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A, Handbook of Comm"ercial Correspon,dence

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Oxford Un lverslty Press

Great Clarendon
.j'\. . '. ~ ,', " . . ..

o xto rd

Un i vers i ty P ress
Stree't

", .. A v'o'r'd Q"'X"2 6'0', p-'. l'

'Oxford New York Athe n S A~ c kl an d Ban g ko k Bogota B U €I nos Ai res Calcutta Cap,e Town Chennai Dar as Sal,aam Delhi Florence Hong Kong lstanbul Karachi Kuala Lumpur M:adrld Melbourne Mexico City Mumbai Nairobi Paris Sao Paulo Singapore Taipei Tokyo Toronto Warsaw and associate 01 co m pan ie sin:
-arlin lbadan Oxford and oxtora English are t rade marks of Oxlo rd Un Ive rs ity Press
ISBN 0 '19 4672064 ,© Oxfo rd Un iva rs ity

The companles, organizations

Note

ano people

mentioned in the specimen letters and documents in this book are entirely flctltlous, and any slmllarlty w,ith actual companies, organizations or people is coincidental"
Ac kn o'wledgemen ts The. Publishers and Author are gratefull to followl1ng for permission to reproduce the-

the

Pre ss 19'92

docu m ants 0 n the pa 9 e-s quoted: Ba rc Ia ys Bank International Ltd (pop. 152, '155); BrUtish Airway's (p. 19'1); overseas Containers uc, (p. 209): Lloyd's of London (p, 230); the London Chamber of Ocrnmerce and industry [p, 210). -

Second edition 1992

Tenth impression 2000

First pucllshsd 1984

No unauthorized

photocopying

A I,I ~i'g ts rese rved. Nlo pa rt of th i is pu b Iiicatit) n h rna y be rep rod u cad; sto red ina retrl eva I sys tem, 0 r t ransrnltted, in any to rm or by a ny means, electronic, mechan leal, p hotocopyl ng, reco rd'ing or ot h ervvi S'9 ~
without the prior

permission of Oxford Un ~vers.ity P ress,

wraten

This book

is sold subject to the condltlon that ~tshall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher's prior
consent in any term of binding or cover other than that in which it is puollshsd and wlthout a similar condition incl~ding th is condhlon being unposed on the subsequent purchaser,

Printed in Hong Kongl

·t Contents t
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....

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['

.-:

d .ctio In trO·-:U:~L.·_n
l -

1.

Structure and presentation

2 [Content and. style 3 Enquiries d 4"· R ep I'le8,ano quo t.at"Ions

[5

13

23
35 51 [67

6 7 8 9 10 11 12
13

Orders Payment Complaints and adjustments

191
111

Credit
Banking
Ag'ents and agencies,

133

1163
181 21'9 .2,39 25,1
I

Transportation and shippinq Insurance

!

14

" Ele" "c-''t ro ni c· e-o"rr' e': s'.p' 0'-:' nd e":n C' e' [SC·[8 .aneous corresponc d ence M'" -11
:..• _.• -': ..-_ .... .: ••.•• __ " ," ... :: ••• :[,' :::-_', ':'~' •.•• :: ..... : .. •.•

~>.

',>_:-

,."._.

••••

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15
16·

In-company communications
Pe ··,r··s-·:·o·-····n· a··· P' .ointm n "·1 "P;"'
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2- ,6:,9·-'
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27'·6 291

Index

Introduction
Correspondence is essentlal in est.ablis1hlng and: contlrmlnq transacnons
ln commerce. Typed or produced on a word processor it rsflects you or your business. Therefore what is written and

phrases, sentences or paragraphs which can be substituted iin d!~fferent casee, ,3; Specimen letters and specimen

how it is expressed is as much a part of a business education as accountancy

and economtcs.

transactio ns tog sth 8r w iith quesf 0 ns and comments on the ~an,gu.ager style, and rotes ,of the correspondents.

4 A brief review of the units and a

A Handbook of Commetcisl ,Correspondence has been planned 'to give students and bu siness peopl e a working knowledqe of commercial writing and practice in modern contexts. It covers a II as pects ot fra nsact ions fro m add rElSS ing and layi ng CIU:t a letter tO orders and procedures invollving representative ag encles, ba nki ng, insurance, shipping eno delivery, com plamts, non ... ayment ot accounts, p and so on. tater units deal with te'~egram e, te lexes faxes ~and electronic mail" mlscellaneous
I

summary of the vocabulary.

The book ts intended for business people, secretaries; teach ers~,and bu sin ess stu dlss stud e nts. Business people and secretaries As a handbook this should prove invaluable in outlining letters" using alternative expressions, and addin,g to your !knowledge of commerce" British and overseas business people wm gain from the simple, direct lang-uage used and see how' il is possible to be polite without seemlnq timid, direct yet not rude, concise rather fhan abrupt, an d fi rm b ut not il nf exlb le, The letters and documents used refilled au t nentlc transactlorts so th at overseas business people, in particular, willi get the sense of commercial practice in the UK and a detailed understanding of the term lno logy and the somenm 9S contusl ng rol e s of dIff~ere co rn mere ial n1 olrgan iz at ions. i e.g. mere h ant b an ke and commercial banks, Lloyd's and insurance companies, The Ba~1ic Exch,ange and The, ShiplPin,g
Conference.

j'

reports, and personnel appclrttments. After the 11 two un its, whl ch deal with rst the oresentanon and style of com merclal letters, eacn unit fo~lows a reg u Iat p atter n : 1 An introduction to the transaction or lransac1ions wi'ti~which the unit is concerned and an explanatlon ot the terminology used in them and the functions ot 'the o,rg"anizaUons Iikelly to

correspondence,

memorandums and

be,involved in them. 2 An analysls 0,1 the, obJecti've,s to be

achieved when writing relevant [letter's and lists of" alternative

Teacihers The inforn'latii,on oncomrnerclal practice and the 5 peel men letters and transactlons ln this book have been carefutly bullt up to sult the need~ ot business students, whether lE,ng~ls.hspa akl ,ng 0 r learners ot E: ngl ish as wsll as glviing the teacher, who might not be farnlliar with commerce, a good 'g rounding ~nthe subject.
l

transactlons.
ii

By sdudying the

ntorrnatlon a nd correspondenos

as 'tOU

The opening units qUliicklly introduce terms wh i en are repeated th raug hout, and each transaction ts p~anne,d so that te Be hsrs an d stu dents are fu ~ aware of Iy the roles of the· correspondents and the o rg an iza t ions they are de!ll ing 'w'~th. Wlhere there is conflnulty in a transaction! foliowing throuqh from order to completion, students should be, eneeuraqed to reter back ·to previous corres pan derce. The, short questions f,o~iow~ngthe s pee irn eln iette rs w~~ rei ntorce I understanding of the language and nature of the transaction. Role plays based on th e tran sactio n can be acted out by groups in negotiatiions betw'een buyers, andeeuere and comrnunicafions between the various, organizatiolns involved In the transaetons, such as banks and agencies. The brief review and vocabulary summary at the end of each unit. ~an be used Iats r ln the, oou rse as revlston

proqrsss throuqh each Unlit you .. should be able to, understand the roles of the cortes pondents an d th e ag encres they are dealing with. There is no need to 'worry about the commarclal terms as they are constantly repeated and you w'~II·,soon become used ,tothem. iNleverth e Iess, the re' are detal ied expl ananons of th e rn and if yo u have any problems you can use the index 10

refresh you r mern a ry.

Each unit contains two kinds of' rn ate ria ~to read. The first exp ~,ai ,t he ns style and content of: a particular kind ot cuslness letter', and g~~v~s you ,i ntormatlon abou t the organizatio ns involvsd, B.g. banks, insurance and shipping' companies. The second kind of materi a ~is ,t he, letts rs themselves. Study' both kinds carefu~~y"!, also 'the and va riou s doe. u m e nts iII ~ ust rated t n the book, and you willi get a clear picture of commerce, commerclal termlnclogy and the functions of the various

org'anizatiotls.

Wher'e there is a reference to previous correspondan ce, e.g,. "Thl s l,e,1ter follows on from 'the· correspondenoe at 3.3.,4 and 4.3,.5'j go back and rernlnc yourself wh at hap pened beto re t his part of th e
transection. You should also complete the she rt q u esti 0 ns at 'I he end of Istte rs to make sure you understand them The rev~ews at th e end of each unl t a r'e not. on Iy au rnma ries but re'fe ranees to be used later in the book if you need to rern~ you rae If of a to-pi c. nd
j

'focus attentl on on those are as of ccrnmerclal pract ice or tsrml rilology with wh i eh stu den ts a re h avi n 91 d ifficu IIy-" t
Students

materl 81. careful use of the Index w'i II

Thls book auows you to work by yourselt, ta;kingl you 'through the ,d~ff-e,rent stag IS of bus ine sa

Fh1.allly! do not: try to take short cuts by s kl ppflng any WI lts, EV~ln if you th i~k yo u n are tarnlllar with the subject, read lilt

ag,ain as revision.

..

Structure and .. t presenatlon

Levout 1 (senders' eddress, detes, inside address, order oieddiesses, style end ounctustion ot eddreese« lor ti: a tt - tic , 0,,' sa 1-' t, ti -- th - b- -d=-- - 0'-T tnoieitt,er, mo tennon '["- nunnone me ooo» it: '1' - -coinplimen tary closes. ,sign,s tuxes); layout 2' (letiemeeds. references, per oro, compenv pceition, -- ·1' .---,), l~" - 3 : t' ,-" -'d- ,-, fj:'d ,- ..t: "'-1' ' ' oiec: ,cnciosurcs); ,-ayou' t, o('piivste -, en: connaenns subi -'-t, 't'l· ~.' dd l tiuea. copies); eaaiessma envetopes.
I_.f'. J

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1.1 Layoutl
'The Ilette r shown on the next page, is from: a private tndividual in D,enm,ark, 'to a co'mlP,any in the UK,. It sh C)'W5 soma of the fleatu res of a, S~ Ie. bu s~,n0,ss mp letter,

I. l~2
Da'ie The date is 'w-rittenl below the, sender'a addrees, sometimes separated

from 111by a space. In the case of correspon dance' 'with a. printed letterhead, ~t:is also usually 'W ritten 0 n th e rig ht -han d' si de of 'the page (see 11.2).
'The, month in the date should

I, 1. 1
Selnd'elr's ad,dress,
___ V'V_ II_V U~ Inl cor res 'p' '0" n 'd--'en_V '!!. -' .a.. d oes n ot h 'a" '4 g, oe n V printed Isttsrhead, the se nder' s address ls written on 1h,e top rilghit..hand side of the page~
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n t- -h e -U-K..-:- Ii·.n' "'11' n t- rast t- 0' '~_he P' ract iii' , lIn ';1' "0' !I-'L, t -~oe • some 00 untrl 8,S, ,it is not IUSUa I to write
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the sender's name before the sends r's

address,

oontusln gl,; for example, 111.1 .93 means '11tih Jan uary 1993, ;iinthe UK, but 1 at November 1993 i~n US,A. No,r should the you a bbr-t!vi ate th e mo n.th~!e.g. N ov ~to r Novem bar; as it simp iy looks untidy. ~t takes ,8 moment to wrlte a date in 'full~ but lt can take a 10110 nga r to f lnd a m lsf ~edletter which was p ut :j n the -w- ro_; g-' f' lle beoa U se -irl-h,li:i da'te' 'W'·' -i!!:i, ~ '. ~. ·~·v. . ~ l. _v --.-'. __"_._confusing.
'n·
,'g,g'

not be written in 'figu res as they can be

1; Structure and presentation

Sender's address ........... --------.....;.....---1

Bredcads 51! DK 1260,

Copenhagen K,

DENMAR.K
6th May 19I [

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Soundsonic Ltd., Warwick House!

Inside address -.----..,......"""""""'---__....~."".,.,. (Rec:eiiver',s add ress)

Wa!VJ'ick Street
Fcrest HUll

London SE23 IJF

~ Attention I:ine ----....................... ........---..-------IC' UNITED KINGDOM

For the

attention oJ the

SalesManager

Dear Sir or Madam,

Body o;fthe letter

Please would you send me details of your quadraphonic

'sound systems which were advertised in the April edition of

Sound, MonthlY!

I am particularly interested in the Omega range of

equipment that you specialize in.

c::
Signature
iiiiiiiiiiii_,..... ...................... --_ ..........~"""""

Yours fa itlhfully"

B. Kaasen

1" Structure and presen tation

3
b women now pre f er to b aoc ressec - _.'1 -9 dd ]h ts ti't le, and lt is, a usefu ~fa rm of
. ,.. '. ..... 1'1. .
I •. , • .:,. • ',',. .,

Many firms 11'6'8ve the abbrsvlatlon out '*l{hi' aner -th - d ae'~e.g. 2'4' 0' ',...... rooer b - - it .,19., ,_t - ">:..:-, .... instead of 24th October. at-he r firms tranaposethe date Hind the month, ,e.g~. October 24 instead of 24 Octobe r. These are matters of preference, but whichever you ChO,Of!Ha you should be conslstent throughout your correspondence.

· the woman you are wnltl to l marne,dIng:oo IS li..i n-ot' or ,-',-1-,

address when you are not sure whether

pro nou nee d /1 rnesez/; ab brevtatlon for M,essieur8 ~which is never used) is used cccasionelly for two or more men (Messrs ,p~ Jones and B.L. Parker) but more
com monly forms part of the name of a firm

M S,S SIS (w lth <0 r wi th out a fu IIIstop;

In,li de, (or' r,eceiver' s) ad d res,s 'This is written below the sender's address and on the oppcelte slde of the page. 1 Surname known ~fyou know the surname of the person you are wlr:iting to, you write tbis on the
l

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(Messrs Collier & Clerk:e & Co~).

Special titles which should be included linaddresses are many. They include academic or medical titles: Doctor (Dr.)j ProfessQr(Prof.) ; military titles: C,a'pt:aln (Capt.)! Major (M';aj;}~"Colonel (Col.)p 'General (Gen.): arlstocratic tiitl'e: Sir

first line of the adorees, preceded by a courtesy tit~e,and elther the person's ini:tia.!l(s) or his/her finst gilven name, [e.g. MrJ.E'. Smith or Mr,John Smith,[ not. Mr
,'thO, Sm," . ~
,"

(which, means that he is a Kniight; not to be contused with the salutatlon tieer Sir and always followed by a given nameSit Jotm Brown, not SJr,J. Brown or Sir Brown)l Deme, Lord, B,ar-oness! etc.

..

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COLJ rtss y tit~ 9, used in ad d re ss es ars as e follows:

pronounced /rrusto/; the unabbrevlated form .mist:ersho uld not be, used) ls the usual courtesy title 'for a man, Mrs (with or wlthouta full stop: pronounced I'mlsllzl; no unabbrevlatsd form) is,used for a married woman.
,

Mr (wi'th or w'ithout a 'full stop;

Esq (wlth or without full stop; abbreviation for ,/Esquire and pronounced le'sl!kw'al:J/) is seldom used now', I'r used, it can on~y be usee instead of; Mr and ls placed after' the name. Don't Lise Esq and M'r at the, same time: Bruoe Hill Esq, not Mr Bruce Hill Esq. All th sse cou rtesy t itlss and speclal tltl 9S~exce pt E'sq ,r are a.1 $0 us e d 'i n sa Iu tan ons ,',"Sies 1.1 .7)

"

abbreviation) is used for an unrnarrled woman. orev lated to rrn) is used f,Q[rboth married and unmarried women. Many'
pronounced Imlz/ or !m~z!; no

Miss (pronounced Imis/;

not an

.2 Title known

if you do not know the name of the

Ms (with or without a full stop;

know or be ab~e to etSSU me hiiSlher tiitl'9 or posltlon ln the company, (e.g. The ; w hlIC~case ~lOU t In __ t-.I can us'a lt lin:'he I address. (See the letter at S,.S.$,.)

person you are writing to! you may

Sales ,Manager, The smenoe Director)!

IU nab

4.
, "~ ,coi.:'.:' ci>:" ',' 3 bepenm ent kn''0,./(1 - w" Alternatively you can ecdress your letter to a partlou lar department of the

1-Structure and presentation Lehrstuf fOr 8odenkund'e

.

A,mafiens t resse
---

, ',', company ("e" ",' 'Th".9 "c'j"',c,", Dap'- srtmen..t , g ., ,~il,es "~,' The Accounts Depsrlment), (See the
S' g' ',' ',_,

,0.-8000 MOnchen 40'

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letter of 3. 3. 2.)

4 Company only Finally, if you: know nothing about the company and do not want to make any ,-, --: '--;"U' rn I, I", n'S,.,' 8". be ~ me 6-,r"s" 0" n" 'o"r" M+ ass, ptio .. ,' department your letter should go tal' you can simply address it to the company ltsei f (e. g. Boundsonic Ltd. ~M'essrs Collier & Gierke & Co.).
'1;,11'
I.,'.

(You are advised to follow the above order and style, eVEH'1 though variatlons are possi ble: for example, the name of the, county, 8,rg. Lancashire, may; if
known, be written on "the line below the

name of the 'town or cay; the postea-de

'P'",'"

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may be, written on a separate line; the name ot the town, as wall~as the country, may be In ca pi tal tetters.)

See also '1.4 ,Addressing enveiooee.

1. I! 4
Order of insi'de addresses After the name of the person and/or company recelvlnq the, letter, the order

Styl,e and punctuation of addresses

Both 'the addresses may be 'blocked' (i .e, each llne is vertica.~~ya,lig nsd with the one above) as ii n the letter at 1. 1• or 'lndenteo', as below': Bredoede
OK 1260
J

I" 1,6

and style of addresses lin the UK! as recommended and used in this book,
is as follows:

51) K/

Name of house or building road, avenue, etc. Name of town or city and postcards

Number of building and name of street,

Copenhagen DENMARK

Name, of country

Industrial House .34·~41 ,Craig Road Botton BL4 8TF UNITED KINGDOM

There are no rules stating that one style or the other must be used, though blocking" at least in addresses (see 1. '1 • for blocking and h1de·tnting! the

So me Europe an add reus! es may pi ace, the numbers of the bu i I'dingl after the

body ct a, letter), ts more common. In any case you must be consistent, t.e, do not block the sender's address and then indent the, [inside address.

neme of the street It is also common to substmrte the name of 'the country with an initiall before the dlstnct code number. Look at the two examples

If punctuation lis useo, each line of the address is followed by' a comma, except the last nne, as in the latter at 1, 1. But the m,ajority of firms. now use, open
punctuation, i.e, without any commas, as ln the letter at 1,2.

below:
/,1. '.

Cac""olt~ di~ Med. f· .. r~ '.r't;II :_ .' '9 tclne

:j~·

Via Gentile 1'82 1~70100 Barl

1; Structure and presentation

1; 1; 6
'For the attention of'
An alternative 10 includ~ng the recipient's
in III

The Gemma after the, salutation is

optional (DeBt Sir" or tieer Sir).

Note 'that ~nthe U,S,A a letter to a,

name or position ~nthe address iisto use Q,';;'_ ... , '_ ~ th .... ,~I_ a 'att ention 111'ne' as '~n'e - tetter at "!III, 1 • and as here:

company usually opens. with Deer Sirs

•• I~. ',"

Gentteme«; followed by a co len ~not with

~p.

Inte rna tic nal Ind ustries L~ td

1-8 Greenfield Road Liverpool 'L2,2OPL

1. 1; 8
Th,e bo,dy' o'f the letter This may be, indented as ~ the letter at n 1 . 1, or blocked ~as in tlhe letter at 1. ,2. I't is a matter of choice, Whichever style you use, you must be conslstent and use jh at 8t~lle,a! I th rou 9 hi th e Ietter ,
I

For the attention of the

Production M,anage,r,
Dear Sir,

It is usuai to leave a I~nespace between paragraphs in 'the boOdy of the lsftsr;

1; 1.7
'SaliutalJo n,s
Dear ,SIr opens a is"tter written 'to a man whose name you do not know.

if the blocked style ls used! this is essential.

