Does anyone have a second to give me a reality check?

I spent much of last evening dealing with a petcare customer who was basically blackmailing the company for $20.

I'd really appreciate commentary on my response from someone who doesn't know anything about the history of this case. I'm so close to it, I may not be thinking clearly.

If you read the following, what would you think?

Mr. A's account is correct except for one important detail.

He told both our Director of Petcare and myself that if we did not give him the last walk he mentioned for free, he would 'trash us on Angie's List.”

He mentioned Angie's List by name.

My communication with Mr. A has always been respectful, and the two previous times when something went wrong with his service, we acted swiftly and decisively on his behalf.

We discounted his service on both occasions, fired the first employee and sanctioned the second.

This time, the walker had a problem with the dog's harness and made the best choice she could for the safety of the dog. The safety and comfort of our charges is our number one priority.

We did not discount this last service and Mr. A has followed through on his threat.

My offer for referrals was meant as a kindness to help him find a trusted service that he could move to quickly, without disruption of service for his dog.

At no point did I raise my voice or speak in a disrespectful manner. This cannot be said for Mr. A who made it clear that all I needed to do to keep him from sharing his thoughts here was to give him free service.

====== Should I add or subtract anything?

MUCH obliged for your thoughts.

To be honest, Bonny, if I were to read that without knowing you or seeing exactly what the customer's complaints were, I would take from it that you or your employees messed up three times wrt this customer's service, and I would be wondering why you wouldn't give him one free service to compensate. I'm sure there is much more to the story than that, but I'm not sure what you have written will really help you will potentially new customers.

Yeah, I read the part about firing someone and sanctioning another and went "Wow, what did they do that was so bad the company agreed with the customer to that extent?" Though there is a chutzpah element that looks good in that you're standing up and addressing the situation.

Yay, Nilly-baby!

Boo-hiss, mamography tech! Are you ok, le nub?

Welcome home, Buffy-dog!

bonny, what an incredibly uncomfortable situation. I have no suggestions, though.

That is what I was afraid of.

I did not post the client's comments which basically said that we did a good job with the two previous issues but that we were not doing what he wanted this time.

This client has been a magnet for issues. We deliver 200+ services per day and get glowing reviews constantly. I was FURIOUS on his behalf the first time and took care of him the second time because the first thing was so bad.

Now, it seems like he has gotten it into his head that all he has to do is complain and he gets free stuff.

In this case, I could not give into his demand. It would not have been fair to blame the walker for doing right.

Blergh. I don't know how to say it differently.

Thanks Connie.

In the first case, the walker was reading a book and dragging the dog behind her. Absolutely unacceptable...and mentioned in his comments.

The second time, the walker misread the work order and arrived at the wrong time. He did not comment at the time...did not send her away and allow her to correct her mistake. He called the next day to complain.

We compelled the walker to pay for the error.

This time, the walker did right by protecting the dog's safety, and used the equipment as provided. Because it was not what he specified as appropriate, despite the dog being fine, he complained.

It feels like he got used to hitting the bar and getting the pellet and the first time I stood up for us, he blew a gasket.

Bonny, I'm not a small biz owner, so not sure if this is good advice. And I'm not an Angie List subscriber.

• you can not please all of the people all of the time, much as we try.
  
• some folks are just jerks, and nothing you can do will change that.
  
• can you write a rebuttal to a complaint on Angie's List?
  
• can you refund the $20, and say to the customer, "I'm sorry it has come to this. Please accept this with our apology. We do not wish to serve you anymore". It could be the best $20 ever spent. Think of how much more headaches he will cause, and how much that hassle is worth to *not* have.

can you write a rebuttal to a complaint on Angie's List?

Companies can definitely reply to reviews on Angie's List.

Can you say something like "There were two issues previously which were resolved to the customer's stated satisfaction. The third issue involved circumstances beyond our control which we resolved using the dog's safety as the priority but which the customer did not agree with. We did not believe that free service was the correct response."

Short, acknowledges history, states bare facts.

Honestly, your recap makes those situations sound worse than they were. I would delete this part:

We discounted his service on both occasions, fired the first employee and sanctioned the second.

I would also delete your last sentence. That is going down a road that has no upside to it.

In this case, I could not give into his demand. It would not have been fair to blame the walker for doing right.

I'm not sure I follow how giving a fee walk is blaming the walker?