Help writing complaint letter

[PermaChanged]

I'm pretty terrible at letter writing, and would be really grateful of some help in making a letter more concise to hit in the right way.

In simple terms, I want to dispute the amount I owe to a company due to their incompetence in providing a service which we signed up for to a satisfactory level, and general incompetencies within the whole installation of the service and their outright lies. I believe we have good rationale and reason to withhold some of the payment, but I would love some help and advice!

It relates to a heat pump and cylinder install being carried out - we signed up for the install on 04/05/2023, and was finally functioning 10/10/2023. The dates given here are the important milestones of the screw ups, and everything inbetween these dates is just general chasers and back and forth, no real substance to them for the pertinent points but do present that this was a long drawn out scenario.

This letter is being sent in relation to the work which has been carried out under reference number Q1373, and the recent requests for payment of invoice number INV-XXX, dated 27th February 2024 in the sum of GBP XXXX.

Please treat this letter as a formal complaint, for which we’re demanding a reduction in funds owed/compensation on the grounds of unsatisfactory workmanship, poor service and inadequate specialist knowledge of YOUR COMAPNY, which have resulted in a multitude of contentious issues and problems as outlined below.


Claiming to be an MCS certified.

Within the original quotation supplied by YOUR COMPANY, the claim was made that YOUR COMPANY were “fully MCS registered” which is a complete misrepresentation of the product and service level being able to be offered by YOUR COMPANY. Please see attachment 1.

General Timeframes and Incorrect Products

The originally provided quotation of the heat pump system was extremely vague in terms of the cylinder which would be provided as part of the system, not even supplying the capacity of the cylinder let alone any further detail. Given the installation location of the cylinder and the size limitation of the space which was allocated for it, it was important we knew exactly the cylinder which formed part of the quote that would be supplied. Prior to agreeing to commence with works and signing of the agreement this was queried, please see the attachment named “04.05.2022 - Cylinder confirmation”, where it was confirmed we would be supplied with a 210l Mitsubishi cylinder along with a spec sheet provided for it. We signed the quotation on this basis. When the heat pump system and cylinder arrived on site the cylinder which arrived was not what had previously been agreed. I sent an e-mail detailing why the provided cylinder was inferior to what was agreed, and why it was not a suitable substitute for what was agreed, please see attachment named “15.12.2022 – Cylinder Details”. The differences highlighted in this email are not a comprehensive list as to why the Joule product is an inferior for the purpose of coupling with the heat pump, other differences such as it being heated via an inefficient coil-based system against the Mitsubishi using a plate heat exchanger and no live temperature monitoring via MelCloud is another example – it’s laughable that this was tried to be passed off as being a suitable substitute to be made.

04.05.2022 E-Mail

Spoiler

This email was sent along with the following spec sheet attached - https://library.mitsubishielectric....0X-UKHDW1L_Product_Information_Sheet#page-1-2

From: Them
To: Us

It’s a 210l Cylinder, please see attached spec sheet.

From: Us
To: Them

Thank you for providing, the attached. Before signing and paying the deposit, please can you confirm what size cylinder has been included in the spec in terms of litres – the particular model number would be even better if possible

Cheers,

From: Them
To: Us

Yes, it’s the Mitsubishi cylinder and that pricing is correct - please find attached the quote amended to include both the ASHP and Pool pump and pricing.

Let us know if you have any questions.

15.12.2022 E-Mail

Spoiler

Ultimately, our decision is to opt to have the cylinder swapped out to the Mitsubishi pre-plumbed 210l one which formed part of the original quote, as attached, for the reasons below;



The Joule cylinder is not pre-plumbed - with plumbers charging in excess of £40p/h for their services any time saved on labour will be significant financially

The Joule cylinder has 50mm of insulation, the Mitsubishi has 60mm – we’ve literally spent thousands of pounds on insulation alone while renovating, now is not the time to skimp out. This insulation difference does amount to standing heat loss differences between the two cylinders

The Joule cylinder stores only 194l of hot water, not the 210l capacity of the Mitsubishi.

By the 19th July 2023, over 7 months later, we had still not received the cylinder we had signed up for, which meant we were still unable to move forward with the installation of the system, we had been fobbed off multiple times with stories of “supply issues” being the cause of the delay so a strongly worded e-mail was sent expressing dissatisfaction with the service received to date, please see attachment named “19.12.2023 – Chain relating to dissatisfaction”.

