse, nothing — to get your adrenaline pumping and your mind spinning up angry emails and phone calls. Trent at The Simple Dollar blog, however, writes that that's the easiest way to waste time and get a worse resolution to the problem. He suggests taking time to write down exactly what the problem is and detail the entire situation, but, more importantly, consider how important it really is before you start yelling. If it is a major migraine-maker:

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The new Wired has just come through my letterbox, and the cover story is "Why Things Suck". They list 33 lousy products and failed technologies - from teleconferencing and printer cartridges to spam filters and wireless speakers, and ask WHY?
If I had to nominate my pet tech peeve at the moment I would have to say it's customer service, particularly in the telco space. Don't get me started on how difficult it was to churn providers recently, and how tempted I was to take my new provider to the Ombudsman for their poor handling of my credit check (the person handling my complaint said that the credit check department had assumed based on my accent that I was a recent arrival from overseas - which was not only incorrect but shows a really revolting bias in their methods too).
Time for some unabashed venting, methinks. So what's your pet tech-related peeve, and how do you reckon it can (or should) be fixed?

When getting things done involves making phone calls, you want to spend the least amount of time and money on the horn as possible—and several tricks and services can help you do just that. With the right tones, keypresses, phone numbers, and know-how, you can skip through or cut off long-winded automated voice systems and humans, access web services by voice, and smartly screen incoming calls. Check out our pick of the 10 best telephony techniques for getting more done in less time over the phone.

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