Register in a Complaint Email
You are writing a short email in German for a WACE writing task. The prompt: you ordered a winter jacket online from a German shop, size M, colour navy. The jacket arrived in size S and in black. You paid €89.95 and were charged €6.50 shipping. You want a replacement in the correct size and colour, or a full refund including shipping. You have 150 words and 25 minutes. Your draft opens: 'Hey, my jacket is wrong. Send the right one or give my money back. Also the shipping was too expensive.' A classmate says this is fine because it is clear. You must decide whether the register suits the task and revise.
1. Identify two register problems in the opening and explain why they matter for this task, not just in general.
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Problem one: 'Hey' is an informal greeting suited to friends, not to a business complaint to a shop. The task is a consumer complaint to a company, so a neutral-formal opening such as Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren or Guten Tag is expected.
Problem two: 'Send the right one or give my money back' is a bare imperative that reads as a demand without justification. In German complaint correspondence, you state the facts, name the fault, and request a solution using polite forms such as Ich bitte Sie, mir ... zu schicken or Ich möchte ... umtauschen. The blunt version risks sounding rude and omits the reasoning the task rewards.
Why it matters here: the writing criteria assess whether the register matches audience and purpose. 'Clear' is not enough if the tone is wrong for a shop. The revision should keep the facts (size, colour, prices) but frame them politely and give the shop a clear choice of remedy.
2. Rewrite the substance of the complaint in 3–4 German sentences that keep all the key facts and offer the two remedies.
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A model version:
Ich habe bei Ihnen eine Winterjacke in Größe M und in der Farbe Marineblau bestellt. Leider ist die Jacke in Größe S und in Schwarz angekommen. Ich habe 89,95 € plus 6,50 € Versandkosten bezahlt. Bitte schicken Sie mir die richtige Jacke oder erstatten Sie mir den vollen Betrag einschließlich der Versandkosten.
Why this works: sentence 1 states the order precisely (size M, navy). Sentence 2 names the discrepancy using leider and the correct past participle angekommen. Sentence 3 gives both prices so the refund claim is grounded. Sentence 4 offers the two remedies with oder and includes shipping in the refund. The register is neutral-formal (bei Ihnen, Bitte schicken Sie), and every required fact appears without padding. This fits comfortably within the word limit while satisfying content and register criteria.