Complim,ent:ary' closes, Deer M,Ei'dBm or De-at ,Sir or Madam', :it willi c 110$8 with Yours faithfully.
= J,

I, 1. '9

Dear Sirs is used to add re ss a cornpan y. Deer Madam ls used to address a

woman! whether single or married, whose name you do not know,

~fthe, Iette r be 91 ins Dear Sir, Dear ,Sirs~

Deer Sir or Ma,dam ls used to address a person of whom you know neither the name nor the sex. Notice that Ms K,aasl9'n in the letter at: 1.11 uses this
form; she does not aSSUmiE! that the Sales Mana,ger of Soundsonic must be a man" See also 2,.6; 1. Titles, names and'
addresses;

If the letter begins with a,personal name Deer Mr James Deer ,Mrs Robinson! DearMs Jesmlr:« it wil~1 losewnh Yours c
sincerely.

-~-'I'ih U-_:·J~'· ,vne_ d _ '~.•':_: ." 'v~II-I_ .. A~veld- closi ng WilL: 01..-;1 tashlc phrases such as We remein yoursfa ith fu'iJy , Re'sp,e'Gtfully yours, etc, The comma after the eompurnentary c lose is a pti 0 n a! (Yours faith tu Ny" 0 r Yours tenntu JJy) ,
Note, that Arne rlcans tend to cl ose even formal letters with Yours truly or Truiy yours; which is unusual in the UK in commercial correspondence, But a

When you do Iknow the name 'Of the person you are writing to, the saiutation ta kes th e fa rm ot Dee r to IIIowed by a, courtesy title end the person's surname. lnltials or ftrst names are not g'enera~ly used ~nsal utaflons: De'ar Mr Smit:h, not Dear Mr J. Smith' or Dear ,Mr Jo,hn Smith.

letter to a frlend or acquatntancs may-

1; Structure and presentation

end with Yours tr:ufyor the casual Best wishes',. . - on the ieft ~rigl ht or in 1he cen tre of th e' pa,gl9 - is a m atte r of aha ice. ltd epe nd s on th e style, of the II tter (bl ocksd Iette rs e tend to put thle close on the lett indented
II tta rs te nd to put 'the min the cent rs) e and on your firm's preterence,
The position of th e camp limentary close

harm for men to start lneludlnq thelr titles in their signatures. .. I: .'. . I th e 1 1 M· I K' m tr e ~ tt er a t _. -.': ,.s,a.asen ,I, gives. h er ti't Is, in her h a ndwrl tte n s i'g na tu re. It is also posslble to include the title ln the ty pewrltten sign aiu re usually in b Iracke 't8' gel ~!II., e'·s·e'. t ·0···· e·xa m "'p-II.~. I~ t' ' ~"'. r . res: _ ~A,.I.
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Yours faithfully
,

,·[1'.- n .. res S"g'natu--As

,.1

1, 1. 10

(Miss) 'T. Shurcold

. .. -.

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Always type you r'name, after your handwrilttelr1i slqna t lire and you r position in 'the firm after your type·d signature. This '~sk nown as ,t he s~ natu re block. g IE,venl though y,ou may think your signature is easy to read" letters such as 'a 'e' 'o 'r' ard 'v' can- ea,sPy·.·:,: be •. · v. " . '" .. . oontused.
,, ,',~, .l J ' ., -

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Yours sincerely,

11_

"

("M " H· · 1 ,'.owa,tt... .'.r.)

It ls ~to, some extent, a matte r of e ho hie whether you s~gn wit.trt you f' lnitlai (s) (D~Jenkins) or your g~vel1name (David Jenkins), and, whether you include a courtesy title (Mr, Mrs Miss, Ms) in your
J

sl 9 natu re' block, But j'f you g lve nei1her your given name nor your title, ,your co rresoo rid e nt wi II net be a bl e to ide nti'fy your sex and may give you the wrong title whe·n he/she replies", It is safer, meretore, to sign with your give·n name, and safest of all to tnclude your title, Including! t.itles in signatures ls, in Iaet, more common amon'g women than atDong mien, partly because m,any women like to make it clear etther that
they are married (Mrs) or unmarried

relevant !(Mrs) , and partly because there, is stiJ~a handency to believe that important positlons in a company can only be held by men, It would dono

(Miss) or that their marital status is not

1, Structure and presentation

SOUNiDSO,NIC Ltd.
WO~iCK

Lavcutz
Here ts the flrrn's reply to the tetter from - -t' ·-c ··-t· ._._ .... In .. nrnark th e..... prospeclve ,-. cUeS.orner ".. D·en 8."".,•.. shows s Dim'€!further teatores of a norm al business letter', and uses the kind of iaylo ut (a,locked, open pu nctu atl 0 n stc.) wh ten tn is 1000 K reg a rds as stand ard,

1~2

Hause, WarNick Street, rares.'t Hili! london SE23 ~.lf

Di:red'Q!"S S. B, Aillen M.Sc '} N, 19 1"10,t~ R. Li en ens B ,A_
1

Cho irm'or'! J a h n Frc nks 0, B,E,

Teleph
0 ne

,1081) 566 1861

Fax: [08 ~J ,:50,6 ] 385

T ~~~x: 1 '9713 8
Your ref: Our r~h Dote:

6 May 19,~,
DSIIVlR l lth May 19-

~-

Letterhead

......_~""'"Referenc~.s

MsB. Kaasen Bredqade 61

DK 1260
Copenhagen K

DEN:MA.RK
Dear Ms Kaasen,

Thank you very much far

YOW'

enquiry 'which we received today,

I am snctoslnc Dill catalogue and price-list Ior the equipment you said you were intere sted in. I would like to draw your a.ttention to pe g~s 31~
35 in the catalogue where you will find full details of the Omegl!, rang-e" We would welcome any further enquiries. you have. and look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

bV]/M1j .. I#lO···.·.p/1I1h ,'r. eu ~..-:~"... t,ffJ_Js.1 .

..
-,

~.

"

nn ~!~:

D s·· amoson
. :

iI

:·GUll.l.~QY.·

..

Sales manacer

Pe'f pro ::JiI""'" ............ .......---. C,o'mpany position

~II-! --~"

'i

1. Structure and presentation

1,21 1
1

hls own name and on his own account.

Letterheads
The printed letterhead of a company

g,ives a gr'9·a,'t de,a.1of information about lt,

'the names of the directors will appear on the letts rh ead, :2 Board of Directors The name' of' the, Chairman (or, in the ' ", ld .',:,t . ._6 USA th.9 P-' resL. en t) ~w h10 Iru1-'ns" th, , " concern, may be given, as wellas 'the names of th e D':j ecto rs, wh Q decid e th e r overall poncy O'f the firm. T'he Mansgi'ng Di recto r (lnth e' USA, Ch isf :EX.'9 cutlve )~ who takes an active role in the day-to,cay nunning of the cornpanv, may' be
" -:' .,' I' ,",' _:::','.":.."',', ,-,,,', ',' ,,' ',-",~',

If the company is a joint-stock co'mpany,.

'The ahbrevlatlon Ltd, after the

1 Type of co.mpany
ha,"" 'S

company's
company
V'_'~_"

company, or part ot lt, I..e. the she re hol ders ~are on I)' respo nsl ble tor theiiir holdlnq (the capital they have contributed) and no more than that if the company goes bankrupt. lit hs a wa.rn~ng to people ,giviing the company credit that in bankruptcy they can, on~y ge·1what the company owns, not the personal possesslons of its shareholders, The abbrevlatlon PLC (Public Limits'd Compan.y) is used 10 show that the com pan y;s shares can be bough t by 'tth e public; Ltd ..continues to be used for private llrn lteo co mpanlas whose shares are not avallable. In the IUSA the term IncorpO'fa'ted (Inc,) is used,

umi+~d.':',':,Ii~b,,.jl'I·~Y-:' w-· ~h,......, lch '!!;ii". ,~, ~'" means that the individuals who own 'the
. __ ....

name te119, ou that the y

mentioned

Cha:j1rm1an.

if he ls dlfferent from' ths

'from which the letter ts being sent the letterhead may also g lve the add ress of th e hsad off i ce or re'QI i ste red off'ice ~f dlfterent and the adcresa of' any brsnches or' oth e r off ices the, com p any owns (see th,e letter at 3. ,3.3.). Telephone, telex, 'fax nurnbers, and a cable (teleqram) address may also be

3 Addresses In add it ion to the add re ss 0'1 th e off~ce

SOIUNDSONIC l.td.
SP 'Whole'slJ,lers PLC

g~ven.

Hartley-Mason Inc.
The abbrevlaton & Co. tells you that the company is. a partners'hip' between two

4 ,Registered numoer

This usuaJ~yappears in small print,

or more people. If it is a family concern, the wo rd Son, Sons, Bros (Brothe'fs) or, very occasionally, Daughter(s) may be a_ uB ., Pa r l .~ ~. __v..mISY,'" have limited added rtnerahlpa ... ~~~ Ilily ~ •.... IIQ,uL. or. unllrnltsd Iia bili'ty', .r ... .

'which the company was re,gistered.

sometimes' with the country or cUy in

The 'VAT number (V'aJue Added Tax) may' also be, g~ 'len. See the I,etter at
~ i'l' ~"iI~.···:·i

2-'

F,~ Lync'h & c« Ltd'~ ,R,~,Hughes &t, Son Ltd,

If neither Ltd. nor '& Co. appear afte r' the ccmcanv's name, then it 'may be a sole trader, a sing lie person doing business in

References
the letter refers to (Your R'e{) and the

A ef.eren cas are qu otsd

to mdlcats what

correspc ndence to refer to whe n replYii1n,g fOur ,R,ef.).

1, Structure and presentation

:Re'ferenc~s may either appear in "igures" e.g. 6·61/17 in which case 661 may r'sfer to the chronoloqlcal number of the letter and 17 ·tothe, number of 'the department or, as in the tetter at 1",2, in letters, DS/MR, in which case, DS stand s to r D onato S,ameson '-the, wrtter, and IMR for hls secretary, Mary
Raynor.

orlqlnal letter,

Note that. the 'Your R.et·' gJven in the I'etter at 1 .2 Is a d ate: as B, Kessen had " not menno ned any rete renee in U.,s

-' .. ' • _ ..•. .-.'. I .. ' .... ...... S ee a Iso 1. 3. 2 SUbJ9ct titles.

._

'.

Yours fa.ithfully,

1 2·' 3'
~ .' .! .; .'

Per pro The term per pro I(P .p.) is sometlrnes

used in alqnafures and means for and

p,.p"

J. Mane

Managing Director.

on ,b·ehalf of" Secretaries sometimes use p.p. 'when sig1ning letters on behalf
of their bosaes.

Yours faithlully,

(~J~~te(Ms,) T, Lavette Chief Accountant

~
..
....
'

'. Co,mpa.ny· posltlon company, :lit is useful [0 indicate your - iti __M" - 'f'~tp05_~,O, n i- 'thelrm - In th ~~~Hgna,ure . -e · ..
a
.

1. 2,! 4

When si'gning on behalt of your

Ene.

-, 1 2,·: 6' ..·

, .!
.

•..

"

Bin of lading (8 copies)

Insurance certificate (1 copy) Cert ific ate of origin ( 1 copy) Billof exchange (I copy)

Enclosures

pro spectu ses. ~etc. i with the Iette r~·t h'e'se may be mentioned in the body at the letter, But many firms in any case writs, Ene. or Encl. at the bottom ()f 'thle letter, and if there are a nu rnbe r of docu rnents, these are listed.

If m sre are any enclos ursa e.g. Ileaflets,

j

10

1. Structure and presentation

113 Layoutf
The 'f ina I' Isttsr In thl s ssctl on show's

SOUNDSONIC Ltd.
We rwlck House, WOrNick Street, Forest H111~ Landon SlE23 1J F
Chairman JohF"ilFranks 0'.13-":,
Dlrectcrs $,B, Allen M.Sc"

some further features of a business

letter,

N, ~gno·tr R, uchens EtA, Tel ex: 81 971,3

Your ref: Ou r ref: Dot~:

Te'ep h one ] 081 ) 566 1,861

Fax ~08l) 5,60.1.3650

DSIIvIR
,21July 19-

1vIs, B, Kaasen

Bredqa de S1
D '_ -', :'.~:.~ .. : .. ~

DK 1260 Copenhecen K K IVLM.. DE-)N" "Xi 1t:R'"._r.: ....

Private and --~

confidenUal Subject title

........... ...................... ----..,_

........... Private and confidential ~c

,I

Dear Ms Kaasen,
.:Non-paym,ent of invoice 32.2/1[7

iiiiiiiiiiiiiii ..........

~-------......,..__...,~c:

I am sorry to see that! desp its seve-ral reminders, you. have not yet paid the abo ve-mentione d invoice. Unless therefore, the account is cleared within 14 days of the, above date! 1. shall have no alternative but to place the matter in the hands of our solicitors, Yours sincerely,

IfIPwy Mw;1l0P (/lid

p.p, :D; Sampson

Sales manager
Copies

iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii......._--------

..........

c.c :MessIs. Poole & Jackson Ltd" Solicitors

1, Structure and presentation

1]

1.3. 1
'Pirivale and cenf d,ential!

1.4

Thils phrase may be 'written at the head

of a letter, and mora importantly on 'the

Addressinq envelopes
IEnve lope addressee ate w rltts n ina si rnll ar way to inside add rssses (see ~. 1. 3 ~1. '1. 4~ '1. 1"5) but, tor ~ett:,ers iiin or going to the UIK, the postcode is usually wrltten on a line by itself at the end of

envelops, ~ncases where the letter is intended only for 'the, eyes 01 the named recipient.

There are im~n!yvariations 01 the phrase - 'Oonfidential', IStri-ctly Confidential' ~. bu t little di fference in mean ing! between
them.

the address, and the name of both the town and the country are written iiin ea p ita ~Ietta rs,

,Subject 't il'Ies Some firms open their letters w'ith a S,U! bj ect Uti e. Th is p rovld as a f urth er reference, saves ilntroduo:ing th,e su bject in th e f'i rst p.alrag rap h, imm ad ii a te Iy draws atte nti 0 n to th e to p j.c:; of t he Ietter ~ and a Ilows th e wrii te r to reme,rto it th roughout the letter.
It iis not: n ece ssalry to beg in 'the su bj act tit ~ewi t h· Re: e.g, R,a: Application for post'
of typist,

1 3"',2:
i! ': .' ~
I

Mr G, Panter

49 Memorial Road
r III 1,-: 'prNO' T- :' :._ OR~.~ ~-,_- 0'":.J'N"

Kent BR'69UA

Messrs Wi Brownlow & Co. 800 Grand Stre et

LONDON UNITED ]CENGDOM

WIN9UZ

1.3,3
coptes us ua Illy at the end of '!the' l,ett~lF',wh e n co pies are sent to people other than th e named rec:iipi@int. Sometimes you will not want the, named reelptent to know that other people have received copies. ln 'this case" b.o.o. (~ b!11d carbo n copl ss) ls 'written on the n copies themselves, though not, of co urse on th e top: co p-:'y':-. -----1---------!-

C.G, (~ carbon copies)

is, written,

1. Structure and pre sentation

1.,5

Points to remember
'1 The ~ ut an d prssenta t ion of' yo IJ r aye

~e'Uerare Ii mportant as they give the reader the tlrst impression of the <iI' rm~s. eff" IC,_'I ency II -:,.~-. There are two styles of letter, blocked and inoemed, Both are acceptable, but the blocked stylew'ill probably save, time. Wri't:e both addresses ijn as much ,dstall as poss ibl e and in the co rrect order. Ma.ke sure you. use the recipient's correct title in the address and salutation. If in dou bt as to whether a woman Is sin'Qlle or married, use ,Ms'. IDol not 'abbreviate dates" Choose the co rreet salutat ion and complimentary close, W'hen you begin wlth Dear stro: DeBT Sirs or Dear Madam or Dear Sir or Ma'dam end with Yours f a..Ithfully. 8 u t if yo u I loe a' f"'!w.! oerso na I narn '8'" ln ,t-h's·,salute tlon then close with Yours sincerely. Make, sure your references are correct, Make sure your slqnatu re tells your _ reader 'what he/stile needs to know'
fl

salutation courtesy t'tle Dear SirIS,irsiMadslm!Sir or Madam :Deat Mr . , .!Mrs, .. .IMhss " . .IMs . , '. US- -:A-'· G:':-8'n- tlerne..n' l, ..' .
.• ,r. ',.. ':
_!!

complimentary close Yours fa rthf u II y I s~nee re Iy

si,gnature

USA,: Yours truly

b 'ocl~(.edsty~ e

open punctuation attention I ~ne

for the attention ot private and conlldential

indented style

references.

\.!la"

0"

'-

111 __

--

,_.

-~:,.,

'._,

~,

Our R,ef: subject title p.p, (per pro) Enc.lEncL (enclosure) c.c, (carbon copy) b.c.c. (b[l~n,d carbon copy)
j

Your Ref:

ltd. (limited ~ lability)

PL'C, (publlc urnlted company
USA: Inc. (~ncorporated) & Co. (and company) sole trader

ao 0 ut Y'OIU.

joint stock co mpa ny

Boa rd 01 directors

1,6

Words to remember
letterhead sender's address insid'e (receiver's) address
postcode

Chairman, USA: President Managing Director, USA: Chj,{:~f

Finance DJ!ector r Chief Accountant

Execufve (CEO) Sales Manager

telex number registelr,ed nu mber VAT number

cable/teleqram

faxll sl efax

address

13

Content and style

Lenqth; order and sequence; p:··]a'n'ning.---:.:·vourleti .I v and' language;' clsiity; a ccurscy.
.-- ,---'-'-'-- :- ~ .. ... -.. - .. -- ,-... -. . -, .. -- j--;

'.:c

.-:

(....t ..

, ..

:-

-e. style .
-. ···r·--" 'J
:':.___:'.-l.·.:

'to m aks you r Ietta rs as c hear , informative and accu rate as possl ble, They are', howeve r, on Iy genera'i ldeas, yo ur real apprecla t lon of wh at to do and what not to do in comrnerctal correspondence will' only come as you read through and ,study the fol ~owl~ng
units, .

This unit giives you some ge'nera~ ideas on how to write business letters: how much lntorrnation to give, how to- plan your letter, what sort of style to use, how

,2. I
Length,
Students often ask how ~ongtheir letter shou lid be; The an swer ls, as ,Ioripgas ne cessary, and 'this will depend on ~he

su bj set of the letter: it may be a sirnple sublect, e,lg. 'thanking a customer for a cheque, or quite complicated, e.g. exp,laining how a group insurance poli cy WOlr'KS, It is, a quest ion of how m UGh lntorrnatlo n you: put in the lene r: you mlay give too liUle (even for a brlet subject), in whi,eh case your letter wi'll~ be too short, or 100 much (even -for a complicated subject), in whlich case it willi be, too long. 'Your style' and the kind of Iangu ag:e you use can also affect th e ieng'th (see 2.,4). The right length includes the right amount of
info rrnatlo n.

The three .etters that fol ilow 8J@ written by different people in re'ply to the same enquiry from a Mlr Arrand about the companv's product.

14

2, Content and style

....