19.12.2023 E-Mail

Spoiler

From: Us
To: Them

We do want the pre-plumbed cylinder, as this is what we agreed upon when we first signed contracts with yourselves – we even went as far as confirming the exact cylinder by requesting a model number we would be receiving before signing contracts (E-Mail 1), as we like to know exactly what we’re signing up to. Should we had opted for a non pre-plumbed option we would incur all the additional plumbing costs associated with putting the system together, rather than a simple connection job which is the primary benefit of a pre-plumbed cylinder, not to mention one warranty with Mitsubishi covering all elements.

We were advised at the point we signed up that your current lead times were 16 weeks – we’re now at 63 weeks (E-Mail 2).

Please can you advise if you have any reasonable remediation suggestions to the situation we’re in, other than offering/sending us an inferior product to what we originally signed up for (E-Mail 3), which would also incur additional expenses in plumbing should we go that route.

From: Them
To: Us

Ive followed this up regularly with our supplier and the answer has been the same each time in that they are not available in the UK currently, this was the answer I got last month also, ive followed up again and will let you know what they come back with.

I know it’s the pre-plumbed cylinder your looking for and this is the one which is likely to be unavailable , there is the option to just plumb the system in in a normal fashion and have your heating up and running within a few days , the cylinder can hen be added on at any given time when it becomes available .

Im not sure of the hold up on production, I do know that often when these things are taking so long it is likely Mitsubishi are re-designing their product range and waiting for the newer models to become available.

I apologise again for the communication, on the note of the Pool Heat Pump, now we have this in stock, do you have an idea when you will be ready for it to be fitted ?

From: Us
To: Them

We really need to get moving on the cylinder so we can complete our home heat pump install, it’s getting ridiculous now that it’s been 15 months since we signed contracts and we still don’t have the required equipment on site. At the current speed of operations we will once again not have heating for the winter and is causing knock on issues with the rest of the home renovation.

I appreciate that supply issues have caused part of the problem, but the lack of communication and updates throughout the arrangement is inexcusable.

Given the 15 months since contracts were signed we’d expect any communication issues that we’d encountered at the beginning would have been solved, but as you’re aware just last week we had another unannounced, and foolishly placed, delivery. Again, I appreciate the placement of the heat pump was not your doing, and also appreciate that it was quickly remedied, but again it does not excuse the lack of communication from Little Green Energy – communication with ourselves would have ensured this didn’t happen as we could have made arrangements to be there for the delivery and saved everyone time and effort.

You were made aware of the incorrect cylinder being delivered back on the 15th December 2022, and it then took 7 months until it was collected by your team - as it turned out it was only collected by them in error rather than via planned action too! How long would it have taken had we not been home when they showed up unannounced? They would have taken the pool heat pump (which once again we had no idea was being collected due to a lack of communication) and we’d likely still be stuck storing the wrong cylinder and ancillaries on your behalf.

4 months ago we paid the 40% you requested in good faith, which we were not required to do so due to the lack of equipment being on site, and are left feeling rather foolish for this given the complete lack of update or goods since. All communications we have is instigated by ourselves, as you are not forthcoming with information.

These communication issues do not even touch on the issues we’ve encountered with the substandard quality of the electrical install, which Guernsey Electricity were not prepared to sign off. That can be another matter we can deal with separately if not remediated to the expected standards, and is a rather moot point currently given we’re not even in a position to be switching on the system due to a lack of goods.

What is going on, where are our goods and when will your honour your side of the signed contract?

Please arrange to provide your response via email, as we want to ensure there is no misunderstanding of the current circumstances, and so we have something to refer back to.

This email seemed to have the desired effect, as on 20th July 2023 it was confirmed that the cylinders were starting to come back in to stock, and a lead time of 2 weeks was supplied. Given all the previous fobbing off we’d been given I do not believe this is coincidental, I truly believe YOUR COMPANY were stalling us as long as possible to get us to succumb and accept the inferior product already supplied but we were finally moving in the right direction and we were optimistic of having our heating system up and running before winter.

Just 6 days later the optimism that things were moving in the right direction were dashed, the supplier sent the “300L version as this is all they had in stock”. As previously mentioned, allocated space for the cylinder was tight and the 300 litre variant of the cylinder simply wouldn’t fit. However, we accommodated and allowed for this change for two primary reasons;

1. We were fed up of delaying the install of our heating system and wanted to be warm this winter (something which we lack in 2022)
2. The cylinder had all the features of the agreed 210 litre version, and the only difference is the capacity.

