Now this is what I like in developed countries, it is rare that consumer complaints are not responded to. At the very least you will receive an apologetic letter and most likely, you get compensated.

When I blogged about my nightmare trip home via c2c, I said I will file a complaint & I did. I received a proper email response after 7 days. The letter was long. The girl explained what caused the problem, what action they took to resolve it, and admitted to their shortcomings. At the very end, she asked that I give them suggestions on how to better improve their services and also send them an address they can send some compensation through. I did. I outlined some suggestions like linking directly with the bus companies and other train operators to mitigate severe disruptions like what we experienced. And of course I included my home address.

Yesterday I received 3 rail network vouchers worth £10 each! Well, those more than covers the extra £6 I forked out to get home that horrible night. I looked at the expiry dates and they are valid for a year. Great. I’m certainly one happy compensated passenger.

I also got similar treatment from Amazon. I pre-ordered the clip-on iPod Shuffle and the site said it will be delivered after 3 weeks or something. It was for hubby’s xmas gift last year. Only when November arrived did I realise that the player hasn’t arrived. I checked my Order Status and there was no comment, I checked my email addresses in case I missed a notification, I didn’t. I wrote a strongly worded complaint to Amazon. To cut the story short, they gave me a £5 voucher to spend on Amazon as compensation for the delay & their lack of feedback.

I doubt if I can ever expect this level of customer service in Pinas, unless you scare the hell out of them.