T'o,o long There, are' a number of things wrong 'wi;th ,a 1'8,1ter of th Ii s s(H1. Thouq h lt t rles to advertise the prod uots at nd the com pany its,eU tt :istoo wordy", There is no neeo to explain that stores or shops are stock,ing for Chrlstmas: the customer is
l

2~I, 1

,~

c'

'

. ,-_

--

Dear Mr Anand,

Thank you very much for your enquiry of 5 November 'which we received today. We often rece-ive enqui-ries from, large stores and always welcome them, particularly at this time of the year when we know that you will be stocking for Christmas; We have enclosed our winter cataloque and are sure you will be extremely impressed by the wide range of watches that w'e stock. YOU! will see that they range from the traditional to the Is.test in. quartz movemen ts and
include ranges for men, women! and children! witil prices that should suit all your customers, from models costing only .a few' pounds to those in the upper-market bracket priced et several hundred pounds, But 'whether you buy a cheaper or more expensive model we guarEmtB'6 all merchandise for

aware of this. Rather than draw attention to ce rtain ita rns 'the, custom er might be lnterestedin, the letter on~yexplalns what ~he custo mer can alrs ady see ~,t hat there is a wliide se lectlon of wat.ch es in. the c ataloau e coverl ng the TU ~Iran ge of market prl ces. In ad dI ~ti n t.he writer 0 goes on un necessari ~y exp tai n wh ich 10 00 un t rles the fi rm S,Slis to, th e history of the company, and its rather
J

two veers with a :full service. Enc'losed you 'win also find our price-list giving full details on c.i.f prices to London.and explaininc our discounts which we think you will find very g'enerous and which we hope you. will take fUll,advantage of: W,e are always available to ofter you further information about our prod ucts and can premise you. personal atten tion whenever you require it. This service' is given to all QUI customers throughout the world! and as you. probably know, we deal with countries from the Far East to Europe and. Latin America, and this fact alone bears out om reputation which has be-en established for more than a hundred years and has made our motto a

unlmprssslve motto.

household world ~ Time for Everyone;

II
I
I'

Once a.ga.in. may Wla thank you for your enquiry and say that we Look forward to hearing from you in the near future?

Yours, sincerely
.. . .

~
. . -' . ..". . .....

...

.'

.'

."

..

2 1- 2~ iI:~

' Too,"sh crt

. ' ',' :, ~_" -

,I _

D~8'r Sir,
Thank you for your enquiry; W'e havea wide selection of watches which we are sure you willlike, We win be sending at catalogue' soon,

There are a number of points mlsslnq from this letter", quite apart from the fact th at! since tiMe wtl tsr knew th e narne of kl· 0,0··••' rrespond ... ent ~~ sbo 'u.. ..... _ ave ~ I v .. h~ "_. lid.··· _~ I ~. begun the letter Dee: Mr Arrsnd and ended Yours slnc~rely.
Q Q .

Yours faithtully,
,

"_

- ..

"

reference number of the enquiry, 2 C·ata~ogues should be sent with a rep Iy to ani is n,q'Uiry;' it ~ nO)'li nQIfo,r a san
customer to have to wait for 'further info rrnatlon to. be sent.

1 Th ere is no rete renee to th e date 0 r

2,. Content and style

3 Even if a. cataloque is sent, the

16

custom e r's attention s hou Id b s' d raw n to pam cu Iarite ms that wou Id inte rest him in his line ot business, He Imight be concerned with the upper or lower ,end ot the market. He m~ght: want
moderately

expensive ones. Ther,~'mlsy' be a comptetslv new llne that should b'e pointed aut to him. 4 A, pr~ ~st should ,also bs inc I, udad if ce- i p rlces are n at Iistsd in the ca talo 9 u e, and any special olscounts 'that are available should be quoted as weill as delivery dates if possible,
'.

priced tterns, or

'.

'-'"_

Dear Mr Arrand,

The rl 9 ht he! ng!th Here is a letter that is more suitable. See 2.3 for the polnts listed.

Thank you for your enquiry of S November.

We have enclosed our winter catalogue and price-list giving details of c if. London prices discounts and, delivery dates.

win see Wl(!J offer a wide selection of'watches, may 'we draw your attention to pp, 23-2,8, and pp, 31-36 in QUI' catalogue 'which we think might suit the market you are dealinq with? And on :page a6 you
Though you

2! 1,4
A warning
Y C)IL.J' r Iefts r shou Id b~ ne,i1her too 110 n 9

will notice our latest designs in pendant watches which are becornina
fashionable for both men and women,

:As you ere probably aware! all our products are fully guaranteed, and
backed 'by our.'world-wide: reputation,

Ifthere' is any further information you require, please

Meanwhile ~e look Jorward
I

contact to hearing from you soon.

us.

Yours

sincerely,

no r too s hart U is better 'to in 0.1ud 6' too much lnrormanon than too little, Your reader cannot read your mlnd, If YOLI leave a ut vital intormation, he won't know what he wants to' know, unless, he writes back ag1a,jn and he may not both e r to do fhat, ~:fyou Iinol ude ext ra intormatl on, at least he'll have Wh'Bt he wanits~leven thou g h hem ay be ir rlltat~d by having to read the unnecessa ry parte, Provided, of cou rae, that 'you inoluds th e vttal info rrnatlon as well as the extras ':th e wo rst letter of: alii s th e one that glives every piece of info rm ati a n about a prod u ct ..... except the fi"'" . orlce.

16

2, Content and style

Order and sequence

As wei~as contamlnq the right amount of lnforrnatlon yo ur II tter should al so e maka all the necessary points in a Ic)g'ical sequence, with each idea or
II

2 2·'
!II"

previous one in a pattern that can be fouoweo. Do not lump around making a statement. switch Ii ng to ot her au bjects, 'then re;ferring back to the point you made ,8 few sentences or paragraphs,
before.

pleee of information Unking up with the

2.2.1
Unclear aeque'nee Cons,ider this b.a,d;ly ..wr~tten letter, There, is no clear sequence to the letter, which makes it d iff;icult:to un d e rstand .

~ ~-:-. ..

-.

..

.'

....

Dear Sir

We are interested in your security systems We would like to know' more about the prices and discounts you offer;

A business associate of ours, DM'S (Wholesalers) Ltd., mentioned your name to us and showed us a. catalooue. They were, impressed with the security system. you installed far them so we are vvriting to you about it 1F'\"", you gl've guararr-ees wi .h tne msta 11' " ,. tees wit .he i Jbl'() anons,?

In your catalooue we saw the Secure 1.6which looks as though it might

suit our purposes" OMS had the Secure 18 installed
I

but as W,S'
I

mentioned, they are wholesalers, while we are: a chain of stores. W'e would like somethinc that can. prevent robbery and shop lifti n.g 00 the a...... suit S~c urn J:.W.. micht SUl, US, .b .
11 ~

How hong would it take to install a system that would se rve all departments? Could you se nd an inspector 0 r adviser to see us at $Om'8
time?

If you can Of£S'I competitive prices and guarantees we would put YOW' system in all our outlets, but initially we would only ins tall the system in our main branch
We would like to an early reply.

make a decision en this soon so we would appreciate

Y O'11rS fai tbfull Y

2, Content and style

-

17

. -. -

.-.

Dear Mr Jarry,
We are a chain of retail stores and are lookmc for an efficient security system, You 'were recommended to us by OUT associates DMS (Wholesalers) Ltd ..for whom you recently installed an alarm system,

2" 2, ,2

C·lear sequence
Here ~sa better version olf the same letter, in which the ideas and lntornanon are in ~og~cal rder. o

the Secure 18.

We need an installation which would give us comprehensive

protection agai.nst robbery and shoplifting throughout all depsr menta

and. 'the Se cure 15 featured. in your cataloque appears to suit us,

However if one of your representatives could come along and.see US he would probably be able to ,give us more advice and details of the
1

availeble systems. Initially we will test your system in our main branch, and if successful
then extend it throughout our other branches but of course a competitive quotation and full guarantees fo,[ maintenance and service would be necessary,
I

2.3 Plannino your letter

The way to get the rrigh't amount of intorrnanon in your ietter~ and to g,et U in the right order, ls by pllsnning your ~ett,ei in advance. Ask yourself: what do you want your letter to achieve and 'what response do you want? 'Note, down everyt.h in9 you. wan1 to inci ud e ~ it n before you start 'wri1ilng; then read you r notes again 10 see (a) that you have included all the neceeeary information (b) that you haven't inoluded any IU nneces sary inform atton, and (c) th at you have put ~he information 'in the r'igh'1 order'.
j,

Please reply as. soon as possible as we would JOke to make a decision

within the next few months. Thank you,

Yours since rel y.,

'_
-,"_

- -'

Here, for example. is the plan for the

~et1erat

2. 1 .3.

tst para

acknowledge enquiry
j.

2nd para '9110110sec etal ogue

pr'j ee-l let

3rd para' dr'aw attention to watches suitable for Arrand, and latest des igns
4th psr« mention guar.ant,ees and repu tatlon 5th para

eneouraae further contact

18

..':0··. 2. C· mte nt and st yle

I • _ • " __ ' , . . _ • •

First .pI.r·agr'ap h The first sentence or paragraph of a letter is an im portent one since j1t sets the tone of the leUelr and g,ives your· reader hls ·first lmprssslon of you and your· company. Genera,lly speaking, in the first paraqraph you wlll thank your correspondent tor hrs letter (if reply~ng to an enqutry), introduce, yourself and your cornpan y if necessary state the sublect of the letter, and set out the purpose of the letter, Here are two examples:
1.

po ints ars mad e c Ilea rly, fu Ily· and in a . '· I ... :.~::.s .~' .. ,:. :: .. 10g~I'lic··alequs nee
'.0.····.•

'.=.~ 23
Ii

_·, 3'
:.', I

Final paragraph
When closingl the letter, you should than k th e perso n for wriUn gl, if you r letta r
,i.

Thank you tot your enquiry dated 8 July in which you eekea us about our range of coemetics. As you have probab,ty seen in our advertisements in fashion magazines! we appeal to a wide eqegroup from the' teensqe mark.et through to more mature womeo with our products being retailed in leading' stores throughout tne world.
j

is a rsply and lf you have not done so at the begi nn I'ng E ncou ra'g e fu rths r enquiries Olr correspondence, and mention that you look forward to head ng ·f rom yo u r· co rresp ondent soon. You may also wish to restate, very br~ie·fly, n e or two of the most JI rnportant o of the points you have made in the main part of your tetter, Here are some examples:
Once

Thank you for your letter of 19 August which j received today, We can oertainly supply you with the industrial floor coverings .you asked ebou; and encioeed you will find 8' cststoque
illustrating our wide range throughout the world,

and· ple'Bse contact us if you would like ,any tunner informa.tion. To go brie.fly over the pOints I neve made a# prices are quoted c.l.t. Yaka.ham.a; delivery would be six weeks from receipt of order; and .paym'fJnt should be ined« by ber« draft. f look forward to' hearing from you soon.
=

again thank you for writing· to us,

ot products

which are used in factories and offices

2.3.2
Middl'e pa,r,agraphs This is 1he main part 01 your !ette'r and w~11 concern the pol nts tha,t need to be made, answers you w~shto [give, or questions you want to ask. As th~scan vary widely 'wijith tlhe type of letter 'that you are writing lt wil,11be dealt with in the re levant uniits~It ls in the' mllrdd lie paragl raph s of a letts r t hat p lan n h'9 is most important, to make sure that your most important, to make sure that your
l

hope I have coveted all the questions you esked, but please' contact me If there are any other details you require. MaY' I just point out that the summer season will soon be with US~so please place an orderes soon as possible so that it CBn be met in good tune for when the season starts. I hope to be« r trom you in the near future.
J

We.ere sure

right choice In choosi:ng this petticutsr line as it is provfn,Q' to' be a leading setter. If there ie any edvice or further intormetion you want we shall be happy to supply It, and look iorwerd to hearing trom you,

met you have made

the

2, 'Content and style

Dear SiI
1. beg

2.4
I

to acknow ledoe receipt of your letter of the 15th inst. in connection with our not clearing our account which 'was outstandinq as at the end of June;
Please accept our profuse apoloqies, We were unable to settle this matter due, to the sudden demise of Mr Noel, our accountant, and as a. result were unaware of those accounts which were to be cleared, We now, however, have manaqed to trace all our commitments and take pleasure in enclosing our remittance for £620 which w'€ trust w.ill

Style and lanquace

2,,4.1

S,imlpl~city

settle our indebtedness.

We hope that this, unforeseen incident did not in any way inconvenience you! nor lead you. to believe that our not clearinq our balance on the due date was an intention on our part to delay payment W,e remain
I

CQ,mmercial correspondence often suffers from a ril old ..Ias h,i ned, po mpous 0 style of English 'which complicates the meesaae and gives the reader .--h II' ..... .B__ I a.' e me f ee~lng.th a t h'e. ~_.".-.. di.ng a In' gW_.Q" IS rea he does not understand. in thls letter, an the writer is trying to do lis explain 'why hie delayed payi,ng his account, but because of the styli e~the Iette r ls too 10ng, and ls dlffleu It 'to. write and read.
..
-.::""",~

y01.lIS~etc

..

..

'-'.

~
~lfy ,.I, VII _ __ .

'.

~'--."

'_

Dear

. g._

Ald.·• In:', e·' .· :,

,II, _ .. j

I am replying to your letter .of 15 Judy asking us

balance,

'~O clear

o~r June

the account sooner, but due to the, unfortunate death of Mr No el, our accountant, we were not able, to SB ttle

I apologize for not settling

any of our outstandinc balances"

Please find enclosed our cheque, for £620, and accept am apologies for any

what he wants to know, First,. his customer remembers his name, Second, he has apologized. Third, Mr Aldlne knows, his was not the on I"l acco un t th at has not been pald, .e,nd knows why. iFiinallly, he has his cheque.

Mr Ald lne w'~ be saths·fi ed w~h it bscau sa II t it tells hlrn, in a simple, and clear style!

Hers is a simpler version otthe letter,

ineon venience,

-.
.

Yours sincerely,
.,_...~
. ."..,..

...

'.

_'.

--';,-.'

.=

'"'"

"

.- ..

-.

..

-.

~.

D ear Mr Rohn ..ar i ,Q.II.ln,

.. 242
'," :_::_I_
-:'.

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"'Il

Courtesy

I have already mitten to you co nee mine your outstanding debt of

£691. This should have been cleared three months a.go, You don't seem to want to co-operate in paying us, and therefore we will sue you if your debt is not clewed within the next ten days. Yours etc"
j

Your style should not, however, be so simple that it becomes discourteous. Here is an example ot a letter that is, so s hort an d s im J)i e that it so u nd s rud e'.

20
In this version of the same letter, notice the styllstlc devices that are used to
make it mare polite: complex

2; Content and style

..

_.

'.-.

...

-.;;.,..

'

......

Dear Mr Rohn~

._ -, .....

~.~.

'.

.'

. """'-..

'

sentences, joined by coniunctlons,

rather than short sentences; passive ra th e'r t h an act lve: fu ~ rms rarh e r th an ~fa

abbreviated forms.

I refer to the previous letter sent on 10 Octobe:r in which you 'were asked to clear the balance of £691 which. has been outstanding since July, AB you have .not.replied to the. lette-r you leave little choice for me but to place the matter in the hands of solicitors. However. I am

reluctant to do this and am, offerrng you a furthe:r ten days to settle the account Yours sincerely,
..
-....,"

2:
'.

,4':'
I.·

'3::
..

Id!ioims ane colloq L:I lal la.nguage

....

,..........

-'

'

... :

~nyour etter. This means that gener,a.lly spsaklnq, you should aim for a neutral tone, avoid~ngpompous langua.ge on the one hand (as in the·first letter at
2.4;,1) and intormal or colloquial, ~angua-ge on the other hand.

It is important to try to get the rlg1ht 'toner

2,.5 Clarity
Your correspondent must be able to und erstand what you have wrlitten. Confusion in correspondence often arises through a lack. of thought anc

A.letter may be givan the wrong tons by 'the use, of inapproprlate vocabulary, idiom,s ~' phrasal verbs, and short torms t among other thlnlgt~,. Here are a few sxarnpiea ot each ~together with ,8. prete rred alta rna ti ve : you've probably guessed you~~fget your money back [ to go, into property
the loan will be you probably know

care, and there are a number of ways in whiich· it can nappsn.

2.5-.·.., 1
_~ I

Abbre'vlations Abbreviations can be useful because they are' quick to write and easy to read. 'But both parties need to know what the ebbrevtatlons stand for. The abbreviations c.i.t. and t.o.b, 'for example, are rscoqnlzsd internationally as meanl ng cost. insurance! an d fr:elght and free on boerd. But. can you be sure that your correspondent would know that o. n. o, mea ns or nearest offer?
Some internationall orpanizatlcns, e;g.

reoeia

to invest in property

a couple of hundred quid

two tumdrea pounds prices a re at rock botto m prices ere very low

prices have gone through the root prices have increased rap1dly'

Th@se are' perhaps extreme examples, but the ,gleneral point is that yo,u should be, very W BJY of' usl ng idiomatic or colloquial !anguB,ge in your letters. Apart from the danger of being mlsunderstcod if your correspondent is a man -nativ,e' speaker o,f English you may' also give, an lmprasslon o,f over-tamlltertty,
j

:NAT'O'J are known ln all! countries, by the same set of ini·tiis,ls,-but many are not,

e,g. EEiC· (European Eco,nomic Communi1y) and U!NO' (Un~ted Nations Organ lzauon), Natlo nal organizations" e·.g. CBI (Confederation of British
Industry) and

'r'ue (traces

Union

2, Content and style

Conqress), are even less likely to be known by their lnltlals in other countries. Note, for 'telephone purposes, that with a few' exceptions (NATO lis one of them) these abhrevlafions are not usually letters: Iti:: j u: si:! not ftAk/.

di iffe're nee, between The price has been mcreeseo to £-15' 00 Tb price h oeen · d· ~-',-'_-:,~,tne · ··'8S be ~ - - .,=.' .- ,,: .. Increase d b'" 1~5-'.'.,.'0' 'a' -nd- Th" e' p" nc ." 'Y;{., .•. 0'' ' , ,-- ~-,-" .". ,'iva has belen tncreesed from :£15.,00.
-= ~.' :-, ('ii

pro nounced as a. wo rd, but as sepa rate' I'f you are not absolu tely ce rtal n th at an ah brevlatlon wi ~ be easl Iy ret~ognizsd ~
I'

Accuracy
Car,e~ess rnista kes in a lette r can create
a bad impresslon on your reader, Spe,lli'ng, punctuation; and grammar shou lid al~be' c hacked ca rsfu i~Yl but

2.6

do not u !H3~it.

~
I

,".

2'-"
.

.:':

"" "

•.

Figures,

there are some other w',a.ys ln which

maccurecy may spell you r letter.

We saw, at 1,1 ,2, that the use of filgures in stead of wo rd s fo r d a tes can erea te
problems, Numerical expressions can also cause contuslon, For example, the declrnal point in British and US usaqe is a ful'l point rather than a, comma as used in most continental European countries, so that an E ng,lli.sh or American person 'would w'rite 4.255 'where ,8 French person would write 4,255 (wh~chto an Englliish person woulld mesn four ·thousan d two h u nd red a fifty -,11'V'e) .

2,6.1
T~tie'5',names, and addresses

no

Make quite sure that you LJS e th e correct tit le in, t he adore ss and sa 1 utaf on ~th at you spell your correspcndent'e name correctly (nofhl ng c reates a worse lrnprsssion then a mrs-spell edt name), an d that yo u wri te his/he r add ress ace urate Iy·" correspondent's sex U you do not know It If you are writing 'for example, to a Chi,e" IBuyer who you do not know do not assume that he/she must be one sex or the other: use Dear Sir or Madam rather than De'a.r Biror tseer Mada,m. ~f you know the person' s name but not hlszher sex, (either because he/she only si'Qns wi than initlal, 0 r' because hlisf her given name is new to you), then use Mrl M:rs . '.. , e~g,D,ear MrlMrs Barron.
l l

0:0 not make aasumptlons about your

Illfth B,re is a posslbl li'ty' of comus ion, th e rsto re wri ie out the exp reas ion in both ngures and words, e.g. '£,1 O,575,9!0 (ten t hou san d five hun d red and seventy11vepounds, ninety pence).
j

be wary of 1n'9 words bl/Jion and .trillionwhich mean different things ~ the UK and U S"A" For a full I treatment n of numerical expresslone, see Appendix 4 in the Oxford Advanced Learner's (Conversely,

Dlction.a'fY ~)

21.5,13

i, ;~ 2 6'· 2'"
Ii ••.

tPrepo,s,i1ions
Spsclal care should be taken when using prepositions, Thelre is, a Ib~g

Ref-eren,ces

When replying to a letter! make sure yo u quote 8,11 rete rences 8'CCU ra.tely. Your correspondent wi 11,11 be pleased not

22
if ~tis not lmmedlately clear which tetter

".... ,_ ',. -1s- .' .~200t .n _en,t.- an_dtl y_e

you are, replying to,

Prlees, measurements, etc. Special care must be taken when q uotl n 9 p rices or 9 iV'i, n 9 spec ~flean ons such as measure rnents, W~ ighitsJ ,e10" A wronigly .. u oted prlce ~ a letter can q n cause cornpncattons,

2- 6:.

