Mission: complain about a faulty purchase
Making a complaint by phone and email. Describe the problem, ask for a solution, stay polite but firm.
FrenchB1 · Getting things doneAbout 8 min: 4 reading, 4 practiceUpdated
- Describe a problem (ne fonctionne pas, est arrivé abîmé, il manque)
- Give dates and an order number clearly
- Ask for a refund, an exchange or a repair politely
- Stay polite but firm (je vous serais reconnaissant(e) de…)
- Open and close a formal email
Getting things done: lesson 4 of 4
- B1 · Getting things done
- Mission: lend, give and return things 7 min
- Mission: describe the flat you're looking for 6 min
- Mission: guide a visitor round a historic town 7 min
- Mission: complain about a faulty purchase 8 min
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Level Level B1 (around the DELF B1 exam). Real French: phoning and writing to customer service about a faulty purchase.
What it is
Your mission: you ordered a kettle online. It arrived damaged, and the plug is missing. You phone customer service and speak to Monsieur Lambert, then send an email to confirm. Explain the problem, give the details, and get what you want: a refund, an exchange or a repair, without losing your temper.
Describing the problem:
| Problem | Say |
|---|---|
| It does not work | Il ne fonctionne pas. / Il ne marche plus. |
| It arrived damaged | Il est arrivé abîmé. (La commande est arrivée abîmée.) |
| Something is missing | Il manque la prise. / Il manque deux vis. |
| Wrong item | Ce n'est pas l'article que j'ai commandé. |
Il manque is impersonal and stays singular, even before a plural: Il manque deux vis.
Details to give: Ma commande porte le numéro 48213. Je l'ai passée le 12 octobre et reçue le 20 octobre.
Asking for a solution:
| You want | Say |
|---|---|
| a refund | Je souhaiterais être remboursé(e). |
| an exchange | Je voudrais un échange. / J'aimerais échanger l'article. |
| a repair | Je voudrais le faire réparer. |
Write (e) or add the e if you are a woman: remboursée.
Polite but firm: the conditional softens, but the content stays clear. Je vous serais reconnaissant(e) de bien vouloir me rembourser dans les meilleurs délais. (I would be grateful if you would refund me as soon as possible.) After de, use the infinitive. To say what you will do if nothing happens: Sans réponse de votre part, je me verrai dans l'obligation de contacter une association de consommateurs.
Formal email:
- Subject line: Objet : commande n° 48213, bouilloire arrivée abîmée
- Opening, when you do not know the name: Madame, Monsieur,
- Closing, formal: Je vous prie d'agréer, Madame, Monsieur, mes salutations distinguées.
- Closing, simpler and very common today: Cordialement,
More detail: Je vous prie d'agréer
Je vous prie d'agréer, Madame, Monsieur, mes salutations distinguées is the standard formal ending. Veuillez agréer… is an alternative. Use the same closing for a man or a woman if you do not know the name. If you do know the name, Madame Lambert, or Monsieur Lambert, is more personal.
Quick check
Tap an answer to check it.
You write an email and do not know who will read it. How do you open it?
- far too informal for a complaint
- it assumes a woman will read it
Show answer
Madame, Monsieur,. Madame, Monsieur, is the standard opening when you do not know the reader.
Why it matters
Sooner or later, something you buy online arrives broken. Complaining well in French is a real-life skill, and the DELF B1 writing paper asks for one text of at least 160 words. Staying polite and being precise (dates, numbers, what you want) is usually what gets a problem solved.
Worked example
On the phone:
- Monsieur Lambert: Service clients, bonjour. Que puis-je faire pour vous ?
- You: Bonjour, Monsieur. J'ai commandé une bouilloire le 12 octobre, numéro 48213. Elle est arrivée abîmée le 20 octobre, et il manque la prise.
- Monsieur Lambert: Je suis désolé. Que souhaitez-vous ?
- You: Je souhaiterais être remboursé(e), ou, à défaut, un échange. Je vous serais reconnaissant(e) de bien vouloir me répondre cette semaine.
Then the email:
Objet : commande n° 48213, bouilloire arrivée abîmée
Madame, Monsieur,
J'ai passé commande d'une bouilloire le 12 octobre (commande n° 48213). Le colis est arrivé le 20 octobre : la bouilloire est abîmée et il manque la prise. Je souhaiterais être remboursée. Je vous serais reconnaissante de bien vouloir me répondre dans les meilleurs délais.
Je vous prie d'agréer, Madame, Monsieur, mes salutations distinguées.
Claire Martin
Real French: in everyday work emails, Cordialement is the usual closing; the longer Je vous prie d'agréer… is kept for formal letters and when you want to sound very correct.
Common mistake
Forgetting that salutations is feminine plural: wrong: mes salutations distingués. It is mes salutations distinguées.
And forgetting the agreement in the description: Le colis est arrivé abîmé (masculine), but La commande est arrivée abîmée (feminine). With arriver, the auxiliary is être: wrong: Le colis a arrivé abîmé.
Quick check
Tap an answer to check it.