The agreement to change cylinder size was not one which was taken lightly, as it has meant we’ve had to completely redesign our bathroom layout to accommodate a cupboard suitable for this larger cylinder. Once carpentry work to create a space for the cylinder and plumbing works were completed our next set of issues started, the first being the most concerning.

General Electrical Work – ELECTRICITY PROVIDER Refused Sign Off

The general electrical work conducted in line with the install of the system was not signed off by ELECTRICITY PROVIDER in its initial form. I was personally present when ELECTRICITY PROVIDER came to sign off the work and liven up the feed to the heat pump, and they were completely gobsmacked at the standard of the work and refused to liven up the supplies. We were given a forewarning that sign off of the work would be unlikely by another electrician who completed our full house rewiring who even commented “I would expect more of an apprentice, and even then, they’d be told to rip it out and do it again”. ELECTRICITY PROVIDER took issue with;

• The armouring of the armoured cable had not been earthed
• The consumer unit had a hole drilled in it in an incorrect place, leaving open access to the electrical connections

This lack of basic electrical competence is extremely worrying, as lack of earthing and open access to electrical connections in a consumer unit are both potential shock and fire hazards. I appreciate that this work was remediated to a standard suitable for sign off, but this only slowed down an already extremely slow supply, installation and commissioning process.


Specific Wiring - Relevant to the system

After the general electrical work was remediated and ELECTRICITY PROVIDER livened up the connections the next set of issues arose, again caused by poor installation and lack of expertise of the systems being worked with.

The electrician assigned to the job did his best to try and get the system up and running, but openly admitted he was not au fait with the systems having not worked on them previously. I don’t fault him for his efforts, I fault YOUR COMPANY for not sending someone competent and in the know.

After commissioning and handing over the system to ourselves I could tell there were issues, as when thermostats were calling for heat there was no response from the heat pump. Controlling the behaviour of the heat pump and cylinder via the installed controller was not consistent with how the instructions manuals said they should respond to inputs on the controller.

Your guys spent considerable hours trying to get the system to behave as it should, but couldn’t get to the bottom of it - I pointed out to them that the display wasn’t consistent to what the instruction manuals were showing as this was a clear red flag to me that something wasn’t right with the controller. I personally reached out to Mitsubishi to troubleshoot – as the customer I should not be having to do this! Please see attached e-mail titled “05.10.2023 – Communication with Mitsubishi”. Mitsubishi confirmed that the wrong controller had been installed on the system. This again was caused by incompetent installation by YOUR COMPANY.

05.10.2023 E-Mail

Spoiler

From: Mitsubishi
To: Us

Correct, just swap the controllers over.

From: Us
To: Mitsubishi

Thank you for all your help – this explains a lot, the installer has used the wrong controller! Shame it’s me as their customer who has to unravel this mess with your help and not them, so I do really appreciate your help

Long story short, they installed the Ecodan 11.2kw heat-pump with some form of FTC control box wired to it – they then decided they didn’t need it and therefore undid all that work and instead used the FTC6 which came attached to the cylinder.

They have then used the controller that they’d originally installed the heat pump with (the B16) instead of using (the B38) – I know this as we still have the B38 controller in the packaging here!

If we simply switched these controllers over everything should be functioning as originally intended?

From: Mitsubishi
To: Us

The B16 controller don’t have the functionality to display temps.

If you require this, please forward on the below and I can get a B38 controller sent out to you.

1. Outdoor unit model no/serial no.
2. Cylinder unit model no./serial no.
3. Site Address

From: Us
To: Mitsubishi

It's BH00B307B16 as per attached photo.

Should it be BH00B307B38 by any chance?

From: Mitsubishi
To: Us
Can you please confirm the ‘B’ model number on the bottom of the remote controller?

From: Us
To: Mitsubishi

Thanks for such a prompt response.

Please find attached video showing that the controller was showing nothing even though it was on tank setting - I then switched it to tank and room and neither temperatures show.

Also attached is the requested picture of the options screen, which shows holiday mode instead of the energy monitor?

From: Mitsubishi
To: Us

Thanks for your email.

To get the temperature display please follow the pathway on the Main RC below:

Energy Monitoring is built into the FTC as standard- not sensor based.