3-'
.
'.
I .::'

5, Accuracy is lrnportant, Pay special attention 1.0' titles, n ames ,9; nd addresses, references prlces and speclrl can ens, enol os u res.

,"

Il

':,_:. iI

2- S··
,

"

order and sequence style and langua'ge

clariity s.i m pi lc ilty

length

2. ,6. ,4,
iEnclosures

Always check that you have aotuauv enclosed 'the documents 'YOU have mentioned ~nyour letter. And check that you he V9· snc lased t he right: docu me nts: i'f, for exam p~ Y'ou say' in e! the body of the letter, 'tlha'tyou are eneloslnq 'our I,eaflet PB/14~~do not: then enclose leaflet IPB/15. Or, when sending a covering letter with an order, maks sure you have quoted the order number accurately in your letter.

courtesy accuracy
idioms

colloquial language abbrsvlat ions a statement ,8 sentence a p,arag rapih to open a letter to lntrodu ce ,0 nss elf to ,a.cknowl'E!,dg 9 an enq uj ry to draw attention to something to point: out sam,e1ihing to make a point ' to restate a pOli nt a ." I.'.•.••_.: ""~' '::_,";";"" .·~·Iii I ..•.. .• t- , e'ncl 0°.0 a cat . glII 09-'.lu6-a to e ncou rage, 'fu rt her co ntact to close ,8 etta r
I

,2. 7

Points to remember
l' Include just the r~ght amount ot lntorrnatlon ~nyour letter. (But better

:1

to lncluoe too much than too !I~:tt:le.) 2: Plan your :Ietter before you start . wr'iting ~to [make sure it say'S everyth [ng you wan t to say and says it in a logic:al sequence, 3 US'B a simple but polite sty-lie of language, Be'ware of idioms" 4 'Your letter shoutd be clear and. unarnblquous. Take care with abbreviations and figures.

1)3'-'
~.:.

Enquiries
Methods of enquiry; asking fO'T cetaloqucx; price-lisis, piosoectuses; eskinq for cletails: sskinc: for ssmotee , ¥ ..... xutems de 'm'" instrstion :s. sua . -"e" .. ,:,: term .... method .:·-' etm .. : .. '." ns :_.1. P_ :~",: ',': "',
·...

",'

.. ,'J

'''._.'.:c_:

;--.

.....

",

..

'.'

:J'

:_.";-

--.--

-. '.'

-..

. ...

,'c··'c.:

... :....:c:._

......

'~'

"·,··;:...:·,~

·"0' ... "::..-'-'·:·.,.1U,_J.'·:

- '::__::__,.. ,

"'-,''1

.,.',

.. :._ :":,~ ...: ... ' .. .. ',g":

' '.

"g-:-"c

:'J

;_:,-';_::'.: .. '

,,",8' , .. :"'.':'" ,··,·, " '~ ....

0"',[-

payment, discounts' eskina for aooas on eppxovel ':::tJ".' ."... " -', ,,':" ,- , '1:--" .. '.' . . -:ki tor ','." d sale or return; aS~ln:g[C. sri estimete or tenaer.
. '.'.'' ." ,. 1 '. ,",.", ... . '.' '.:

.:c'

or on
." ',_',

,":",.'

' 3'·"I -M-:- et h0dS 0f e'nqulry ,. , .. ,:• '•

,
-

An enqul
.' '. :.',

f"ioanbe . m,B d-91 telephone --, - - bv .',~' V_.·-l '~'_.! tellegraml (cable), telex, tax, or postcard. If yo u use a po stcard, ~ ls 11at t necessa ry to 'beg in wi t h a sa Iuta t lion (Dear Sir; 19,tO.) nor end wi'th ,8
_,I

r\/ 'v·, "if

]. SINCLAR.E LTD,! 41 Lewis Place; Coulsdon, Surrey.

-1
0" ": , ,.:. ·:·c~(}

com plimentarv close (Yours fajthfully~ 6'tO.) Your addrese, the date, and

refe renee iss uff leie nt,

-··b ..... lll"l _Err ~=

Your Ref: Box 3124

Please could you send me, details of the refrioerators

d - . d In - ·t d -aver ---t!188,::: ~ yas.er-BY
I

~E . - veulng

n ·tl? .r-OS:
!

suppller: whether your suppilier is at home or abroad: and the type of ,goods you are enquijrin~1about there is a diifference between asking IBM about the, cost ot in staJ ;1ng ,8 compl ex Ii; computer and asking a publtsher how much a boo k WOlJ, ld cost.
'='

more lntormatkm, you will need to wr-iite a ~etter,The contents of this wil~depend on three things: nCJ;w well y,QU know your

Ii youneec to give more intorrnatlon abou t yo ursel f or as k the supp I:e r tor l

24

3. Enquiries

32
II
"

,'

heve more inform etion a bout tbem. Could you send us . , ,

31,21 I
O'pening

322
....

'

,!

~~!i

:."_

Tiel! your supplier what sort of firm you

are. We are ,a co-opersiive wholesale
soctety besea In Zurich; Our compeny is a subsidiary of Universal Business Machines and we

A.s kl n g to r cata lo'g ues, IPri,c'e..1i,lts, prcapectuses I't is not nBees sa ry to give a lot of info rrnanon abc ut yourself when as kin:g for cata lo'gwas broohu res, booklets, etc. This can be done by postcard, but
j

eoecieuze in . ; .

:We are one of me main producers of industrial cremes» in Germ'anYJ and'

we are interested in .. "

remember to supply your address, unless, it is alreacv printed. phone number, tel ex, and fax nu mbe r if 'Y'OU have one, It wow Id also be he IlPfuII if' you coule briefly point out any particular lte m S yo UI ars ~ nterested in,
Could

How' did you hear about the firm you are writing 1'07 It milght be useful to point out th at you kn ow a. 'f i rrn ~ associ ates 0 r s that they were recornmenoed to you by
j

ca'taJo,gue and price-lis:

i

you please send your cutten:

for ,exhibition

stands? We are particularly In-terested in tu rn ltv re display J s te nd s.

a consulate or' Trade Assoclanon.

We were given yout name by the rtotenere' ,Associat.ion in Paris.

You w'ere recommended to us by M'r John ,King! ot Leswotn & Devies,

'Would you let us have' your summer brochure' tor holidays to Greece end the Greek lslend«, and supply details of any 1 ," w' te :__" nd t'GIl:..rit te 11: ",' th·,_.e' m:,nn, '_",.",-' ,' . a t.0, ....... ~~ .~ tor _~ .'. ~... ~v.. 'h' 0' '__
r"g;d
~l'

t,

f'

September?
I would eoprecisie your sending me an

M'erchant Ban'Kers.

We 'were edvised by Bpet: Marco Gennovise of'Milan tne: you were

interested

uo-to-oete ptice-lie: toryour buildin.g t 'Ie metensss.

London next autumn ena I would like
c,

in supplying,

.;

I am planning to come and study' in

Th'e British Embs'ssy In Madrid told us ine: ,you were looking tor an agen.t in Spain to represent you. It
is

prospectus tor your col/ege intorm 'at,ton ~b-0'" ut tees en a specie; : ~" .1.6t. .. o'·· ~o' ..
c..I,.,JIV·_'_ ~: .. : .. _.•~ i'lrJ· ... ,.·~.

a giving me
-

-','

courses in c(]m'puting"

poss ib,le to use oth e r refers

nC'9S:

We were impressed b,Y the selection of gard,ening tools that were displayed on your stand ,eU this yeer'« GardeninQ Exhibition held in Hamburg.
Ou r associates in the peckeain g industry spesk highly otyour Zete

'We neve heera about your latest equipmen; in laser surgery and would iik,e more details, Please send us any totormetton you cen SUPplYf marking Kazuhlroj~ Tol\y:o General Hospit:a/l' Kin uta Setagay:ak,uJ Tokyo! Japan.
m

the fetter ~Forthe Att~nti()n of Professor

p',acking machines and 'we would ilks to

3, Enquiries

lj,.···.

1')'5·

As,king fe,r d,etaii s When asking for goods or services you must oe specltc and state exactly wha t yOU' want. If replying to an acvertlsement you should! mention 'the journal or newspaper, the date, and quote any box. number or department. number given, e g"" 8~;o':x-' 0::' ,3-,,4"-·1" D' ept 4/1 218- And if 'N:, re,ferr~ngto, or ordering from a
.. 'I .. I! .,

323
.
'"'-.

~ .. :' ~ ,':
'.

However, few would send a complex piece of machinery for you to look. In that case you would be' invitedl to v ls it a. s howroo m ~0 r the supplier wouild offer to' send a re p rsse nta tive, Neve rt he less if it is pracnca I as k to see an exarnp..•B 01 the .. I of .9 articl e you want: to buy.

make a selection.

at
..

-. - "··1'·

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..

_'

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.I

catalogue. brochure, leaflat, or

enclose a pattern card'?

When repiying could you pi/ease

j

p rospectus, allways quote th e ref.erenc8 e.,g'. Cat, No. A149; HOliday No. J/M!3~ ltern No. 35'1; Course BL362. I em replying to your advertisement in the June edition of 'Tailor and Cutter I woula like to lfnow more about the' 'stesm : p'" ressers-0- w'h'',.~J""Ih·-·"_'.':":'_ ·uoi! ered of" y. o':._' ~~ia~·. :. ·"'
I'"
~. -.-:.i[;['

We would also spprectete it it yOU' could send some samples of the material so

that we ,quality.

C8.n

examine the texture and'

Bela re selling toys we pre fer to test them for s-a- te t:y. C ou Id you th ere fore send us at feast two exempies ot these
- tiildren C1.G·,;j
Ie;

V·

G.. ", _~ . Q'_

cost price.

,Fllar'D in the ~S-· -. renq«, -r't .? ~'-,,5lt,,~:p~Je

,I -

v n vU Snu·.·.·t.h Yu·'g.'Q·· ··s·I~ia-.'-:.tour. ..

!;,.J ... ' .... _~.

f em interested in holiday No. J/M/3) the

l will be anending the auction to be held in Turner House on 16 Februery this yeer, and' am particularly

model to install In m,Y lectory. 1 wouki be grateful if you could ,arrange for one of

maintenance before dB-cidlng which

I would like to discuss the problem of

your
.

the next two weeks.

retxeeemeuvee

to' call

on me within

tmerestea In the job lot listed as/tern

No. 351.

Could you piease give me more information about coutse BL 362 whlci1. appears In the language' learning section of your summer otoeoectue ?

32S
.....
,'. :_' i'"
"

..

Suggesting'te'rms,! methods of

me ~,Unjversjty Communicstions System ~

which you are advertising on Gra;mpian

f would eooreclete more details eboct

pa·Ylmenl, discounts Firms someffrnes state prices and cond lttons in t:he~ advern sam ants 0 r r lite ra t:ure anc may not l ike p ro spect iv@ customers rnaklnq addlflonal demands.
However, even If conditions are quoted, U:is possible to mention that you usuailly expect cs rtain co n ce es ions. AI'th 0 ug h lt is true 'that once e,supplier has quoted a price and stated terms, he may be unw~lling to clhanlge them, by,s:ugglesting

Television,

3,,2.4
Asking for samples, patterns" de mo n,s.tlratiens You migh't want to see what a material or
ltem looks Ilike before pli8ciing an order. !Most su pplisrs are wli Iiing to provl de sam pies or patter ns so that YDU can

you r term s you indi cate th at c)ertal~ n conditions may persuade you to plaee an order. We usualfy de'al on a 30% treae discount basis with an additional

26
quantity discoum for orders over 1 000 ~

. 3. Enquirie s In the catalogue we received teet week from YOU we saw that you ste 'mroduci ' In :fouclng' (9' new· ! ,n enmote.I· me . t 'f· ; iors.
1

units,

As a rule our supptier« allow us to setue b.y monthly statement and we can offer the usual references If necessary. u.sualJy s'ettle our accounts
'We would' also flkt3 to pom tout that we.

document» ag',a1nst acceptance

with payment by 30~day' bill of

on a·

oeste

e.xch·ang'e.
Coutd you let us know If you allow cash or trade discounts? and would' therefore like to know' wh'a'f

While we eporeciste the; inc tees in.g pressure from wifdlife. protection sooteuee ts reod'uClng t e d ... . 'h aemsn. d "" "or res! skins, we a re not e ure how our customers at this end of the market will reect. B t we WOU:fd ·J·S t t a t ··-:U" k ··o·./y selection of designs. " Would it therefore be possible toryou to supply ue with a
, • n

We intend' to place a subetemle! order,

furs? Three months. would probabJy be enough to establish a market jf there is

range on an epprove! basis to see If we .. "-'n' ~ .. ..... ·th·· eEl: r .an' c··o··u·.... ....: a . d ... rage ·em·n· d f.'or synedc"f.~.0;'._.

a'

".-

quantity discounle you allow.

....
.

one,
. iI'

Asking for glQods on a.ppro,val or en sale or retu rn S,om enrnes wholesal ers and re,tali lers want to' see how' a Iline wiitl sell betore pla.cing a firm order wah the supplier. They may be able to do thls by 'getting goods on approval or on a sale or return basis, In either case the supplier would have 10 know the customer wel'~!or would want trade ref.erences, He will also place a time limit on when 'the rgoods mu 5t be returned or paid tor,
-

3 2,,'6'
I·
I II ::.,

7' 3 2_·:·
..
• -_

As.k~ng for a·nest'imate or tender Estimates are quotatlons to complete a job ot work" for example ..putting a new root on a 'f actory or j n 9ta.11ing mach in e ry . 'Tenders are slrnllar quotations, but in a wriUen form and often used when the job is much ~,arger~ building a complete ,e'.g. factory. V'ery often, when thl s sort of work Is for a. gov'9·rnment or is a large undertaking, an advsrtlsemem [j:splaced in the newspapers.
Advert: The Irish Tourist Organi2a:tion
1

Your leaflet a.dve'ttising your tetes: t .···is · pob! ~" tfons 0:. Ht tory' ms'gsZ'lnes' tee interested US, end we would like to

stock a selectlon ot these'. However, w:e would only consider placi.ng an order pto V' ""/~d'-'''e-'d:c:,' 0- n ',w usu -,.~,. b"··asis of it· was me -~.~ sale or return, If this is eoceptebie we wUIsend you our official order,
• '. '.. _. -,j', ~'.

invites tenders from buifding contractors to erect seatIng for 10 000 people for the Dublin Summer Festivsl. Tenders should' be in by 1sf March 19~ and will be studied' on price and sultability.of construction plans,
invites tenders. from ptiveie contractors for the disposal oi cnemce! waste. Strictgovernm,ent regulations wIll be in force so only those ticensed to deal with toxic substances- should apply, F.u.rth'er

¥'~iC,l

-.

GIll

,;,

,-

Advert: The Zens Chem1caJ C'Omp'any

d etsits irom .., "

3. Enquiries ,A. co m pa ny may 'w rlte clrcut Sf J,ettere to sev,era~ cornpan iss inviting offe rs to corn p Iete a co nst ruct lon job 0 r to. effect repairs or decorating.
We ere a large' chain oi theatres and ere looking for est/males fro.m upho!ste'fe ts to re-oo VBr the sea ts in our two rna in

""7 "'.

3 ,/"2 8
"

th ~a t res in Ma ncbesie r.
We are writing

Closing Usua.lly a simple 'thank you! is suttlclent to close an enquiry. However, you could mention th at ,8 prompt: repl y wou lid be app reclated, or as the exa mples show! th at ce rtal n term S 0 r 9uara ntees wo u Id be necessary.
Thank you for you r attention. We hope to hear from' you in the near future.

conversion of ,Northborough alrlield Into a sports and leisure centre, The work'

to a number o.f bull-ding con tractors to invite es tirna tee for the
will tnctuae erecting buildingsr

'We would be gra teiultor an early reply. Fineltv, we would like.to point out that delivery before Christmas is essential and hope that you can offer us that guarantee,
If the concessions
WB'

providing faclHtles~ e.q. ski siopes,

perecbuteiumce, etc., and should be completed by next Decemoe: If YOU can ptovide ,a compe titive estims te

please con teet us al

!'

••

could' be met, 'we would place

have asked for

A,s you might neve teed in the newspaper our firm has taken over Intems tional Motors PLC end we. ere In tbe process of automating their .Hamb.urg factory, At present we ere writing to severet engineering designers who may be Interested in converting the plant to a fully eutomsted production unit. Enclosed you will find epeciticetione, but we would welcome your sutveyore to come and inspect the site wIth B view to' sup'Pfying an 8'S timete for th e recon strue tion.

substantial order.

Prompt ,d,e/lvery would be neceSStJ1Y BS we' have a fast turnover. 'Ws' would therefore need your assurance that you could meet 811d"eJive.ry dates.

Yo u can also indl eats further bus~ B'S8, n' or other Ilnss you would be lnte resteo in if you think they could be supplied, If a suppller thinks that you may become a reqular customer, rather than someone, 'who has placed the odd order, he 'would be, more lncl inad to quote competltlve terms and offer concessions. It the product is satisfactory! we wiN place tunner orders with you in the'

tutute. If tne prices quoted sr€} comoettuve, ena the quality up to stenderd, W€ 'wi11
order on a regular basis.
J

Providedyou can otter favourable quotatlons and' Q'uarant,ee delivery within four weeks from reoekn of order, we wNlplace regular orders wIth you.

28

· ., , 3 ; E.nqumes .

3.3. Specimen letters

,3,,3.1
S,ho,rt enquiries
list

A Request for a catalogue end price-

.;"....

'

.....

Dear Sir!

Please would you send me your Spring catalocue and price-list quoting
c.i.f,

prices!

Le

Havre? Thank you.

I

Yours fai thfuUy

.. ..:"."...:-==-

'.

..... -

.'_

"

'-.'

..

...,

B .Requsst for ,8' prospectus

"'~"""""'''''''''''''--'

'.'

Dear Sir

I would like some information beginning this [uly. Please

about your Proficiency

j

courses in Engl.ish

send me a.prospectus details of your fees and information about accommodation in London for the period Iuly-Decernber. II possible I would like to stay with an Engliish family, Thank you.
Yours. faithfully,
-~

.....

'

C Request

Note th at ttl e reference to 'ttade prices in this lette'r'1ells the rnanutacturer that he, Is de'all~;ngwith a retailer or wholesaler, not a private ~ ndiv,idual
i

tor ge.nerallnformatlon

.-

. ..-.._.

-',

'

"

..

.......

.-=,

Dear Sir! Cou1d you. please send me details of your tubeless tyres which are

being advertised in garages around the country?

Iwould appreciate

a prompt reply quoting trade prices.

Yours fai thfull y,

3, Enquiries

Disc SA
.251' rue des Raimonj.~res F~6'O(JO PoiNers Ce.dex Tel: (33) 9968' 1031' Telecopie;' (33) r 02 ,r 63

Reply 10 an adv-Irtisment
In this ~eUerthe customer is. replying to an adverftsernent for cassettes which he saw [in a 'trade journal. The advern ser gave littlle jnformat~on,so 'the writer will have to ask 'for details.

3,3.2

Ref~ PG/AL

12 May IS=--

'Ou es.tllons,
1 Why does Mm Gerard say they are a

The Sales D 9Pt.

I

R.G, Electronics AG
-

1.Iar~9'e.r[record store?

Havmart 601
D-5000 K(jIn I

2 Is he tnterested in high-quali,ty cassettes or low _,q ual iilty cassette S,'? 3 Wh at two th ings. do as he Ireqll ire
J .. _ ~ ••..•• _ '."" •
II!