« Je vous prie d'agréer, Madame, Monsieur, mes salutations … »
- salutations is feminine plural
- the adjective must also be plural
Show answer
distinguées. salutations is feminine plural, so distinguées.
Key terms
- le service clients
- customer service
- la commande
- the order
- le numéro de commande
- the order number
- abîmé(e)
- damaged
- il manque
- there is … missing
- un remboursement
- a refund
- un échange
- an exchange
- une réparation
- a repair
- dans les meilleurs délais
- as soon as possible
- Cordialement
- Kind regards
Practise the key terms
Tap a card to turn it over. 10 cards.
| Front | Back |
|---|---|
| le service clients | customer service |
| la commande | the order |
| le numéro de commande | the order number |
| abîmé(e) | damaged |
| il manque | there is … missing |
| un remboursement | a refund |
| un échange | an exchange |
| une réparation | a repair |
| dans les meilleurs délais | as soon as possible |
| Cordialement | Kind regards |
Practice
Recognition drill
Pick the right answer, as fast as you can.
All pairs
Tap a card to turn it over. 6 cards.
| Front | Back |
|---|---|
| ne fonctionne pas | does not work |
| est arrivé abîmé | arrived damaged |
| il manque | is missing |
| un remboursement | a refund |
| un échange | an exchange |
| une réparation | a repair |
Sort it
Problem or request?
Il ne fonctionne pas.
it describes a faultShow answer
Problem. it describes a fault
Je souhaiterais être remboursé(e).
you ask for a solutionShow answer
Request. you ask for a solution
Il manque deux vis.
something is missingShow answer
Problem. something is missing
Je voudrais un échange.
you ask for a solutionShow answer
Request. you ask for a solution
Le colis est arrivé abîmé.
it describes damageShow answer
Problem. it describes damage
Quick quiz
Tap an answer to check it.
"The parcel arrived damaged."
- arriver takes être
- colis is masculine
Show answer
Le colis est arrivé abîmé.. être + masculine singular participle.
"I would be grateful if you would refund me."
- after de, use the infinitive
- this thanks someone for a refund, it does not ask for one
Show answer
Je vous serais reconnaissant(e) de bien vouloir me rembourser.. conditional + de bien vouloir + infinitive.
"Two screws are missing."
- il manque stays singular
- je manque means "I am missing / I miss", not "something is missing"
Show answer
Il manque deux vis.. il manque is impersonal and stays singular.
Build the sentence
Build "I would be grateful if you would refund me." (Start with Je vous.)
Show answer
Je vous serais reconnaissant de bien vouloir me rembourser. Je vous serais reconnaissant, then de bien vouloir and the infinitive.
Practise speaking
Studyfern has no voice tools of its own. To practise out loud, copy this prompt into a voice-capable AI assistant and talk with it.
Mission role-play. You are Monsieur Lambert, who works in customer service for an online shop, and we say vous to each other. I am at level B1 and I am phoning to complain that a kettle I ordered arrived damaged and that the plug is missing. Ask me, one question at a time, what the problem is, my order number and the date, and what I would like you to do. After each of my answers, tell me in English what kind of mistake I made, if any, and let me try again; watch the description of the problem, the polite requests and the formal phrases. When I have described the problem, given a made-up order number and date, and asked politely and firmly for a refund or an exchange, say « Mission accomplie ! » and give me one tip. Keep every reply under 3 sentences.
Listen too. Listen to native speakers before and after: see the free listening and shadowing links.
Good to know. AI feedback on pronunciation is hit and miss, so check yourself against native recordings. Many assistants turn your speech into text first, so a vowel or liaison you got wrong may be silently “heard” as the right word. Don't share personal details: use a made-up name and town.
New to this? Read Practising speaking with an AI.
In short
- Describe the problem: ne fonctionne pas, est arrivé abîmé, il manque (singular).
- Give the facts: order number, date ordered, date received.
- Ask for a solution: je souhaiterais être remboursé(e), je voudrais un échange, faire réparer.
- Stay polite but firm: je vous serais reconnaissant(e) de bien vouloir + infinitive, dans les meilleurs délais.
- Formal email: Madame, Monsieur, … Je vous prie d'agréer, Madame, Monsieur, mes salutations distinguées; or Cordialement.
Mastery check
Answer without looking back. Score 80% or more and the lesson is marked done. Your result is kept only in this browser.
Check yourself
Answer in your head first, then open the answer. Nothing is saved.
How do you say "The order arrived damaged and the cable is missing"?
Show answer
La commande est arrivée abîmée et il manque le câble.
How do you politely ask for a refund?
Show answer
Je souhaiterais être remboursé(e). (Or: Je vous serais reconnaissant(e) de bien vouloir me rembourser.)
Write the standard formal closing for an email to a company.
Show answer
Je vous prie d'agréer, Madame, Monsieur, mes salutations distinguées.
Further reading
- TV5MONDE, Apprendre le français: B1 exercises on formal emails and complaints.
- RFI, Journal en français facile, daily news in simple French.
Finished? Mark it done to fill in your leaf on the French map.