Can you please send a picture of your options screen.

From: Mitsubishi
To: Us

We have just had an EHPT30X-UKHDW cylinder installed, coupled with an 11.2kw Ecodan R32 Heatpump - however I'm not convinced that it's functioning correctly.

On the Main Screen of the FTC6 main remoter controller, we are not seeing the current temperatures for either the room, or current water temperature which should be displayed in position 13 according to the manual.

Do you know why this might be?

We also do not have the energy monitor within the option screen, is there any way to confirm via serial numbers of the units whether these sensors should have been included and just haven't been connected correctly/dip switch settings have been messed with by the installer?

The system is linked to the MelCloud, so I'm not sure if this is something you can diagnose through the console?

To be perfectly honest, we have lost faith with our installers as they do not seem to know what they're doing and have just been guessing on how things should be wired as far as I can tell!

Given all the previous basic electrical installation issues, the time delays in getting the right hardware on site and the time already wasted troubleshooting something which was caused by using the wrong part our frustration and disappointment levels were high, instead of allowing more fruitless troubleshooting to take place I simply told the installer what the issue was, so that installation could be quickly remedied and the system would be up and running – god knows how long it would have taken them to get to the bottom of the issue otherwise. The controller change worked as expected, with all functionality expected of the system now present and functional as at 10th October 2023 – 524 days after agreeing to installation.

Follow Up Issues

The system was now working as intended, using low temperature flow rates through the underfloor heating to get great efficiency out of the system, however noise levels were a little louder than expected in use but tolerable. However, when entering the colder winter months, when the heat pump had to work harder, the noise was far more pronounced than expected – please follow this link to demonstrate the noise encountered in January of 2024 -

Due to a lack of confidence in YOUR COMPANY I decided to investigate whether this noise was normal myself, and reading of the installation instruction manuals for the installation of the heat pump gave me reason to believe the noise was being caused by poor installation. Please see page 9 of attachment named “Installation Instructions” – this details parts that need to be removed from the heat pump at the point of install. I decided to record myself opening up the heat pump to either prove or disprove these had been left in as part of an incompetent installation. I was not surprised to see that there parts were still in situ, despite a large yellow warning sticker showing they’re to be removed – please see video here

and attachment named “Parts Removed” of what needed to come out.

Install insructions here, which will be attached to the email I send - see "4. COMP fixed parts removing" - https://library.mitsubishielectric....85-112VH-AA_Installation_Manual_BH79D849H02UK

Here is a “before and after” video showing the difference this made to noise levels -

This is about as far as I've got, but it feels a bit waffly to me - please can you help me!?

 

[Deleted User 298457]

Make clear how much dollar you are looking to receive? On what basis?

I'll be honest leading off with the cylinder thing may not be the best. It sounds like you wanted something that wasn't available and weren't flexing at all; which you then put on them as trying you to force you to have the unit they did have - but I doubt it was in anyone's interest to keep someone waiting however many months (or years).

The electric thing sounds like really minor advisory stuff.

I'd lead off on your point about contradicting the intent of the MCS certification programme and threatening to take it up with them? Then bullet off your issues removing any "emotion" as the factual basis of ...

1. Quoting a product that was unavailable (I guess this is the crux of the cylinder thing?)
2. Fundamental issues with the quality of the electrical install, including a key safety issue (Ignore the conjecture of the sparky whinging about the other sparky imo. I've not met a trade who complements their colleagues yet lol).
3. Incompetence in assembling a solution that worked (the incorrect controller bit)

On the basis I have spent X hours troubleshooting this install, I am proposing a final settlement of Y which is Z below the invoiced amount to account for the time I had to spend rectifying or troubleshooting your install.

 

[PermaChanged]

Thank you! It's very easy to get dragged in to recalling the whole story of the events and getting bogged down in the issues.

