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Oh I am so darn annoyed today. Two weeks before last Xmas I posted off to my son and his fiancee in Germany a small parcel with some gifts for Xmas for them – some DVD’s, books and some sweets, just what they asked for. The day before this I had posted him a pullover and it turned out that it arrived within four days. Not so my second parcel…

When it had not arrived by Xmas day I was worried – when it had not arrived by his birthday on January 2nd I was suspicious – when it had not arrived a week ago I was convinced it was another case of stolen mail. I have had this happen before. Then yesterday that parcel turned up at my door with a dozen different postage marks and stickers on it. The problem was I had addressed it only to ‘Patrick’ and not Patrick + surname. This I understand is very important in Germany and I have learned my lesson – parcel Mark II is now on it’s way!

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You will have been reading about the massive vehicle recall Toyota had to carry out in the USA recently following problems with the cars brake and accelerator systems – toyota owners in the UK are now pressing the panic buttons after fatalities in the USA were reported here. Personally I would be getting some life insurance quotes before I got back behind the wheel of my Toyota while this is all going on and the trouble is not showing signs of abating.

The crisis at Toyota deepened yesterday as pressure mounted for it to recall its flagship ‘green’ car, the Prius, over brake problems. Sources said 270,000 of the petrol-electric hybrids worldwide may have to be checked.  Toyota has not confirmed a recall but has admitted the newest Prius models had a software problem affecting the brakes. Official investigations have been ordered in the U.S. and Japan although British ministers have not so far followed suit.

The world’s biggest car firm has already recalled eight million vehicles over fears that two separate faults with accelerator pedals have left them unsafe. That move affects 180,865 cars in Britain, where owners have been warned it could take up to four weeks for them to be notified. Last night it emerged that 270 Toyotas here have been reported as having the potentially lethal fault. Toyota said that it had confirmed 20 cases before announcing the recall, but another 250 were reported in the past week.

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I used to be a lot meeker when I was a newly married young thing, if I bought something and it turned out to be defective I would not bother to return it and demand an exchange or refund. What I used to do was either throw it out or ask my dad to go back to the store for me…it always worked when dad took over. These days I am a lot bolder and ‘to heck’ with being embarrassed or nervous about approaching the refund counter – I demand my consumer rights!

Working for four years on the refund counter of a major chain store in Sydney changed me for the better – I saw first hand how other people handled this situation, the amazing excuses they would come up with to explain why they wanted their money back…and I eventually developed as much front myself. But I would never dream of pulling some of the scams some of my customers got away with…

But did you know that British people are missing out on possible savings of £74billion a year because they are afraid to complain? each UK household misses out on an average of £2,873 every 12 months because they fail to demand refunds, good service and discounts on faulty or unwanted goods. Now unwanted gifts might just get you a voucher or credit slip as refunds and exchanges are normally reserved for defective purchases. A staggering two out of three people will not complain when they receive bad service in a hotel or restaurant and will even pay a tip.

The top five reasons given by people who refuse to demand better service, discounts, or replacement goods include: fear of making a scene (90 per cent), not wanting to ask for a discount (88 per cent), not wanting to appear cheap (82 per cent), not being good at complaining (67 per cent), and not having time (59 per cent). Is it being British that makes people not want to make a fuss or appear rude and ungrateful…? this never bothered Hyacinth Bucket. Put on your best voice, draw yourself up to your full height – and complain!

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