This is a discussion on Poor service in shops in Spain, what you can do within the Spain And Costa Blanca Forum And Discussions , Spoke to a friend about a problem I have with a shop in Spain and he advised me of the following procedure
It is Spanish law that all company's in ...
Spoke to a friend about a problem I have with a shop in Spain and he advised me of the following procedure
It is Spanish law that all company's in Spain have a complaints book
This is not only shops, but every business that is legal in Spain
If you receive poor service or have a complaint with regards to the business you are dealing with, ask for the complaints book
You may get fobbed of with "we are to busy to get it" or "we don't know where it is"
Insist on being given the book to note your complaint
And if they try and fob you off, give it your best loud voice to catch the attention of the other shoppers. This will add to their embarrassment
The complaints books are monitored by the Spanish government and company's do not like having entries added to them. I have been told they will try and sort an amicable resolution to any problem, rather than have an entry made
I will try this myself if my present problem of being over charged by a superstore does not get sorted
Further investigation on the subject has made complaining using the complaints book more viable.
Its seems that we all get the cant care less attitude off the Spanish shops because they all think that we are dumb foreigners and have no grasp of Spanish law.
Well next time you get shafted by a Spanish shop, repay them for their ignorance
There should be a sign in a visible place stating "This establishment has a complaints book for any customers that require them". This should be in Spanish and English, but some times the English is dropped for Catalan or Basque
If its in English, there is no need to try and get it across to the person your dealing with exactly what you require. Just point to the sign indicating what you want and the dumb foreigner has now gone from being the under dog to showing some understanding of Spanish laws
It is a legal requirement for shops to have the sign on display along with having the book available
Now the fun begins
The forms are bilingual. You normally keep two copies and hand the remaining back. There have been several stories about this book, some indicate three pages, other four pages. But the consensus of opinion is you keep the white and green copies of the paper work.
Each complaint is followed up and the establishment can suffer heavily if the law sides with you. If there are a series of identical complaints they are even more likely to find in your favour.
Bearing in mind the speed at which Spanish bureaucracy works, you may be wondering how this can help you if you are not permanently in the country. Well, the simple fact of the matter is that so seriously are these forms viewed, asking for the book is often all that is needed for your problem to be resolved. Ask for the book and the service often changes instantly and stopping any need to use it
So just what is this book? Very simply it is a book consisting of identical copies of four pages. When you complain you do so by entering your complaint into the book. The top page must then be forwarded to the authority responsible for dealing with such matters. You keep the second and third copy, the forth stays in the book. Now why this book should generate so much fear is not really apparent but it is said the paperwork caused by an entry into the complaints book is appalling even by Spanish standards and none of it can be avoided. It can take an eternity before the authorities are convinced that they have dealt fully with a complaint by which time the person about whom the complaint was made will have torn out most of his hair and bitten his nails to the quick.
Don't be put off is a business say that they don't have a complaints book. Indicating that you are going to report this to the authorities will soon have it produced together with the desire for you not to write in it.
Don´t threaten people with the complaints book, use it only if reasonable effort and behaviour has failed to produce an answer to your problem. A spurious complaint could have far reaching effects on a staff member in a country where unemployment is said to be around 20 per cent.
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Re: Poor service in shops in Spain, what you can do
I have never found that Spanish people get embarrassed when you raise your voice in a shop. They all stick together like glue in front of you as a foreigner. I still think the 'hoja de reclamaciones' is a good idea, although it doesnt really make up for poor service. And it wont change it either.
Re: Poor service in shops in Spain, what you can do
Hello dear advertiser!
I think no poor service in the shops in Spain!
Otherwise I looking for job if you employee me, You will to see I work hard and allways friendly.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Yours
Faithfully Hajnalka Szucs
e-mail:[Only registered and activated users can see links. ].uk
Re: Poor service in shops in Spain, what you can do
Excellent! Well next time instead of bursting a vein in my head I now know what to do!
They never seem to care though, even if you are a customer of theirs paying monthly month if you have a problem they dont care if you threaten to take your business else where, they just shrug their shoulders as if they couldnt care less!
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Re: Poor service in shops in Spain, what you can do
The initial problem that brought this thread was a bad day on my part.
Imagine you go into a superstore. Grab the latest greatest toy off the shelf. In this case it was a hd/DVD recorder.
Go to the cash till, 5 items or less que and the fun begins.
Pull out your plastic, place it in their card reading machine, enter your pin and get told rejected.
Try another card, same again rejected
Try another card, same again rejected.
By this time you want a hole to swallow you up because there is a line of people all watching with amusement or dismay.
Borrow the money needed from another family member to pay for the item.
Never bothered to check my credit card statements that month. They were all clean and nothing spent as far as I was aware.
The following month, one of the cards was used. Checked statement and had a fit. Both my master card and visa had been charged for the same amount.
Contacted the credit card supplier and got told, because I had willingly entered my pin number, there was no theft. They advised me to return to the store to try and get a refund or it would take several months to try and get the money refunded.
We got the refund sorted out in the end, with very little problem
Location: In the campo between Pinoso and Monover.
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Re: Poor service in shops in Spain, what you can do
The simple answer is to only go to the many 'British Shops' that litter the costas (and now inland) and ignore the Spanish shops. If you do this and frequent only British bars then you can pretend that you are not really in Spain at all.
Re: Poor service in shops in Spain, what you can do
Problem with that, if you don't see speed cameras on every road and hear thirty different languages being spoken in the high street, you cant pretend your in England either.
And the other problem, with the British bars over here, the bar staff all speak English and not some vague eastern European version of English.
Poor service in shops in Spain, what you can do 