Regarding the cylinder, it wasn't that we wanted something which was unavailable and were not flexible - we had specifically asked what cylinder would be provided, and were then provided something else entirely which fit in the same space, but with a multitude of reasons as to why it was not a like for like replacement;

1. Capacity - 210l vs 194l - may not seem a lot, but as we're storing water at a cooler temperature than you would conventionally we're also using a higher ratio of hot to cold water when showering/bathing so every little helps here
2. Heating technology - Plate heat exchanger vs Coil - A coil is far less efficient at transferring heat, this is supposed to be an energy efficient heating/hot water system. This difference also amounts to why the other cylinder has a smaller capacity, as it's got a large coil sitting inside it rather than a plate heat exchanger outside of it.
3. Insulation - 60mm vs 50mm - Standing heat loss differences = requires heating more often = less efficient.
4. Pre-Plumbed vs Separate parts (the biggest issue!) The Mitsubishi cylinder is pre-plumbed, all ancillaries are connected to it so it just requires connecting to the flow and return of the heat pump, the UFH manifold and the hot water supply. The initially supplied cylinder was full separate parts. As plumbing costs are not included in the quotes this would make a significant difference to the overall install costs. Everything here within the dotted line comes pre-attached to the cylinder;
   
5. Full Integration - The 3rd party cylinder does not have the same monitoring capabilities as the Mitsubishi.

We've ended up with the "right" cylinder in a larger format, so all of the above issues with the originally supplied cylinder are negated. We'd have accepted this at day dot had we known that changing cylinder size would allow us to proceed immediately, but I genuinely believe they were trying to pull the wool over our eyes and hand off inferior goods despite charging for premium goods. My parents for example would have been duped in to accepting the originally supplied cylinder, as they aren't as detail oriented / as nerdy as me!

 

[Deleted User 298457]

Fair, maybe save all that for appendix tho. "Cylinder proposed not available and suggested item not fit for your intended use case" or words to that effect?

 

[MissChief]

The golden rule of a good compliant is actually stating what you’d like to happen to resolve your complaint, otherwise it’s just you moaning. Make your request a fair and above all a reasonable and possible one and you’ll often be surprised what you’ll get in return.

 

[bloodiedathame]

Use ChatGPT

 

[jaybee]

I think it looks generally well presented, logical and good (enough) English. I would leave out things where there is emotion and unprofessionalism creeping in. Try to keep it factual. More like "this is completely inadequate given the installation criteria" rather than "laughable". I would also put yourself in the position of the person who picks these kind of things up. Let's assume the worst.... they pick up loads of these complaints, don't really care for customer service and will skim read what they see as waffle, and will just repeat that you owe money. On that basis, try to put a clear summary at the top as to why you will not be paying the full amount, and exactly your proposed new amount as to what you deem suitable at the top. With all the info following, they may just agree straight away to get it done.

 

[Mysterae_]

Make clear how much dollar you are looking to receive? On what basis?

The golden rule of a good compliant is actually stating what you’d like to happen to resolve your complaint, otherwise it’s just you moaning. Make your request a fair and above all a reasonable and possible one and you’ll often be surprised what you’ll get in return.

... I would leave out things where there is emotion and unprofessionalism creeping in. Try to keep it factual.

I'd agree with this approach, a bit like an executive summary so the management don't have to read the entire thing, because they won't.

You can certainly include all the juicy details justifying your claim in an appendix or supplementary information on separate pages, giving a reference number to each one. Depersonalise it and make it factual as already suggested because it'll also make it look like you are getting ready for court - but don't threaten them, not yet anyway.

You'll have stated your intent and justification, it'll be up to them to accept, counteroffer or dispute your reasoning altogether.

Good luck!

 

[booyaka]

Needs to be WAY shorter.... No one is reading that length of letter/email complaint. As above - factual, don't bring the personal emotion/moaning into it.

Summarise the dates/points and tell them what you want as the outcome. Don't let them decide what they will offer you.

One page maximum - further details can be supplied to clarify any points etc

 

[jpaul]

As dlockers said - are you minded to demand a 3rd party inspection of the install (even now), or threaten that MCS/REAL ombudsman should be brought in.
I'd contact MCS/REAL to find out what their protocol is, perhaps, anonymously initially.

I didn't understand why electricity supplier was involved - didn't the installer have someone with the correct qualifications, was that known from the outset ?

Had you contacted cylinder suppliers to see if the claimed delivery/production delay claim was corroborated (when was it finally manufactured) -
perhaps worldwide shipping delays, from China? were responsible, so? legitimate excuse.

Wrong controller and packing-parts left in sound like biggest failures - how wrong was the controller, or issue is very subtle.

 

[PermaChanged]

That's a really good shout, to ask for an independent 3rd party inspection of the install.

MCS confirmed to me that there are no registered installers in Guernsey, I'm not even sure whether Guernsey is a jurisdiction which they do certify given the geographical complications.