Dear Sirs!
'We are a. large 'record store in the centre of Poitiers and would like

to know more about the tapes and cassettes you adverdsed in this, 'hi diti monts '9'1 on. 0f~H' P' N -1 18WS, '

cr . .'. ." before he p:' .'.la-' c-e'·· an' orderj S 4 How did he hear about 'the advert? 5 If the letter bs'g,.an Dear Mr ... what would the, complimentary ctose be? 6 Is M. G,erard askilng about any

Could you. tell 'Us if the cassettes are- leedinc brand names or made by small independent companies, and whether they would 'be suitable for recording' classical music or only dictations and messaoea? It would
also be helpful if you could send us some samples and if they are of the standard we require, we will 'place a substantial order, We would also like to know if you are offering any trade discounts, Thank you

special concessions? 7 Whiich words in the letter correspond! tOI tlh e foO! low! ng: p.ubJica:tion;, product's neme; vocal tnstruouon»; examp-/es: farg~-e? ~,.' ~
,
. . --

-.

- ..

P. G~cX
p, Gerard

Yours faithfull y,

30

3, Enquiries

3,,3.3
Enquiry from
·8 .buying

agelnt

'for them (see Uni t: 1O'Agents an.d ageno.les). Inl thJs letter the .agent is

coumries who either seil or buy products

act~ngon behalf of her prji nolpals Ii' n

Firm s often have agents ii n other'

. .. & L'owe Ltd' .. .::.':. : San ders.·~..·..

Impon and Export, (London omce).. Plaater House, Prmces Street London Eel iDO ~jrmlDs!:1a.m Oifi~e: 2S Br1iidshiJIwStt'ee~ ~Dlt:mltl,gham ~S· 1'1'0
~fp~t1oCB1es~.e.r o.moe; 343 O:\:f!:IJd Street i Ma'llcilc!ilt¢r M:27 2lR
Li.verpuol Otnce: 5·~Bakers fQad ,. i'l"~H'p'ooll39HW
LoW'!!;.,

·StockPQrt Offioe: S bland R.o~dI, :~hockpol'~ .s.ME;12K. DirecmrS; L. \V, DJ{_ Sand!c:rs

Tel·c~Jt!a1.c.: 011 543 'l615 F:a;:.;::iJ7l 543 '1m Telex: 928537

Canada.

e:~& :~it~O~l ~~, ~tll4

Your ref~

Qu.r r·cf:

1801 MB

Date:

7June 19-

The Sales Manaqer Glast-on Potteries Ltd, Clayfield

Burnley BB I 0 1RQ'
Dear Sir or Madam
I

We are writing to you on behalf of our principals in Canada who are interested in importinq chinaware from England, Could you send us your latest catalogue and 'price-list; quoting' your most competitive prices? Our princi pals are a larg~ chain sto re in North America and win probably place substantial orders if the quality and prices of your products are suitable. We look forward to hearing from you soon,

Yours faithfully!

J.......•.....

L, ·W·. Lowe (Mrs)

3, Enquiries

31

·yncb & CO. Ltd. F..L

-"

....."

.,.-

Enq uiry fr·oml a reta ilelr to a for'ei gin

manufacturer
This letter is from a Birmlingha.m chain of retail shops to' an ltallan manutacturer: Here the retailer explains how he got to know about the manufacturer, and

(Head Office) ~Nessen House Newell Street, Birmingham B3 3EL

Telephone No .: 021 236 6571 Fax: 021 236 8592 Telex: 341641

su gg ests th at a q lUI a nt~tyd~scount an d

SatexS.p,A Via di Pietra Papa 00146 Roma

Your roe:f:

Om ref:

Inq, C3S h

ITALY Dear Sirs

j

6 February 19--

We were impressed by the selection of sweaters that were displayed OIl your stand at the 'Menswear Exhibition' that was held in Hamb,mg

last month,
We are a larqe chain of retailers and are, looking for a manufacturer who could suppl y us with a wide range of s.we aters for the teenage market -rr xet'.
As we usually place very large orders, we would expect a quantity discount in. addition to a 20% trade discount off net list prices and OLIT
I

acceptance of his method of payment would persuade hlim 10 place an order. He is stat~ngh ~sterms in his enquiry because he fee,lls that 8S, a bulk buyer he can stlpulats eondltlons, But you 'wiII see 'from the rep~y(4.3 . .5) that al-ho,ugh the, Italian manufacturer wants ths order, he does not li:ke the terms, and sU9'gests conditions that are more 't _. . h' suitable to rum.

Questions
1 How d~d Lynch & Co. gist to know 2 What market are Lynch & Co. Inte rested in?' ,3 How many .swea.ters ate they likely _'0

about Sa1ex?

terms of payment are normally 30~day bill of exchance, documents against acceptance, If these conditions interest you and you can meet orders of over SOO germ.ents at one time, pLease· send us your current catalogue and priceI

order? 4, W hat discou nts a re th ey askli'ng 'fo r?'

5 Howwil~ payment be made? 6 What sxpression does, IMr crane use to show-Lynch is a large nrm? 7 Should any rsterenoss be quoted lin

list. We hope to hear from you soon

·~··L
.'

Yours. fa it hfully
-,'

-. -

_-

-,

iii.

:.

,,',.'.

. -,

'.

repl y to this letter? 8, Which words in the letter corres pond 'Itothe following:: shown; group of shops'; seteotion; ieee; presen t?

L.,Crane
Chief Buyer

32

." 3 " nquIIles "E

.

3 3':6~. j .•
I

'. .

Request f,or goods. on approval

Homemakers before and the enquiry has a casual tone about lt, He has enclosed a provtslonal order because he
is confident that Mr 'C~iff:jthe suppller, wm a,gtr,ee to offering the kits on

M1r Huqhes, the customer! has dealt with

R. Hughes & Son Ltd.

21 Mead Road Swansea ~Glamorgan 3ST 1D'R.
Telephone: Swensea 58441 T:e~e:x: 881821
VA'fNQ. 215 226130

ap proval so that Mr Hu 9 has can test the demand tor them. ilinthis case re;ferencas are not neceasary: if th~y were, Mr Hughes could offer anomer supplier or his bank as a refere,e. The reply to thls letter Irs et 4~,3.,6. Questions 1 Why does Mr Hughes want the goods on approval?
2 Does he expect M r C~ 'to agree? jlff How do you know?

Mr R. Cliff,

Homemakers Ltd", 54- 59 Riverside, Cardiff CFI IJW

De ar 1vIr Cliff, Thank: you for your last delivery, You will be pleased dressing tables, are selling well
i

to hear that the

3 When does he want the k~ts?

A number of my customers have been asking about your bookcase and coffee table, assembly ki ts which are listed in your Summer catalogue under K'T 31 and we would like to test the demand for them, W ould t t be
i

possible for me to have say half a dozen units of each kit. an ~pproval,
I i

before pla.cing a firm order?

your next delivery, Yours sincerely

I

I have enclosed an order No! B1463 in anticipation of you a'gre einq, and as. there is no particular hurry for the units, you could send them along with
I t

R. Hughes

Encl. Order B 1463

3. Enquiries

33

3,.3.6

SUPERBUYS Ltd.
Superbuy HOU'$Ei, Wolverton Ro,ad'j London SW16 70N
Telephone: 081 3.27 1651
Telex: 3031 13

Request for an ,estimate

A su perrnarket 1S as king at 'fi rm of

Reg, No.: 94'11 B London
VAT No_ 5,'6841 03D

shopfltters for an estlmate to put in

counters, shelves" windows, etc. The

reply to this letter is at 4.3,.7.

Fax: 081 3271935

Quest,ions
Date:

The Manager
Wembley Shopfitterrs Ltd.
Wyco,mbe

1Oth January 19~

Road
HIA-- 9"eD,1!l ",,:: In

'Wembley

r_~esex M·ddl

estimate can be given? 3 Can Wembi,ey Shoptlttsrs take as long as they want to complete the
job'?

2 What has to be con e betore 'the

1 Why is an estiilm,ste needed? Why is it nOlL POSSI bl~ 'to gl·ve g TO' - - qu"iotation? . •' ~': ::_= Irm -, ., {,
-II_.
eli

Dear Sir,

4 Do SlLJperbuys expect a ~ette'rin 5 How should Mr Bellon be contacted? 6 Has anythijng been tncludsd with the '7 How were the premises ori,ginally
, - ,-d? us,s' ,

We are opening a mew branch of 'Superbuys! in Wembley High Street in March and would like to know if you could send someone along to
Qive us an estimate for refi tting,

r-eplly?

letter?

From our desicner's plan enclosed! you can see that the premises were once used as a warehouse and would need extensive alterations which
include, refloorinq.

would

putting in counters, shelves!

windows, rewiring"

and
and

before the end of February you would be required ta, sign a contract to that effect If the jlob
I

The 'work would have to be completed

inte rests yo U please, contact Mr Keith Bellon our Managing Dire eta ron 081 327 1661 ext. 119 to arrange an appointment.
Yo UTa fai thfully
'~""AA "'\.J~w" \
- ~~
I

andma n Secretary to K, Bellon

'-

lean

L'

,-,-~

..

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:Encl, We:mbley Plan AC/1342

34
,

3. Enquiries
.

•.... 34
'

Points to remember

3 5' WO.rd to re.member

,

Ii ... .

..

..

'.

_:

·~·S·C-·· - ..

'.

.'

"

....

:__:

to i1r1 vlte/sse kate nde r 0 r esU mateto provide/supply a lender or estimate

a reference

:'.

..

1 Enquiries can take the, form of telephoned! telexed, or faxed requests for lnformanon Only lUS,@! these, 'forms if you ca n make your enquiry very br~'ef, For fUIUer en qui ries, wnilte a IeHe r.
2 Give details of your own firm as we~! as as king fo r into rrnanon from yo ur

to make an enquiry about a product to enqu ~re,ebout a product a company a supplier a customer a wholesaler a retailer a, bulk buyer

to ask for trade references to provid e/su pply trade references

pros psctlve su ppl ler,

want. Ouote box numbers, cataloque rsterences, etc. 10 help your supplier 'to identify what you want. 4 ·,Asktor samples ~fyou are uncertain abo ut a prod uct, 5 YOUI can suggest terms an d di soo unts ..b ut be pre pared for yo ur su ppl jet to, make a cou nter ..offer, 6 You can be direct in your letter, yet still ponte. Notice how the use at the pass iv,s ca n softe n a requ 8S't: I wan t £l' prompt reply is impolite; Aprompr' reply woua be apprecis,ted ~sb sttar, Notice also ho'w' short sentences can create an abrupt effect, while a complex sentence, can imodlfy: W,e ere latge wholes,alers. 'We are interested in your rang,s ot shirts fis not as good as We are farge wholesalers and are interested in your rangs' of
7 'Close with a simple 'thank: you' or "I

3 Be spaciflc and state exactly what you

an ag'ent

a principal

an associate

a subs.idiary
a cataloque

a rep resentatlvs

a co-op e raf ve society

a Trade Assoclatlon
a brochure a booklet

a prospectus a iP rlce-l lst ,8 Ileaflet a showroom, a,trade [ournal

samples patterns a dernonstratlon a circular Jetter

sntns.

look forward to hearing from you', un ~ess 'Yo u 'wa,n t to in d ,~c'.ateh e t p,oss~b of s ubstantlai orders 0 r ility further b usi ness.

to offer con cesstons 'to quote a price to sug gestlstate terms, cash discou nt
trade discount quantity discount mo nth~y/quarterly statement documents ,a,gaJnst acceptanos bill of axchanqs

to place an order g'oods on approval goads on sale or return

to stock a product

to h 0 Idles rry (.21) stock of a prod uct

38

·· 1· an d R lIes ....•. ·=ep ". qU. 0·."'"It' a':t· 0"::""'_'"ns .

", ,"_ ..... ~ '.' _. . I . ".'

~>.

1-

"..... '.'

__

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.:

1-1~_!~-,) ' .. ' ' .' ' ..· zt: G··;' ·_·onl1,rmlng tb: YO,U aa,n h'.. ·ep, se,··lng your .'pro.· -diuc .'.,:a, .'"· ].: suggesting slternstives; referring the customer l' "' -.' e1.. here; cetstcaues, otice-lisis, piospectuses, ,sew .. .. h samp 1 demonstieuons, representetives, snowroom ee d V]·S'it··S:· qutoistion 'S' price ':'S":'! tiensp ..o,:;;~,:~ n d inisure.nco costs: tort L. . .. " ..' , 't: d f" d euvery; Ii d 'diiscounts; metnoas O~" payment; "... quotina ,'.' Ii .': tixeo term's and ne g"totieble terms: aivin:'gr:..- tn estimst«
>~;, .":-~~ ......••. :

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4.1 Replying to letters of

enquiry
4; 1. I
Oipening IMenUon you r prespect iva eu etc mer' s name. I'f the c ustomsr s igllnS, fh e lette r Mr B'., G(~en,then be'gin Dear Mr Green, not Dear Sir, which lndlcates that you have not bothered to remember the enquirer's name. Mlenti on the date of h ~8!he'rletter and quota any ot her referen cas 'that apples r~
Thank you tor your enquiry of 'June 6th 198-4 in which YOLl ssked about. " .

.ot May 1Q rand am pleased to tell you

that we would' be able to supply ,you with the. , " We were pleased to hear from your letter ot 10 December the t you were

impressed with' our selection .of ... wh'ch we received' this morning.

tren« you tor your

...
~ ..

iette r, NJ /6'91' ~

4 12
~ _i

··

Confirming that 'you ,can he~IP Let the writer know as soon as possible lf you have this product or can provide the service he/she is enqui ring about. lit is irrltatl n 9 to, re ad a Ion 9 IeUer on Iy to f no ,t hat th e fi r m can not hal p, We h'BV&' B wide selection of swearers that will appeal to all agS8 and in' p,artlcular the' teenage' market which you specttied.
j

Th 81r1k th e wri ter

1

1'0 r

hi8/th er en q U Ii' ry,.

I would like to thank you for your enquiry

3D. o

4. Replies and quotations

Our isctoty would have no problem in turning out the 6,000 units you asked for in your enquiry.

4, 1.4
,S,uggesti ng alte rn sUvea i~fyou do not have what 'the enquirer has. asked tor, but have an alternative, offer it to him. But do- not crinczs the product he ori'9linally asked for",
, , . and while' this engine hss all the qUB'lities ot t.he model you asked for; the jPowerdrive has tne added ei'dvantage of having fewer moving pert». so
I

~e.
_

cen s.··,.,u:p_· trom stoc« _ a-nd.·.····-ill h·~.a-'~. ..·p·.,lys _ w, __ ve __

_ _ r _ _ _ _ _

no trouble In meetin,g your delivery date).

I am' pleased to say that we wiJl be ebte to aenver the transport facilities you require"

setvu::es

We csn offer aoor-to-aoor dei/very

r

less cen go 'wrong. It also saves on 011 as it. , ,

The model has

4.1.3
iSelling' your' product
E.nco ura"g e or persu ads you rprospective customer to do business

steel casIng having been replaced by otest«: which is IIghterr more durebte,

now been

improved, its

and ,stronger.

with you" A,simple answer that you have 'thiegoods in stock is not snouqh. Your customer might have made, ten other enqulrles, so remember it is not only iin sales, 'letters that you have, to persuade. Mention one or two selll~ngpoints of your' product, inc.luding any quarantees youl offer~ choice In selecting this une, and once you have SB€Jn the samples we ere sure you will agree that this is unique both in texuue end c,0, . _":.. . . .·. to uT, L .. _~ _~ ~ _ . Once you neve
operation impressed by its fro uble- ffee oettormsnce.

Of course leather Is an excellent oersueaed customers to look for som'ethlng more competittve in price.
Fortunately) Tereton Plastics have
Ij

material to work with In the upholstering of' furniture) but e'scaJatfng' costs have

oroaucea an a'mazing suoetiune, 'i.etnenn« which has the' seme texture,

strength and quality of leather, but is

We think you have made an exceitent

less than

sempie« enclosed wii/ convince

a ouener of the cost, T/1e'

YOLI , , .

seen the Delta we know you wiil be

800 in

4.1.6
Referr'ing the customer else,where

We can essare you that the Om'ega 2'000 is one of the most outstanding'
year ,guar:ardee.
on the market todaYJ ,an.d our confidence in it:' is euppotted by our tive-

machines

It ls possible, of 'course, that you may nat: be abla to handle tha order or answer 'the enquiry, Your correspondent may be asking about a product you do, nat make or ,8, service you do, not '9 lve. If:this is so, tell him and jf posslbls refer hlrn elsewhere,
i regret to say that we no lon.ger produce the typ€J of stapler you refer to, since we find there is no longer

sufficient demand for it. I em sorry we cannot be of help to yo.u,

4, Replies and quotations

The book you mention is not published bv us) but by Greenhill Education Ltd, It you would cere to write to ttiem. their

37
'When ordering could you please quote t'h--:e'-~'se n -'U·' tn b -:,,0["--8- ? Th- c: ~'m·p"··Ia.S Y·!""iU' ' .,t.c;-.~. _··V'_·
. ",0.-._ ..... ·_-··GI ",
II ~

L:!i U~·"· C

address is ...
shirts
8.S

asked for will follow by separate post.

We no longer menuiectu re pure cotton

their r:etail prices tend only to
attract th,e upper end of the market.

Alf our garments are now ooly-cction. which Is sironqer, needs little ironing) and allows variations in patterns.

However;

J.f

cotton ~larmentsr we advise you to contact Louis Fashions Ltd. et . ..

you are still set on p:ure

agree that it is one of the tinest machines of it'S kino. It can be' edepted to your specifications and details ottme are on page 12 under the heBding 'Structure! Changes)" We' neve sent you our summer
catalogue wh(ch unforfvnately is only

Omeg,a

We he ve erctosea our

booklet on the 2000 and are sure you 'will

EVen if' the product Is yours, you 'm,a.y still have to refer the enquirer elsewhere. I confirm that the orcauci you require is one of ours, but since we are only able
not reieitere, m,ay I refer you 1'0 R,. L. Depr« SAj rue .:t-nA/-I·:,' ? au M-o··.n.' e' t-2.:'.:8,-- ... Perle ~
.. _,~.~. _ _ . _I .
l

printed in English, Howe vet, we have enctosea ,8 Germer: trenstetton for the

reieveot pages (41 ~4'5) and hope this 'will pro vs help f u:

to deaf with wholesalers)

r.
,I

, , , and we neve enclosed our price- I;st~ but' should pain tout tbe t prices are subject to change as the market for raw materials is very unstable at present.

Our ,age,nts In Italy are unet S.p,A Via Alberto Poerio 79 Rome, and they' carry a fuJI stock of our goods.
I
j

,4,!l~ 7
showroom visits

De m,onsb"s't lens, re p'r'esenta't-liv'es,~

4.1,6
Catalogues, p'rice-I ists
prospectuses samplee

M ake su re that you enclose curren t cataloquss and prlcs-llsts if you are sendin'g them", And if prices are subject to change then let your customer know, It is bad po llcy to suddenly sa nd a letter telling him that prtces have been increased bY' 1O~(, after you have quoted a firm price, And if Y'OLI are sending samples, lel! your customer knowthey will follow th,e letter immediately by sapara Ie post.
l

Certain products, e.gl. heavy equipment, _ .. _ ___ _ _ , ii_.nstaltafio"-n-- may_ nee d _. _.. .ILI _s--' ~ _ _ v _ machinery d smon at raf ng. I~ t.h ese c ases the n oompalrily mliight send a rs prsssntaflvs, or adviser if eq uip ment is to be installed. They could, however, aug'geet that the eu storns r vis its the,j r ,agent in h is ow n country, or a stockist with a showroom. We tieve erctosea ail the details about the' Leren welder, but tee! that a demonstration will give you more of 'an "dee. of its cepe bititlee. We would tneretote /ike to In vn» you to our cen tre
In BIrmingham where the equipment is

Pteeee find enclosed our current catalogue and ptice-llst quoting c. t. t. price'S' Kobe, The units you reteo» d to In «u p 7yo'-_._ tetter Df.Eii ieetu .red ..·on'-- n, 3--:·· 3:-'4':' . '" .. to" ,r v-_: U'nder ceteloque nutnoers v3'····2····'- 'v""7~····
···0

set' up so that you can see the mecnme

in action,

As the enotosed illustrated booklet

cannot really show the ;f9fficlency of the Farnan word processor, can we send

CiI''':;

rt;~q:;I!.::-:'

~I"_'

.'>

~- '~r

I>

--_"

..

