Travel Complaints: How To and How Not To

Travel consumer advocate Chris Elliott provides answers and cautions

If I had to make a list of the most trustworthy people I know or have witnessed in public life, Christopher Elliott would be high on it. I've followed his published articles advocating on behalf of travelers and online consumer travel site for a long time, I admire both his willingness to go to bat for aggrieved travelers and his ability to get results or at least replies from travel providers in resolving problems. So I read with great interest his latest post, "Travel complaints that fail: 5 kinds of emails you should never write."

He identified the following five types of complainers/complaints and commented on their effectiveness:

• The squeaky wheel
• The special circumstances
• The name-dropper
• The laundry list
• The break-up

Read the post, give it some thought now and remember it next time you have an issue with a travel provider.