The electricity suppliers were involved as the heat pump is on it's own meter, due to a different tariff. Only they are allowed to touch the mains cable coming in / connect meters to it - the heat pump install company just prep the submain for that connection to be made.

 

[RedMogg]

I think it looks generally well presented, logical and good (enough) English. I would leave out things where there is emotion and unprofessionalism creeping in. Try to keep it factual. More like "this is completely inadequate given the installation criteria" rather than "laughable". I would also put yourself in the position of the person who picks these kind of things up. Let's assume the worst.... they pick up loads of these complaints, don't really care for customer service and will skim read what they see as waffle, and will just repeat that you owe money. On that basis, try to put a clear summary at the top as to why you will not be paying the full amount, and exactly your proposed new amount as to what you deem suitable at the top. With all the info following, they may just agree straight away to get it done.

Agree with the above, as well as writing a clear, concise cover letter summarising why you feel their invoice is unacceptable. You can then make your "report" as detailed as you like, citing emails/adding photographs (labelled clearly with dates) where relevant.

Keep emotional language minimal (by all means detail your frustration, if a reasonable person in a similar situation would be equally frustrated) and don't proffer opinion, except where you can quote a high quality source. e.g: avoid mentioning the Utility Company sparky suggesting he'd expect better from an apprentice, but do quote MCS/REAL guidelines/best practice, making sure to point out that this was a body they claimed to be registered with...

I'd also add: don't make demands or give ultimatums. Give them "the opportunity to adjust their invoice to reflect the inconvenience and expense their incompetence has caused" - you don't need to use fluffy language, but write as if your letter will ultimately be considered by a judge/magistrate...

Consider that this won't be a one & done correspondence - if you still can't agree a settlement that satisfies both parties, the civil court would expect you to use a mediation service and take reasonable steps to reach one.

You can set out what you feel is a "fair reflection of the costs/service received" and suggest it to them - "based on the above information, I believe the following to be a reasonable adjustment to the invoice..."

If mediation doesn't work (because either party is categorically refusing to compromise, maybe with fair reason), then the judge will look unfavourably on the least reasonable party.

Have a look here, for advice to a company having their invoice rejected - I appreciate the shoe is on the other foot, but it can give you insight into how the company is likely to approach your dispute:

7 frequent invoice disputes and how to resolve them

By understanding the root causes of invoice disputes, you can take steps to prevent them from happening and reduce your time waiting for payments.

www.chaserhq.com

If you happened to pay for any part of the service with your credit card (fingers crossed you have), then I'd also be contacting them with a Section 75 dispute, as the card company has a fair bit more clout than Joe Bloggs on his own - more information here:

How do I use chargeback? - Which?

Chargeback lets you ask your card provider to reverse a transaction on your credit or debit card. You have more rights if you spend more than £100 on your credit card.

www.which.co.uk

 

[PermaChanged]

Me again - sorry! Any chance you can proof this for me as our concise letter of the issues and our expectations?

Within my first post, I stated "we signed up for the install on 04/05/2023, and was finally functioning 10/10/2023" - this is wrong, we signed up for the install on 04/05/2022 and it was not functioning until October 2023!

Apologies for the delay in our response to your correspondence. After seeking advice, we ask that you treat this letter as a formal request for a reduction in final settlement due to experiencing a large number of issues throughout the process.



The main focus of our issues are as follows;

• The timescale to complete the quoted works, due to quoting products which were unavailable, followed by incorrectly supplying unquoted inferior goods without explanation
• Fundamental quality issues with the electrical install relating to the power supply, including missed key-safety issues, which further compounded the timescale for completion of the agreed works
• Incompetencies related to the more specialist elements of the install specific to the equipment supplied. This caused noise disturbance to ourselves and neighbouring properties, and a system which was not functioning as per the manufacturer’s specification.

This list is far from comprehensive in terms of the issues we have experienced, which we have communicated to you throughout - you should have record of this.



We are proposing a final settlement of £X,XXX. This takes in to account all time spent having to liaise with yourselves to discuss the issues during installation, the inconvenience of additional attendance to the property during working hours giving you further and ample opportunity to remedy the issues yourselves, which you were unable to achieve. The many hours we then spent reading installation documentation and liaising directly with the manufacturers to troubleshoot the issues within your installation, which resulted in us telling you what you’d done wrong, and how to complete the install correctly. Elements of your incompetent installation caused noise disturbance unnecessarily to ourselves and neighbours, and left us without hot water and heating due to the lack of competency within the install longer than necessary.