."_

.•

I~·

••

-·.trL·,~~·v.-

.. L-"

'_ ....

_ :':IWI_

~ ~."., ',-

38
with ,8 mode! of the mschine, and tie can give you 8 demonstration? If you are interested in a

4, Replies and quotations

our representative to you

4.2 Quotations,
a. quotation. Below is a gluide to the subjects you should cover in your'
want to' give your prospective customer

card end return it to us.

vtsn, please fill in the enclosed pre~pa.id

lin your reply to an enquiry, you may

The erctoseo catalogue wiNgive you an idea of the type of sound equipment we oroooce, but m,ay we' SUggt3,,st that you visit our agenfs snowroome in Rotterda'm 'whef€J you osr: see a wide rang~ of units? The'sddtess is .. , We will be able to install the equipment with1n three months, but would like to

q LIota tlon .

4.2,1.
Prices

send Mr T, Griffith~ our chief engineer; to took over your plant and prepare ,8 report on the installations) taking into account your particular reouuememe

4~1.8
C~osing
ylOu. If you have, not done sa in the b e91i nni ng of the, Iletter 'You can do so at
j

pnoes.

W'hen a manufacfurer, wholesaleror retauer quotas a price hie may or may not include other" costs and charaes su oh as t rans po rt, ~ ra nee, an dl taxes nsu (e,.g. in the UK~Value Added Tax or VAT). IP'r~e s wh ~ch Ii ncl u de th es e ext r.a c costs are known as gro:S8 prices; th ose which exclude them are known as ne:
The net price of this article Is £10,00 to which must be eaded ·VAtet 17M?'%) making a gross price of £ 11.75,
1

Always thank the customer for writing to

the end. You should also encourage further enquiries.

for writing to us and woutd 'welcome any further points you would like us to

Once again we would like' to thank you

We can quote you a grosS' price, inclusive of' d,ef/very cnerqe». of' £37.50 pe :·r- 1·, 0: :,0···· items ThI ,f.e ~ 0" g'o: oe ere ex em po. t: ... r· : ",.
. _. :", vr

b?..

. 0'

it""!.a

0:··

I~

",

6;',. ,"V

,._ ..

tromr V' r

ilA T "1'/'1. I

i·

answet

Please wtite to us again ifYDU have questions or celt us at the above

r

an,y

telephone number.

A tinm!s quotation is not necessarily liegailly b:i'nding~ l.e, they do not alway'S have to se II you the 9oods at th e p rl ce they quoted In their replY' 1'0' an enquiry. However, when prices tend to fluctuate~ subject to chanqe, If the company makes a firm offer, it means they w'iU hold the' gOlods tora certain time until you Order, e.g. firm 14 days.. A,gaiin~1 this is not le,gally binding;. but suppliers generally keep to their offer to protect thell'r rep utation.
the supplier will add a provlslon to their quotation staUnQ that their' prices are

18'm sorry we do not have the model you

ssked fori but I can promise you tne! the alternative j have sL/.,ggest'ed will

certainly meet your exoecteuone, an.d remember we offer a fuJIgUBrBn.t~,e for

,,', [',..~~ ::"'~!DI: tn tee Y'Cio srs
'~II

end

We nope to hear fro.m you again,

_'_.. _ .. ~:.

cen sssure
. ~~~"

'_

Y:··Q--u.
:,".. ->"'

1 tnc~r, ..yo:u:r· :-:'. ter -)1,r st ~·· .," va ·

d
0·'· -::,:\r.-',
WOO·

eoon,
. ~ ~.

be dealt with p'fomptly.

-4, Replies and quotations

39

Th' pnces quoted eoove are " I ne .. j orovisiore: since we may be compelled tncreese 0 ur prices to cus tomete. I will inform you immediately if'this happens" '~e can offer you a price' of £6,29'per item. firm ,21 devs, after which tl1'(:? price
wilt be subject to an increeseot 5%, Whslns,ver possible you should quote p ~_I in you r C'U sto m e r' s C urren cY'~, cas

oytncreesed costs ot raw mat.erials to

frej'g h1 pa.i d to- that po int, The goods and trans if ris ks become th 9, buyer's, when the goods have, gone over the ship's r,a~1 at the port of shipment
named port of destin atlon

elF (C ost, Iln,s,urs nee & Frei ght)

Delivery occurs as in CFiR (above) and the risks am the same, but the ex porter pays carpo lns uran ce,

a IIow in 9 fa r exch eng e fl u ct LI af 0 ns,

.

C,FR and elF cain only be used for

sea and inland waterways.

The price of this model of cesseite<_"""S-' PI ay- -e r· ts 2·'· 8:~-0'" . '0'· B-:::' 'etai an: fro 'C[.i.F'IIL.o-' " , a-', t
. .._,. ,'. -, . _.. ..... _:_ ..I;<:.:od~Q :'Cj

C'PT (Carr-i,age Paid To) named place

of destination

todey's rete

Italian lire per '100 units thouQh I reqret that becsuse of fluctuating exchang,e
l,

otexchenae. We_can quote you a price of 15'OJ 000

fates! we. can only hold this price tor four weeks .from todev'» date.

t? the

D_elivery happens when gloods. 8J9 ~ ive01to the carrier O'f rno rs than 0 ne, th e f rs.~carrl er, ~r a rre i9nt fo rwarder) . The seller pays the costs of dellivery
named place and the buyer's ns ks start frorn there.

,4,2.2
Transport and insurance costs

elP (Carriage and Insurance Paid) named place of destination

Delivery occurs as in CPT with the buyer's risks being the sarne.The

Commerce use a set 0" terms for delivery in overs a'as contracts ~ these are ca lied lncoterms. The ir LI,S,e, is optional, but deals are much clearer if contracts are, su bjsct t 0 In co terms
19--"9····0·'
~. ':.:_ _"~ I!! ..,.

The lnternational Chamber of

on~ychange ls the exporter pay-s, the

cost of caJga insurance.

G!R'DUP D .... ,A.rrival

DAF (Delivered at Frontier) named

place
Dellvsry happens when the buyer gets the goods, at a named place on th~ frontier, cleared for '~XPOrt1 but not cleared for import The buyer assumes -all-risk-s ~fron~her~'~Th~ exports r pays all the costs to th is point, but does not pay for unloadlnq or Import clearinq charg,es,.-~'ES (~eli'~e,r,ed' Ex, Ship) named port of destination

GROUIP C ....Main ,

cS'"iag,e

pa'id

CFIR (Cos,t: and Freight), named port of de5!.i' nat ion e.g,. the port th e good s are ,going to.
Dellvsry has occurred when the go~ds are' on the ship at the port of shlpment. The seller pays ,8,11 the costs to th is po i nt and frei gh1 charq es to the named port of destination. ~/he provides the buyer 'with all the transport documentation show~ng

goo-ds at named port. H@:then

De~iveryhappens when buyer gets.

40

4, Replies and quotations

Delivery occurs when the seller 'g'iv@s the goods to the carrier (airl'ins; shlppinq company" or freight _ forwarder) who is named by the buyer. The seller 'wil~ pay all the costs up to this point, lncludlnq export forrnalltles and licences. From this, po int the buyer ta kes th e risks for th e '~g. '0' -'0' de'! ~ n_d.'__ transt t .. "_ '..:a. .. ._. _ .. This term ls used tor any type or co m bi natlo n of types of transport,
e.ii
!

assumes alii rtsks, bu t the exports r pays. a,11 costs to that point, but nat unlcadlnq or import clearance.
DEQ (Oeliv'ered Ex QU8'Y ....Dut~{' Paid) narnsd port of destinat ion

D'iS'CQU nts

Manufacturers and wholesalers

~'~m,etilmesallow discounts to be _ deducted 'f rom the net or g ross price.

and! assumes al~risks from that po.nt. The seller pays a,1I charges to that point including import and customs cl earance costs.
DES and DEQ can only be used for sea ,8 nd linland waterways.

Delllv9'ry happens when the buyers _ g,ats. th,e good s on h ls/h er q~ ay (d ~c~)

goods are leaving from

FA,S (Fr-ee' Allong!sid,e Shiip) with port of shipment named e.g. where, the,

They may auow a. trade discount to,. sellers in similar trades: or a qu,antlty discount for orders over a certain , amount: or a cash discount iif payment: :IS made with~na certain tlrns, e.q, seven days, or a loyalty discount when firms have a !Iong assoclanon,
within one month.

We allow a 3'% discount for oeymem

DDIU (De!live,red Du~y Unpaid) named place 0,1 destination

D~I'ivery takes place when buyer gets the goods at the named place __ the ~~_

importing country and takes all th_e risks the r-eafte r. Th e sa IIsr pays. ,a,11 ~~,8tS to this point, out not duties and
taxes. CDP (IDeli'v-ered Duty IPaid) named place of destlnatlon Delivery happens as ln DDU~,with the buyer tak.ing the same r~,~k,~" ~h~' seller pays alii costs to this polnt

DeHvery occurs alonqslde the ship named -by the [buyer at the named port of shloment .. The buyer has the expense or' loading', The seller pays costs, up to and including delivery alongside the shlp, ~ncludi'ng a~1 documentation. The goods and transl t risks are the b uyer's when th e
wlthln the period stated' in the cent ract of sale. This term is only used for sea and lnland goods. are delivered
6... gm

The'net price of tnistrodel is £ 7. 50!- tess 10% discount for Quantities up to 10.0 and ~r5'% discount for quantities over
1:0" '0' '
,', :. ":"'1

We do not norma.lly give discounts- to

private but beceuse of your lonQ sseocietton with' our comp,a-n.,Y- we

customers

wi!! aiiow you 20'% off' the retail

once.

waterways

canals,

ine:1ud ~ g' taxes an d d ut ~es., n

FOB (Fr,ee on Board~ named port of shipment e.g. where the goods are

2.0% trede discount off net prices for

orders armors than 2~ 000

The pttces quoted' are o. &: f. Yokotism«, but are subject to B 20'% tra-de discount off net price. and we wi!! allow a further

···· ~~ Ieav!1~-nr'l' from .

units,

GROUIP E ~ D'eparture

factory or wareho U 8'S

Ex-Wor'ks (EXW) e.'9 from the,

1•

Seller packs and prepares 9'oods for

despatch with detlverytaklnu place at his/her factory or warehouse. The buyer now takes all transit risks. GROUP' IF .... Main cB'fria'g'9 unpaid

Dellvery takes place when goods are on boa-rd the named ship at tne buyer's named part" The seller pays all costs of :1ad in g", Ttl e' buyer's risks c for the goods and transit be,g~n_once the goods have been put over the The term is only used for sea and' inland waterways,

4. ,2"4

Methods of pay'me'nt

ship's ran.

Wh,en ~uoting terms, you m,ay requre, or a.t II east s u gg e:s,t,an y of severa I methods of payment (Iletter of credit, blll 01 exchange, eto.) For a fUII!1 treannent ot this subiect, see 6",3.1/2 and 9.5/7.,

where, the carrier the plane or ship etc., pick up the goods
=s=a

FCA ('Fre,e Carrier) named place e.g,.

4. Replies and quotations

41
wi II send thel r official estimate 'for m wi t h a covert ng Ietter,

mal!
CIlt-

ttyou would send us your personal cheque for the amount auotec; we will then send the article by registered
;I

Fixed terms and n,egothlble terms It is possl ole to quote te rms in two ways: by stating your price and discounts without leavi ng room for negotiat~on r or suggesting that the customer could write aqaln and discuss them. In the two examples belowi the companies make payment and dlsoounts are fixed. A,I! IIat p rices a re quoted f. 0.. b.
credit.

As you kno'w~our re'prrg.senta.tlv€} has

vi sitea your factory to discuss the extension which you wIsh to add' to It,
and I now'hav,e pteesure in enclosing

payment for initial orders should' be

made by sight draft) payable at Den Nors« e Credt t'bank~ ,Kir1<.ega ten 21'1 Oslo 1 cesh ,agaInst documents.
r

our official

€JS tim a te.

firm q uotes ~tnd ican Ing t hat m en, ods of'

The enclosed estimete covers labour and parts and' cerries a sjx~month
guarantee on ali wort: completed.

4.2~5
Quot'ing dell'very i~fthe enquiry speclflss a delivery oate, confirm that it can be' met, or iiI' not, suggest an alternative date. Do not make a promtsethetyou cannot: keep; lit wlll give you a bad reputation, and if a delivery tlme is a ccncltlonot ordarlnq, the, custom er could sue Y'," ~_I if' VO" .U-' b= r\ 0, r"~.~II~' the, co nt ract, a r reJect th B good e.
. -~ J.. • .~ ~ . . ,~ • ~.. ~ • _ ••

Southampton and are subject to a 2.5'% trade discount' with oeymen: by fetter of ca n a rrange freight snd insurance if reoalrec; and unless otherwise ststeo.

Til e ptices quoted a re ex-wotks, but we

gg

peymen: Is to be mads' by 30-day bill of exchanger documents ,against acceptance,

'"

,!

IO~· ',:"

on'-:d'c:

w·a, ~r£!fj P' te '-:!IS' .ed"_ :'to's"-:-: ~~y' '_, et t ,(:{ ,~, ..-" " th'
,; :\.;.' ~ ~ .,:~"

can deliver by December

Ctuistmss rush"

tet

_,0

'W"~ . ,:0-

for the

As there ere regular s,€lijjngs from

Liverpool to Nl8W Yor}1c we are sure that the consignment will reach you 'well witt» n the tune you specified,

In the next two examples, ihe use of the adve rbs normally an d .ususlly'soften the tons ,01the statsme n Is to in dillc ate 'that altho ugh th.e rm prets rs eerta in terms these, can at least be discussed", In the final 'Qxamplle' the supplier even asks 'if this arranqernent is sanstactory.

v~

or'aer "'~-~
.'

We have the meterlets in stock and will ship' them imme,dfatefy we receive' your
.;;

pe vmer: t by i rrevocsbte letie: of c red it.

on i.o.b.

We usually offer

an 18% trade discount oticee. eno would·pr.efer

As there

allow at teest six weeks lor d,eNvery'.

is a heavy aernena st this time of year for ree ters, you will ne va' to

a 23% trade discount off net prices with payment on a

Normeliy we ,a1low documents against paym€Jnt basis'. Please let us know it th' s a rrangement is satisfactory.

We' coutd not deliver within two w8€Jks of receipt oi order, as we would need time to prepare the' mater/sis; However, Jt you could let us he ve ,a' month, 'we could guarante,e delivery' within that period.

4,2.7
Glv'lng, an est~mate Companies whichl ars asked to estimate, fora particular job of work ,may include the estimata ln tabulatsd form in a ~etter (see 4.3" 7). Miore often, however', th@:y

42

4. Replies. and quotations.

.

4.3 Specimen letters

4,3.1
Short rep lie,s, 1 Ca tllJague and pric9 lls't:
or

.~

..

Dear Mr Ravel,
Thank' you far your enquiry of 31 January, 'Weare enclosing our Spring catalogue and current price-list quoting c.if prices L'El Havre, We would like to draw' your attention to the trade and quentitv discounts we are offerinq in om Spec ial Purchases sect ion pp, 19.-28 which rna y be of particular in tar-est to you, Please contact us if we can be of any further help to you, Yours sincerely.
.-.-~-'
. ....

reply to 3.3.1 A

...

2 Colfege' prospectus: reply to 3.3,. 1 B

.'_

...... -

.-.

~ ~.

.-

....

Dear Miss, Iwanammi

Please find enclosed our prosp ectus coverino courses from July to December, Details cffees and acccrnmodation in London for that pe-riod are covered in the booklet 'Living in. London! which accompanies the

prospectus.

At present we still have places available for students taking the Proficiency
that 'we can reserve a place, for you in the, class and arrance accommodation with an English family.
We are BlJIe you will enjoy your stay here and look forward to seeing: ....

course beginning in July, but would ask,you

'~O book

as soon as possible

so

you.
""" .-

--

Yours sincerely,
.:.

.-.

,3 ,Genera./information,:
reply to 3; ,3. 1C

DEH3T, r W M vvymer,

Thank you very much for your enquiry. You will find enclosed a cataloque giving detailed information about our tubeless tYI€-.9 and in.cluding the, impressive results we have achieved in rigorous factory and track tests. Please note, the items on safety and fuel economy which have proved the main selling' points of this product,

'With re gard to trade discounts, 'we' are allowinq .28% off list prices to bona fide retailers and w hcleselers with. quantity discounts for orders ov err
I

L"id;

~!--'

000

~ W,e;

-w- --I' ·1'1 be ",.:~~.

.I..~ Q .

olee sed to ~ .. ~~~"~._ fl:··- ~unply:' n

~I .. _. ,:..-

Q ~r.,

y. . .. '·

f·

urth er l' nfo rm anon . lUI.·

_ "'J.~I i~'-:&J:j

'1::

'0·

u reouir ·s
~. ~~··_)L
-,!

Yo 'U·' 1t'~, sin c srelv ;';;;:,_Y-l!

.

..

:_

_: ._.:.:_

~-.:.__

...

'_.

"_.

4, Replies and quotations

43

IRI~ Ellect'roniics AG 01.

Havm art 601
D~5000K,tl~~ 1

and samples ~Inthe letter at 3.3.2 M", Garard wrote to R .. G. Electronics AG to enqu;i rs about tapes and cassettes: he imp-liie,d
Catallogues that his sto a Ialrge one that he was only mterestec in high quanty products, and that he might place a substantial order. Thl s is the reply,
r,B' 'was
j

4.3.2

Tel': (221 ) 32 42. 98

F,ax.: (:221) 63,

e, 25

ieh~x.: M ·53:291

Pi Gerard

li 4th May 19-

Disc S,A, .261 rue des Raimonisres F -86000 Poitiers Ced:9x

Questions ,bI-W··~·:d 0, e" Herr _ G.·~.·····e.·. refer s_ to 1M. riO .. .. _ rlach _ __ G arard's e nq u iry? 2 Why are ·the· cassettes beingl sold
,ch~aply? 3 Does Herr Gerlach offer any

Dear Mr

Gerard.,

Thank you for your enquiry of 12 May in which you asked about the tapes we advertised in this month's edition of 'Hi Fi. News. The cassettes are ferrous based and hi,gh.quality C.r O2 which as you know means th~y would be suitable! for any type of recordinq, They are 'Kolby'

discounts? 4 Can Disc S .. .. order 'whenever they A want to? 5 Alre the S9 th e on Iy cassettes t:hat
6 What other rnaterlal has been sent 10

prod ucts which is a. br and name you. win certainl y recocnizs, and the reason thea prices are so competitive is that th~y are part of a bankrupt
stock, that was offered to us
i

R.. G, Electronics

sell?

D'ise S.. .? A

Because of their low price and, the small profM margin we are working ani we will not be offering' any trade discounts on this, consiqnrnent, But w'e sen a. wide range of cassettes and have enclosed a price-list giving you details of trade, quanti ty, and cash discounts on our other products, other brands we sto ck, and would urce yau to place an. order as soon as

We· have sent! by separate post, samples of the advertised cassettes and
response to OUI' ad vsrtisamsn t.

possible as there has be en a huge you for your interest. Yours sincerel Y
~ .: ~,

Thenk

/l L- n ./ /(2,~:1
I,V""L

Hi Gerlach

-" 7

CfI\

Sales Director

44

4., Replies and quotatlcns

"
'

4,3,,3
j'SelUng the product
ll

This. is a reply to the buying agent who wrote at ,3. 3. 3 on bshall 0,1 her principals in Canada As the a.gent rnaoe no, re te reon ce to any pa rtl cu ilar ili ne of chlnawara Sh'9 was interested ln, nor mentioned terms, this letter is in the

.. PO.. · GL- AS.···'TO:-N,··:·, ,' ':"TTE:<"

" .. ' " '.' . . _'. .. ....

