How to complain

Complaining is a great life skill. Do the following:

1.  Start documenting your contact with the vendor. Document the method of contact (email, phone, post, person), and date and time of contact with the company. Use different methods of contact.
2. Stick to the facts when complaining. Do not use emotive language. List events in chronological order and be as precise as you can. At the end of the complaint, detail the impact on yourself and ask for what you want.
3. If it appears that the vendor is not processing your claim in a timely fashion, contact your ombudsman or consumer affairs and lodge a complaint. Fax, send or email a copy of the consumer affairs complaint you have made to the vendor. 

You require persistence and discipline to document what has happened. I have used this process to resolve several complaints. In one case a complaint took a whole year to resolve.