Once again, this is not a comprehensive list of our grievances, and we ask that you give our proposal serious consideration. We look forward to hearing from you.

 

[jpaul]

Yes although you had said you waited 7 months for boiler , personally that hadn't sunk in -
even though they gave no explanation, you hadn't really sought one, and sounds as though you resigned yourself to waiting although you could have withdrawn from contract and pulled the plug, given an ultimatum ?
I suspect they might well say that, that you chose to wait ?
so the electrical install failure, wrong controller & noise issue are main failures.

I'd be more demonstrative and use the word I rather than we in the letter ... who is the we ? you are the customer, no need to demean yourself.

 

[RedMogg]

Hoping you've lowered the £XXXX figure to allow them a slight amount of negotiation (so as to show willingness to compromise), but also that you've adequately priced your lost time in the equation...
Every hour wasted dealing with their mess-up is an hour you could have been working/doing something more productive.

 

[PermaChanged]

We're planning to offer them just over 60% of the final settlement amount requested.

That final settlement amount is 40% of the total invoiced amount, of which the first 60% is fully paid - 20% at agreement, 40% on delivery of goods.

 

[Deleted User 298457]

Me again - sorry! Any chance you can proof this for me as our concise letter of the issues and our expectations?

Within my first post, I stated "we signed up for the install on 04/05/2023, and was finally functioning 10/10/2023" - this is wrong, we signed up for the install on 04/05/2022 and it was not functioning until October 2023!

Get rid of the opening apology sentence and get rid of the specialist reference in bullet 3. Rephrase it to just say elements. They are the specialists after all, don't give them a thread to pull.

 

[RedMogg]

Get rid of the opening apology sentence and get rid of the specialist reference in bullet 3. Rephrase it to just say elements. They are the specialists after all, don't give them a thread to pull.

Agree with dlockers.

FYI: if they're stubborn about not moving on the settlement amount, be prepared to put the sum to one side (savings/specified pot if you have a Starling or Monzo account). The next move is to wait for their legal action. If you can show the mediator/judge that non-payment isn't through a lack of funds, but their unwillingness to agree a fair discount, that helps enormously in things going your way.

Be prepared for this to take a while; courts are overwhelmed and "petty civil disputes" (without denigrating your situation) are low on the priority ladder.

 

[PermaChanged]

Thanks all, noted the above suggestions and have sent the below, now we wait. Thank you again!

Spoiler

Dear Sirs,



After seeking advice, I ask that you treat this letter as a formal request for a reduction in final settlement due to experiencing a large number of issues throughout the process.



The main focus of the issues are as follows;

• The timescale to complete the quoted works, due to quoting products which were unavailable, followed by incorrectly supplying unquoted inferior goods without explanation
• Fundamental quality issues with the electrical install relating to the power supply, including missed key-safety issues, which further compounded the timescale for completion of the agreed works
• Incompetencies related to elements of the install specific to the equipment supplied. This caused noise disturbance to ourselves and neighbouring properties, and a system which was not functioning as per the manufacturer’s specification.

This list is far from comprehensive in terms of the issues we have experienced, which have been communicated to you throughout - you should have record of this.



I am proposing a final settlement of £X,XXX. This takes in to account all time spent having to liaise with yourselves to discuss the issues during installation, the inconvenience of additional attendance to the property during working hours giving you further and ample opportunity to remedy the issues yourselves, which you were unable to achieve. The many hours I then spent reading installation documentation and liaising directly with the manufacturers to troubleshoot the issues within your installation, which resulted in myself telling you what you’d done wrong, and how to complete the install correctly. Elements of your incompetent installation caused noise disturbance unnecessarily to ourselves and neighbours, and temporarily left us without hot water and heating due to the lack of competency within the install.

Once again, this is not a comprehensive list of the grievances, and I ask that you give this proposal serious consideration. I look forward to hearing from you.



Kind regards,

 

[PermaChanged]

Thank you all, you've saved us a fair chunk of change!

Good afternoon


Thank you for your email of 24th April 2024.


As a gesture of goodwill, please find attached our invoice, adjusted as per your request. We would therefore be very grateful if you would settle this at your earliest convenience.


Many thanks & kind regards