Has anyone else noticed that the passive-aggressive stance companies take if you complain about anything?

Within a few days I had to complain about the accounts department of my gym (they are clueless) , about early delivery of goods from a supplier of fruit (I was away when it was delivered; they knew I was), and the excessive number of emails sent during the recent American elections  (money, money money!).

I don’t have the time to complain constantly,  and have no wish to complain at all.   But I was brought up to believe you should make your views known if you get lousy service. When I ran a company I used to thank customers for taking the time to complain – that way you know what’s going on and can improve your service.

Now, however, organisations seem to have the following policy:

1.  What does the complainant spend? If it’s not much, simply ignore him.  (When a concerned alumnus recently wrote to complain about his former university’s policy on a certain matter,  they apparently looked to see how much he gave annually, and decided it was not enough to warrant a reply!  Outrageous)

2.  If he is a significant customer get some junior member of staff to sign and send a pro-forma letter along the following lines: “The ABC Company values its customers and always aims to offer first class service”.  In other words , never admit you are wrong and never publicly address any perceived fault in your management.

It is  irritating to be totally ignored, and I think the problem comes from the top.  The CEOs/top managers make so much money they gradually come to think they are perfect/unassailable/even godlike.  Well, they are not.   It is Epicurean to demand service and un-Epicurean to ignore valid complaints.  We should stand up for the rights of customers (and voters!)