:·_··ru.····.· ··E~:-S:·:td L,I ';

•. . ._. _ '. '. ._.'. . .•. til

.. 1· field C',ayl,J.I.;o~,

i 11;)".

'1" ,oUln,uey

B·,.. ~ 0 IR' ..... S·· .t .

Q'"

"

Tel: 0315 46125

Registered 'No, 7 H5~\81

VA 'f Registered No. 133 5341 OS Y QI;lI ref:

TeLex; 88tHl1,3
Fax; 0315 6318-2

1801MB

n a tu Fe ot a sal es IeUe F" Quest:ions

Mrs L" Lowe

Sanders & Lowe Ltd;,

10 June 19-

1 How does Mr Merton draw attention to hiiisfirm's many products? 2 How does he ~mply that hls firm has an ~nternationa~ reputation? 3 'What discount does, h,e offer? 4 How does he eneouraqs further' enquiries?

Planter HallS€!

Princes Street London Eel 7DQ Dear Mrs

LOWfBi
.

It was a pleasure to receive your letter today, and we, are enclosinq the catalogue and price-list you asked for. You 'will see that
ra,nging from the rugged ~Greyston81 earthenware

5 Do Glasion .offer any

concessions?

vve can offer a. wide selection.

of dinner

6 How do Glaston quote their prices? 7 W~~chwords in the, lettercorrespond to. fh e fo II owl n 91: pumn g in; range; seiect: al!owanc.s'; when we receiv«

tea services, breakfast sets to the

and

delicate iMing' bone china dinner service;

You can choo S~ from more than fifty designs. which include the ele9ill1C~ of
Wedgv;ood, the delicate pattern of Willow, and the richness of Brownstone
gllaz6,

ut tndem? yo'ur moem,

We would be plessed to add your clien ts to our list of customers throuqhou t the war ld and could promise them an excellent product with a first -class service; We would be, glad to accept orders for any n1JTIlbeI of pieces, and can mix sets if required,

You will sse that our prices are quoted c.i.f to Eastern Canadian seaboard ports and we are offer in.g'a special li 0% discount off all net prices with de livery wi thin three weeks from race ipt of order.
j

if' there 'is any further informati on you require, please contact
again thank you fbr your letter.
Y'OUIS

US I'

and once

sincerely

I,

/A1.fA/~; V J.
Sales Mana,ger
Merton (Mr)

Enc,

4, Replies and quotations

45

4.3.4

D & S Charcot S.A.R.L.

place du 20 coat 79 8-4000 !Liege T e,l; (32') 4'9'--·240-886 Telle'co p ie: (32) 49-16.5 92

Offer of an al'ternat~'v'e

The who lesa ler iis 0 U t 01 stock of the adapters that his customer has asked for, so he is offer,j'ng ,a substitute'. However, he, has notyet tested the new p reduct and knows not hin g about its

performance or safety.
Ques1ions

The Chief Buyer

Caravela Rua das Arneixoeiras

11March 19-

1291

p, 1700 Lisboa

1 What is Mi. Charcot's problem? 2 How does he show his customer that he is,concerned about safety? .3 Why is safety p arttcularly lrn porta nt inl thls case?

4 Does M. Charcot rely on his it ro urn ,. customer to wnte t h' ,again;? 5 Can 1M. charcot still get the units he
.. ;j!.

Dear Mr Monteiro,

Thank you for your enquiry! but I reqret to say that 'we have run out of our stock of K163 and K 1-57 units and do not expect another delivery until later
this month.

asked for? 6 WM,ch orqan lzatl on sstabllshes l safety rs'glul atlons in !BeIgi urn?

At present we are testing a consiqnment recently imported from Taiwan, lbut these do not have a Belgian Standards Institute stamp of approval and
we· would like to test them. thoroughly before putting tbem on the market. Nevertheless, if we find they are satistactory, or we get a delivery of K 153s1

7s from our manufacture-rs we· win contact you at once,

Yours sincerely!

D. Charcot Manager

46

4. Replies and quotations

Quotation of 'terms
This is a reply to the gen'eral enquiry at

3.3.4." in which Mr Cran,e of F. Lynch & Co, asked for certain concessions. Notice h O:W'·_'··' ,'n th e re..... iM~···. a.uslo o-'f . p,.,ly, -rC·..... _ ~CB ., Satex does not tu rn down the requests
I' -, -"
'I' ,_ ._

.. ·····. s'· S,·'··'···,:····A·,··· ot.ex S.p-A,

Via di Pietra Papa, 001.46Roma
Telefono: Roma 76-9910 T elefax: (06) 68:R .5473

'iiJ

bu t su 9 gl9StS a co unter ..otte r.

Telex: 285.1.36

MI L; Crane, Chief Buyer

F, Llynch & Co. Ltd. Nessen House Newell Stn9,et , ,ml _ am _, B'l:'r-- -I-"n,g'"_ h'·y_ __ B-3-':,3'-EL,

Questions

Vs. rit: Inq C3.61 N's. rif.: D/1439

1: How does IMr Causlo confirm that he 2: Doss !MrCausio agree to aU Mr

C ranes requests cones rlning can supply the ,s,weaters?

a I February

19-

UNITED KINGDOM

3, How does Mr causlo suggest that th!t9 memod of pavment coutd be changed 4 What enclosures, have, been made.'? a, o'." "IL, ''--'-'. _ 5- W··_,'··'·'h",-t,· ot pavrn ent do ,a·s Mr Oausio ask for? 6 How does Mr- Causio sug'geS't his flrm
S.·

di'scounts?

Dear- Mr

Crans!
~UI

ln the future,?

W,e are, pleased, to receive your enquiry! and to he,SLY that you liked

ranoe of sweaters.

There would certainly be no trouble in ;supplying you from our wide

~lL~16r'"Jj

CL~ ~

......

ti0.,. 0-. ~ An of carm IQ;nt"C'!zhl' ch 'W'

..
I:JI..:' ....

·Go .. ' ~

.... . ..~ ~,

W{;'Jj . ~~

m QkQ 1 "'T' Q.J. all C? to'

',', .~. '..
1,.~.. -

-::'ig" Q g.,.: '. e.

g" 'J':,0 '.~ 10 .. cup ."

,i.":]

,. .,', I '·d'·· . '. nt ......" ".... s .... ., tt. " • W··· can Oller 'you thee quan tity......llBcoun '.you ,as.k e d
1
I

lor

i/.· ....

'k...' '.'. "d: bWulC h. waUlL,9 -

;")7Q

~ilL

0.'ff'" .

7' What expresslo n do as he, use to say

deals internationalllY?

net prices for orders over £2 000 but the usual allowance for a trade
'" '-. .... 'I '.. '. ,.'. '. .'! ,'.'. .'. ", ,', , ."." . "... '.. ' " .'. . ,..' ... ,,'

differ,ent styles? 8, Which 'wo rds in the Istter eo rresponc to th e' to I I 'ow in 91: bulk d isoou nt; ,b.ill paid on presents tion: clothes:
reconsider; discount?

his firm has different clothes ln

di -t -; ht _lSccnm t"I' Ita1 IS 15% an" we a 1 - - d 'at~. on paym,§n,b Y .81g.. ' In y . '", ...• d :"'W3ys. .'.·e .. draft cash e.g,ainst documents However! we 'would be prepared to review "hi o bI' h ft' d' , "' ""h t .:IS, nce 'we have, estar IS·S. d a nrm trac lTIg asscciatron witt .you .

Enclosed you will find

c i. f, London

OUI

summer catalogue and price -list quat ing prices

'We are sure you will find a ready sale,for our pro ducts in England as ha va other retauers throughout Europe and }linerica~ and we do hope w,e can reach an agreement 0 n the terms quoted, Thank you for your interest; we look farward to hearing' from you soon, Yours sincerely,
1

~.
D. Causio

&.uS/O

Encl.

4. Replies and quotations

47

4,,3,,6

HOMEMAKERS Ltd.
54-59 Riverside~ C,(] rdrH CF 1 1JW
Telep one: (0222149,7211 T elex: 3·B'21 7 Reg lsterec .o. C 135162

'G'OOd,1

on approval

know' one another quite w,eil, so Mr Cliff does not fi nd it necessary to ask, fOJ
reteren ces or a gu arantor before

As 'we saw in ,3.3. 5-!, these two fIrms

24 November 19-

R, Hughes & Son Ltd.

21 Mead Road _ ",a· .. ., a· ~ ran se ....
:Sw"

approval, A provisional order 'is enouqh to confirm that Mr Hughes has asked for the ,goods, and the driver will get him to sl 9 n a de Ilve ry nate ~once h e has, brouglh1 the conalqnment, as further proot that Mr Hu 9 hss has received them.

allowing Mr Hughes the goods on

Glamorqan 3ST'lDR
Dear Mr Hughes" It was nice to hear from. you aoain, and, to learn that our products are

selling' well in Swansea, and that your customers have become

interested. in ow new do-it -yourself range,

You can certainly have the assembly kits you asked for (Cat, No, KT31) and there, 'will be no need to wait until you receive ana ther delivery; 1will tell my driver to drop them off on his next delivery to Swans,ea which will be on Monday.
The provisional order, No. B 146.3 which you enclosed will be sufficient, but would you return any part of the consignment you have no t sold within two months?
1

I look forward to yOU! next order, and hope Swansea in December, Yours sincerely,
~

to

see you when I come

to

.•

4.3~7

An estiimate
This, iiIlustratss a n estlrn ate sent in tabu lated 'farm in the body of a Iattar. lit is a reply ,to 1he letter at 3.,3. e.

Wembley Shopfitters Ltd..

WY:OOll1be Road, Wern hley ~Middlesex HA'9 6.DA
Telephone: 081 90,3 23:23 Reg::London 481629 VAT:

s 14 !!l$1928

M'r K. Bellon
Super.buy~ Ltd.
Superbuy House

24 January I 9--

a ri ~OE'LW'l venon Road 'London SW16 7DN

Dear

M'r Bellon,

Estima.te fot re:fitt:lng iSuper bu "lSi

Wernbley High Street Branch

Our foreman visited the above premises. on 'Thursday and reported back 1.0 our costing department who have now worked out the folilowing estimate for fixtures and fittings which includes materials and labour.

F,itting 200m of 'Contacr Shelving in main.shop

:_.<: . ".:... and stare._. room
.

..

..

".

_..

.."

. :"

'~"i.

,~_!

each. Laying ,3 320 sq. m. ~Durafloor'flooring @ £9;00 per sq.m. Fittin.g 3 window frames. plus glE188 13m X 10m
@ £62,00
1

Erecting li6 steel stands plus. shelves gSm x 6'ro,

420.00
780,.00 29 880;00
1

@ £79.00' each,

Rew.iring'~ fixing power points, boxes etc, 3:0 'Everg low' light fittings @ £ 12..00 each.
I

237.00

plus VA,T @ 17.6%

Totali

3L749;OO
B,~5BB"OO

37,·808,,00

cent
'~.--.'!

-4. Repl ies and quo tEL lions

49

-2W'e are sure you will agree that this. is a very competitive estimate

Quelstion,s Where ls fhs brief subject: matter of :2 Which department. estlmates this
3 Why does IMrLane consider this a 4 What provlsion is mentioned lf the, thl 'I It .? "JS ener

especiaHy when you. consider that th.e rna ter ials we use are' of the best

quality and backed by a one-year guarantee, aqainst normal wear and tear, We can also promise that the job will be completed before the end of February provided that no unforeseeable circumstances arise,

amount 'for the job?

competitive ofter?

If you have any further questions please contact Mr T Mills on 081 903 23,23
II
i

ext 211 who, as senior supervisor 1 will be able to give you any advice or inforrna tion you require. We look forward to hearing from you. soon,
'Yours since-rely,

6 Is the fiigure £31,'749 a net 'Or gr,oss

7 What is the position of Mr IMills? 'Wh at does. the expressto n norme I wear and' tear mean, and why is it men]. '_'" .. - moned?

job is to be completed in February? 5 What does the ailgn @' mean?

P. La.ne
Director

- t ;; tota I?

9 Whioh 'words. in the letter correspond

to the foUowing: place of work; celcuteteo; essesemem; supooned: probtem« not antictpat'ed?

60

4. Replies and quotations

B After you have written your reply, check ~tto make sure that you have an swersd ail~the cu sto mer' s questions, and included all the; paints you wanted 'to make. Ask yoursell if
-

4.4

Poi:nts to remember

'1 The reply to an enquiry doe's not only tell your customer whether you can provide the goods or services he has asked about, but 81so lnd lcates wh at

FAS FOB CFR elF

(fre9' alongside, shlp) (free on board) (cost an d fre~ ht) 9

sort of nrm you are: wheths r yo u are aware, conscientious, and efficient 2 Avoid opening' with expressions like ,loWe are in receipt ot your enqlJliry~or ~'Wi1hrefe renee to you r enq u iry~0 r 'In replv to your enquiry' . These openings tend to sound rather cold.

written.

the Iletter Ilows, or seerns short and sharp; ~fit S'OLJ nds helpful, or just Ii nto rrn s th e cu sterner, Th e best 'test 01 all, of course, ~sto ask yourselt 1'1 you 'would order sornsthlno from a firm, mat has sent you ttHB letter you have

(delivered ex, ship) (delivered ex. quay ~ duty DIEQ' "d\ paid) 'dearn·a,ge pal·._
carriage forward to hand le an order to supply from stock to quote a oellverv date to meet a delivery date to. deliver a ccnslqnment

DES.

(cost, insurance, and freight)

3 Avoid phrases like 'We are taking the liiberty of sending you, , ,'or 'We hasten to reply to your esteemed enquiry of the '10th inst.:' you 'will

4.,5 Words ·to remember .•.

," ,,"':. . ,", • '. , ••.•. I l·"· ','

a de~i1very note,

sound like a firm 'that should have g'ons out of business ,8. century ago" 4 !I,fyou use expressions lilke 'lt was with the utmost pi e'8S ure t hat we reee ived " .. ' 0 r ~'Wedeep I:y reg ret t:hat we cannot supply you w~th'.. .', you willi ap pear at best despe rate or, WQ rs eli nsl nee rs, A st raj 9 htto rwa rd 'Thank you for , . or ij would like to
",F

,8 re p rese
"1:Ii Q]
",...
~l

nta tlve

stool... vlr\ lst a 'g u aranto r

rete iI price

an adviser

wh 0 lesale prloe ne,t price 9 ross IPrl ce , 'I" f'd prices ilno USiIVS' 0_' ... e I'I,ve ry h BJg,es
I
-C•.

eel

thank you fori . .' or 'l am sorry that

to quote a fi rm pr ~oe

, . .' is enough. Make sure that you do not leave out intorrneflon, and have supplied the prlnted matter that.. Y _u ih I'i_ ---~--I'U hs I" H~ _ -nk. w ~p
_ _ ~_ _ •~ '!iOOii --,-_-0-_1:

'to hold a price tor 21 days (firm 21 days)

VA'T (Value Added Tax) gloods exempt from VAT

to quote terms

'tour customer. 6 Assure your customer that you have

fa.ith in your product which means that you have to 'sell' it 7 A reply to an lnitlal enquiry- is the first trnpresslon your' customer' wiill have of you, and that wUI be how be judges you. So a direct approach, t:eliliing the customer what the product is" why he should buy lt, how much it wi!1 cost, and what concessions you are oHerin g wll II create an lrn presslon of an efficient com pany 'I hat can handle his orcer smoo'th~y,
I'

'fixed terms negotiable terms

q 1I antlty d ii see unt

cash discount
~ etta r O'f cred it

b iill of exohan ge slight draft cash aqalnst docu ments documents ag,a,inst payment: documents agl,a,inst acceptance
QV-W'-'--O- - rk s/ex ·,f···~"""", acto f -'A-Q"A_ _

-ry--.: _

f .0. r.

(free on ral I)

S,l

'0'"' ' '

..
... ....,.
,

,,······r ..... ...d ... .e

.., .

I'

········,,<

r·'······'S····-··,
'.' ",'

"

,--

....

'.',.'

,.'.,'

Placing, an order (coverina letters. coniiimina pevment, discount: .. d euvery astes, me .·.,O~S ot ac ivery,, ',1'· '."..' ·'----:d·''·~, 't-,··,·· .. ·· metb ·d··,"·····,oidoliver "lSCQUn{s, .•... ) k 1- d · d d '. t d . :h pee kilng''.,!ecsnowtcaqina en oraei; a,Vlce otaespatcn; ,?~ ...i: ','. ,. '.' · ... ,.. _says in .·:·elvery~ ie: ... '·f·· sto ,11"" · . sd ,ou.· d~':l~.-'.'.'.: d« ,1· .,-'. .reluslng an or"d'-'~"~r("""=--t,· 0 S,OCK, b.··-"··8,,repute tion, untevouieble terms, size of ,0rd ex),
~. ~ , , ~ -. s= .__"
'·-,-1 ..

51.:1 Placinq an order

Orders are usually wriitt-en on a company's offic~a.1 order form (see 5,4".2 for 2l'n example) which has a date and a reference number that: should be quoted 'in any correspondence which refers to the order. Even if the order is telephoned, it must be, contlrmed in wrliting ~and an order form should a~wa~l's be ,aocompan~ed b~l ither e,corroltment e sllp or a covering letter, A cove!r~ng letter is preterabls as ~t:allows you 1he opporfunltyto make any necessary poiints and conf rrn the terms that have been agr,eed, The gui·d~below is for an outline of a covert ng ~etter. You m"ay not want to m ake a!~t he pol nts Ii ste dI but 1:00 k 1lhrough the guide, to see what could. be
j

S; i. I
Op,eningl Expl,a.in there is an order aeceropanyl ng the letter', Please find enclosed our Order No. B',4521 for 25 'Cteersouna' transistor receive fa, The enctoeea order (No, R154) is for 50 reams of A4 bank paper the cassettes we wrot'€J to you B boot. Ene tosed you will find our o.f/lelai order (No. B561) for ... ,
regarding

Than.k you iotyour rep/yo! 14 M,ay

Your fetter of 12' Octobe-r convinced me to oiece at leest a trial order for the 'Leth'erine material you spoke about. Tbereiore, please find enclosed ... ,
i

mentioned.

52'
,

,5. 0 _ rders Nber ovemcer in ti time " h C'-:h' torthe ,'" nnetmes rust;
"_0
.1

6- 1 2"
• i_
I ..:. :

Payment

connrrn the terms of payment.

As agreed' you witl draw on us et 30

Delivery" betore Februery is a firm condition ot t.his order, and we' reserve'

bank at .,"

daysr documents eqeinstecceptence, with the documents ,being sent to our

We' 'would Jlke to conutm that payment

the right te

to refuse

aooas

delivered after

that time" the work before tre end ot Marc/1 as the oper: Ing 0 f the .suoermao» t is planned for the beginning of April.
J

Please confirm tnet you can complete

to be made by irrevocable letter of

credit which' we have already applied to the bank for.

Once' we have' recetvea your edvice, we will send a benker's draft to , ; ,

, , . and W'E~eqreed tbet payments would be made against quarterly Cit ~ tam- -- "6r', . ts an" :,a
~ .' I I ;I

6; 1. B
M,elhods of delivery

~··i~.'

Many firms use torw,atding agents (s,ee '11.3 . .5) 'who are specl a! lsts i n packlnq and ha.ndlingl the
l

documentation lor shlppinq ,goods.

5.1,3
Dis,counts

Confll rmt he agreed discounts. We would iiK'lJ)'to' thank you for the 30% trede discount and 10% quantity discount you allowed us.
,25%, trade discount is quite satisfactory,
... and we will certainly take edventeqe of the cash d'isco unts you offers d tor Ffna IIYI W~ would like

Neverthelless, 'You should stUI advise the firm as to how' yOU' want the goods packed and sent to ensure prompt and safe delivery, so that if the consignment does arrive late, or lin a damaged state, your letter is evidence of the lnstructlons you gl,8ve. .', . and please rememoer thet only elr freig,ht will ensure promo; d,eIiV8'fY, express
Please send the' goods b,Y Red Star
,BS

to say the: the

we need them urg'sntly,

of this fragile

oromp; s ettlemen t.

Aith'Ough the' rather low trade discount of 15'%, disappointed USr we will place
en order and hope that" this allowance

constant handling' cons/gnm,ent.

delays'?

We edvtse delivery by road to' evao

Could ,You'Pteese $',hlp by scbeauted

freighter to avoid any unnecessary

near tuture.

can be reviewed at some time in the

514
! ,"

,"I

-:

'

s 1; 6
Packing

De I iv'elry

Co nfi rm the de,~ve ry dates, II It' ; s esset: tle l ttie t' th e goods ere aeiivered before the be,ginn1ng of

Advise your suppller how you want thle'

goods packed. Nota, ln the first example, that crates are often marked with a sliign ...... diamond, .a target, a a

5. Orders

53
Your order No. 61'1211 is now being' oroceseea and" should be ready for despatch by next week.,
r

square, a lion, etc. '..... that can be recoanlzed by the supplier and
customer, Each piece of ctocsetv is to be ind;vidualfy wrapped in thick peoer, pecked in etrev« and shipped In

wooden crates marked numbered 1 to 6.

0 and

We are' pteesed to' say that we have a/ready made up your order, No. 99011 115 for SO canteens of (Silver/ins
J

cutlery, and are now making arr.ange,ments lor shipment to

The carpets should be wrepoea in thick arcaeo-otoot paper which is reiniorced at both ends to avoid w,e,ar by triction. The machines mus: be well greased with all movebte pens securea oetore being toeaed into crates, which must be merkea.

Rotterdam.

5.3 Advice of despatch

order and arranged shipment, the customer is ~nformed of this llnlan advice, This may be done on a special form (see 5.4.7) or fina letter"
Your order, No ..DI154/~ has now been placed on board the S5 Mltsu MafU sailing from Kooe on 16 May and arriving Tilbury, tonaon. on 11 June. ThB' shlpP'in,g documents have already been sent to your bank In London for

Wheln the supplier has made up the

5, 1.7'
Closing
We hop,€} that this will be the first of many orders We)' wiil be placing with

you,.

We will submit further orders) if tI?is one Is completed to our satisfaction. If the good's sell 8S well as we' nope, we
shall send tutttier orders In the near future.

collection.

I look ioiwera to receiving your advice!

shtpmentlacknowledg,ement/ confirmation.

.'_ i .-'~~ A"11'3/3'

i _r ..

watches you ordered - No. 88151/24were paton flight BA 165le,aving Zurich 11.OO~9 A,ugust arriving Manchester 13,..00. Pteese find enclosed air waybill DC 15'161/3 and copies of invoice
Pleese be edvised met your order,
u

We are pleased to advise you that the

Acknow.edqinq an order
As soon as an order is received! by a sUiPpl~er, .it should be acknowledged,
This letter can be, quite short, as the letter at Sri 4.3.

5 2:·
,

Ii ' '

Thank you for your order No, 33.88 which we received' today. We are now dealing with it and you may expect delivery withIn the' next three week».

No YI115'1/Cr bee now been puton the G/asgCJw~London express and can be' collected et Euston station. Enclosed is conslgnm'ent note No, 1167153 which should be presemea on couection. You should contact ue lmme'diate.Jy if any problEJ'ms arise; Thank you far your order, and we hope W~ csn be of ~UiJ rvice in the fu ture.

54

,5. '_

- arders -

,5.4

Specimen letters
and forms
5,,4.1
P'lacing an order: cove,ring leHer This letter follows on from the, correspondence at 3,,3,4 and 4.3,5, F. Lynch & Co. have, decided to place an order 'with Satsx S. p ",A. and are, se Iid ~ a cove ri ng ~e'tte wit h th e for m, n'g r
Sate'x S"p,A

F. Lynch & CO. Ltd.

(Head Office) ~N eSSQI1 I Iouse Newell Street, Birmingha-m B 3 3EL
j'

Fax: 021236 &5'92

3- 41- V T""'-["",,,,·£4-,,1~,-..r.i'il. ~.

'Via di Pietra Papa 00146 llama

l'TALY

Df 1439 Our ref: Order DR4316

YOUI'

ref:

9March 19-

Attn. Mr D, Causi.o
Dear N1r Causio,

Qu.estions
1 In the letter at 3" 3.4 Lynch & Co. said t:h,ey we re II~Kiely to order ave r 500 sweaters, but thetr actu al order' is

only 'for' 1,50. What mligh1 be the

Please find enclosed our order, No DR431.s! for men's and boys' sweaters in assorted sizes colours, and designs;
I

reason for 1his? 2 How win LYinch &, Co, pay? 3 How soon do tlhey want this sweaters? 4 If the swe ate rs they have 0 rd ersd are ou t of stock, woui d 'they accept s u bet itu tss?

'We have decided to accept the 16,%trade discount you offered and 'terms of payment. viz; documents against payment but would like these

terms reviewed in the near future,

Would you please send the shipping documents and your sight. draft to
Northminster Bank (City Branch) .Deal Street Birminnham B3 1SQ,
i

If you do not have any of the listed items in stock, please do not send

substitutes in their place"

W'e would appreciate
Y OILlrS, since relY
I'
-. ..
,

delivery within the next six weeks! and look

forward to your acknowledcement,

-~-:nW
i

: .. '.'

.. "

-..

.',

'.

._"" ....

'.,

"

.-

..

..

"

~-

~:: ':
-'

....

..

~....

.'

. '_._

"

..

.
'

'I

Lionel Crane
Chief Buyer

EnG, order form No D R4316

u

'" O~d ers \d. '_I'

55

ORDER

No., DR 4316

5 4' 2'
,! .'
~ "-~, __I____:__

Ord,er term This is Lynch & Co.~sofficial] order torm, Questria n,s 1 W'hen shoulo the order be rdel~veredl? 2 How wm Lynch & Co. pay? ..··ho;::·· L Oran'e? ls 3W 4 What sort of discounts have been
," . 0
Ii ",_ '-.': _ .':.: !!II

F. Lynch & Co. Ltd.

[Head Office), Nessen House Newell Street, Birmingham B3 3EL
Telephone: 021 236 6$71

Fax:021236 8592

Telex ~341641

Satex S;p.A Via. di Pietro. Papa 00146 Roms

.-

ITALY'
Item description 30 30 40

Aumonzsd.. '"

.
~

.'.
. ..

. ~
,.:

_',"

. -.

"

"

:'.

.
'.,.'

'M.

i, ••••

~"

•••

••••••

5, If the 0 rder was faxed to Satex

agreed'?'

Cat.

Price

No.

O'.I.f. tondon

which number would be used?

Wh ic h rrefe re n ce identiiliie.s the

60

V' Neck: 30 RedJ20 Blue

R432
Beiqe

Roll Neck: l!3 Black/ 1S Blue

Clew Neck: 16Green/If Crew Neck: pattern

N 164 ,N 164
,R541

£13.80 each £ 9.40

11

sweaters? 7 Bes id as th e. p rlcs, what oth er costs

are covered to L.ondo,n? 8 IlfLynch & 'CO. need further co r respondencewlth Satex on ,th ls order, what reference, would they

£16,,00
£12.60

H fI

use?
Note: Subject to 8% quantity

discount

Comments: 16%Trade Disc. Pyrnt: DIP Del" 6 weeks

Date: 9 March 191

66

5. Orders

614.3
Acknowl;edgement of order

Sat-ex S.p.A. wllill now prepare Mr Crane's order, but in the meantime 19;t him know that the order has been
re "c: '9'- .I'V' '9'-' d='
.:: .:.'. . '.. I]

Satex S.. .. .. pA
Via dl Pietra Papa! 00146 Roma
Telefono: Rcma 7,69910 Te ~efaj{: (:O~) 681 5473

'l-ele1<: 285136

Mr L, Crane Chief Buyer F, Lynch & Co. Ltd. Nessen House Newell Street Birmingham. B3 3EL
I

vs. rif.: Order DR4316

Ng, rif.:

0/1140

13March 19~

'U:NITED KINGDOM

Dear Mr Crane, Thank you for your order (No, DR4316) which we are now making up, We have all the items in S ock and win be advising you in the near
future,

Yours sincerely!

.. I:>. t!avsi 0 _
D,

Causio

g, Orders

57

Satex<.p.A. S
'1eletono: Roma 7699:W T elefax: {Of)) 681 S:473 Telex: 2&5136

5.4,,4
,Advice of despatch Thi s Iette r co nfii rm s that S atsx S. p. A., have sent the order" When he receives this letter, M r Crane 'will 9 0 to; the Nlo rthmi nster 18.an:k~,wh e r'e he willi be asked to accept a 51 i'ght dra,ft, i.e. pay a bilill ,of exchange immediately. After he has paid this he 'willlb,e hanoeo th,s shl pp~ng d ocu menta (bi IIIof iladii ng iI1!S U ran ee ce rti:f'icale! and com me rei a I lnvolcejso that he can collect the goods. Remember, this was ,8 c.l.f, fransaeflon where the supplier paid cost, insurance, and ireight~ and on a documents against acceptance basis, i.e, once the bin of exchan ge has been, accepted th e
1 j

Via eli, Pie t fa Papa ~00146 Roma

Mr L. Crane, Chief Buyer

F, Lynch & Co, Ltd, Nessen House Newell Stre,et Birmincharn B3 3EL

vs, rlf -: Order DE4316 N s, rlf.: D"!lllA 1 - '.'J.

a,

'';It ..

29 March 1:9-

UNITED KIN'GD'OM

I'

Dear Mr Crane,

documents would be handed over.

'We would like to advise you that your' order has been shipped on the
wi hin th 'e'"n ext ten '..avs d:'. 'h._ v Meanwhile OUI 'bank has forwarded the relevant documents and sight draft for £ 11 662.80 to the Northminster Bank (City Branch) Birminqham
.. .'" .. u
OGJ':5 .~~I;,A
::'._ .. _','

:S~'S,: coni M'.::If· -', '_,"

and

e; Q~"_ , .....

hould rsac h
1 •••• : •••• :.

I;;l,",

"

'y-":.:. -'0-U

~.... '

t-·._.

_ _'-

", _,,",

,j'

~I

'We are sure you 'will be pleased wi th the consiqnrnent and. look t'oY"i:'~~a'rd yo- ur next 0,_~·:::_·__~' to ord ,QI
11_>LY'~"'
,·1.: .... .'_:' ~"" ~., . _":'," "11

- r --:::>
f""iA D . '~US110'

Yours sincerel y~
..

· C
~.

./7 ~'

'S' _-_-.0:' I"

!j;
",'

".

'.:'. .

~.,:.: 58'."
..

5.4,5
PI,ac·ing an erder from the, co rresponde nee at 3. 3.3 and 4.3.3. There are three pa.rties lnvolvsc: the man utaciu rers, G Iaston P,otte rles ; the buying aqents, Sanders and Lowe; and their prlnclpals ~nCanada, MacKen,z,ie Bros. 'Here, Mira· Lowe :is wrU.ing o'n behal;f ot her principals and forwarding their order. Notice the
instrucf ons she 9[1 es and notl co that v she has, alreaov phoned the This Iletter and the next one follow on

.... ,. .. ··· re S·anders &'.: ·Lo··W Ltd,.

.'

..........•

_._

'

'

'.

."

'

.'.

Import at'id E;.;c;port (london

1

O:fft.;;.e.)P']amc:r HCiu'se; Pitl['l«S Street, t.ondQI1 !ECl 7DQ

1
1

Mafidtestcf

U~\erpoo~ Office~ 54 B?llr:;rs ru-Jad" U~r:p-Dol U 9:EiW Sto.C'kport Ofne;:::: :5 Island 'Roadi, ,~tDckpart 9,M3 12K

aiJmi.llghalill Ofl1ee; 18 B~~dlsh,a:w Street, Birrttli"lgjHlm B·~1TO 0 ffir:e: 34) Oxford Su'ei;t M anchester Ml1 2LR

Telex: 91S~~f

T~]c:phl;lin.;;:: 011 543 la.L~ Fax: 0/' 1 543 1 ~!i

Directors: L.
Your ref: ._

v«,

Lowe, D. R. $.alidcits
O~.r ref::

R~_i. No.. E]~~"'i1d_ :t_SS13~

VAT No ..{I~3700121
])81:6:

1BSlMB

2 July 19·-

Mr J. Merton
Sales Manager

Claston Potteries Ltd,

man utacturer to agree terms of payment wh,ich w"ere [not rnentloneo in the· manutacfurer's letter at 4.3,.3.
Questions

Clayfield

Burnley BBIO IRQ Dear Mr Merton;

Please find enclosed an order (R14.32) from. our principals, Bros, Ltd, 1-5 Whale Drive, Dawson, Ontario Canada"
I

MacKenzie

1 Sander.s & Lows have completed

a ' 2 W··rh·· t ad' v·:I·C- 'e~h· a s····b·'e~e' 'n° . g' ; v·. n on

.: •• L •• ..:.. ••• ,' • _.' :. ":. -,' __ ' ~ •

their job! which was 'to 'find a supplier, So· who must Glaston Pottenes write to now?
.0.
~ ._'"

They have asked us to instruct you 'that the 60 sets.of crockery ordered should be packed in six crates, ten sets per crate, with each piece individually wrapped, and the crates marked clearly 'with their name!
thewords 'fragile
9

arranged? 4· Wi il'ls u bat itutss be acce ptab ~eif 01aston Potterl es are 0 ut of stock of;
any items?' 5 Why should there De no problem tor G[laston Potteries to dellvsr w~th~nfour weeks'?,
6 Which words used in the ~etter

packing? 3 What method of payment has belen

'crockery', and numbered 1~6,

They hav,e.a.greed to pay by letter of credit" which we discussed on the phone last W"EH3k, and they would like delivery before the end of this
month, which should be: easily effected as there are regular sailinos from Liverpool.

If the colours they have chosen are' not in stock, they win accept an alternati ve provided the designs are those stipulated an the order.
Please send any further correspondence relatinq to shipment or payment direct to MacI(enzie Bros. and let us have a copy ofthe commercial invoice when it is made up,

correspond to the, foUowing: cups,

breakables; mede; different::: sta:ts'd; re-le van t; c()mpleted?'

saucers', plates~ ere.: b'OXBS:;,

Ene. Order R1432

1..) I:l' •.

T ···r· Orders

59

GLASTON POTTERIES Ltd.

CIa yfield Burnley BB 10 1RQ'
j

Adv~,ce01 despatch

54 6
_

....

11

~. . .
-11

.'','

'·'

Tel.:: 031 S 46:12.5 Teleic 800 117.3

Registered No. 716481

V A T R.egi:ste red No. 13.3 5341 018

'Fax: 0'31.5 6l1B.2

MacKenzie

Bros, Ltd,

14July 1'9~

Dawson Ontario
Dear

1~5 Whale Drive

G.aston Potteries have made up the MacKenz~e order- and now advise them, ,MacK,enzie Bros. Will already have opened a letter of credit (see 9.7) at thetr bank, The, Canadian Union Trust Bank, in. favour ot their suppliers, Glaston Potteries. The Canadian bank will now wait untilll they' have conflrmatlon of shipment from th.eir agents in Eng and, Burnley City Bank; and wm then transfer the men ey' so that Gi aston Potteri as can
be· paid.

CAN.ADA Sirs, completed and sent to Liverpool Docks O.rder R1432

The above order has now been

Questions 1 How will the consign ment be sent? 2 What will~happen to ttls' documents once Glaston Potteries receve them? ,3 How have 'he go'ods been packed and the crates marked? 4 Wh at did Glaston dlo alba ut the ltern
th@:ycould not supply? 8 When win the conslqnment arrive in _ana·.a. C da?

where it is awaiting loading onto the SS Manitoba which sails for Dawson, 'Canada on the 16 July andarrives on 30 July,
Once we have the necessary documents we will hand them to Burnley City Bank your bank's agents here, and they win forward them. to the Canadian
Union Trust Bank We have taken special care to SEH:~that the goods have been packe d as per YOUI' instructions the six crates being marked with your name and numbered 1-6, Each c a'te measures 6ft x 4ft x 3ft and weighs 5 cwt.
I

We. managed to g,et all items from stock with the exception of Cat. No, G 1,6 which W'6 only had in rs d But we· included it 'inthe consignment as it had
the 'Willow pattern you asked for.
If there is any further information. yo u require, please con tact us 'Thank you very much for your order, and we look forward to hearino from you again

6 Which words tf.nthe letter correspond to the fol.ow'ing: mede up; send; in accordance with; apart from; due
I'n::::?
'" II

soon, Yours faithfull y ~

J. Merton (Mr)
Sales Manager

MU"/~

60

6, Orders

A,dvtce note
At s. 4-.6 G Iaston PO'th~:ri advl se d es MacKenzi,9' Bros, of despatch in a letter.
'I

6,4.7

D & S Charcot S.A.R.L.

p lace

Advice note

Here D & S Charcot use a form,

d l) 20. ooOf

79' B -4000 Uege

Tel: .[32) 49-24088.6T~I~copi,e: ,[32)49- 1,6592

,I

The Chief Buyer

'Y"8" vela C cu.: ....' .. Rua das Ameixoeiras 1,291 P-1700 L isboa Your order No. D1631'9
Q

,.,g

by' rail todav Pleese confirm re ceiot and ouoite .. conslonmsnt note No. 8817B 61 913;
...... -.- __ I.. _".-_·YJI'!l

The, following consicnment has been sent to you

__ ,V~ _ ... _ _ .. ". '_'~WY~' _ [),~,1 _ ~'-':·.·.0

'Quem,lily

4doz

ERe

adaptors

13 amp

68

Dimmer switches 280 watt

100

l-rnetre fluorescent fitting with defuser

[acar 4-metre extension

4doz 6doz

13 amp point fitt inqs

leads 3]kW (3 DOOwatt)

j

'Commen1S: Paid on Pro forma inv, 83171;

Date: B September 19'-

5,.5. Delays in delivery

If' goods are helld up either beto re or atte r ,they ere se nt, you rn uat kss p you r customer informed. Let him klnow what has happened" how it happen sd, and what you are ooln Q to co rraot t ha sltuatlon, I 'WB,$ eutptised and sorry to he's r the t your consignment (Order No, B145) bed not reecned you. On enquiry l

tound that it had been ,delays,d by a tocsl ,01 scate on the' CB rgo vessel :SS ·'h·hdb·' H amburg on whic . It-a. oeen toeded. ,I em now trying to ,get the goods trsnsietred to m e,"S,'S"Sem ',0-;;:' w:·,h····~'c'h'~ a,., 'r·-'· shoutd sentor Yokonems b:·.··e···· __ the I! . ... ~ tore ~ v. end of next week; How'ever!- I shalf kB'€JP you informed;
X"j' __ ,~, ..QI
1.:;;" ~"" . ',' '. . .... :'

···Cf

".-

,_. _ '_' ,. g,

y__ Q

_-.

three~week ,delay in d'relivery" This is due to a fire at our GrSUEJn ford wo tks which'

I am writing to tell you that there will be a

destroyed most of the machinery;

__ •

__

--

••

_-

II:

5,;Orders

61
We no lonqer manufacture .this product
as demend over the past

Neverthelessr your order has oeet:

transferred
being the deJay which was due to
J'

to our Sfou,g'h fa.ctory and is " otocessea " there, I,',' apologize t.or our controt.

declined.

tew years has

circumstances beyond

We f@gre't to inform you that there wIll be a hof,d up in ,Q,etting your conslgnment to you., This is due to the cut In s.up,piies

irom Gere where civil war suddenly txose out fast week" We be v€ contacted ObI lier a ,8 a POSSf."'€ SUPP'H3.r !In L 8.g05 enc h WI'/:/: ,',' let us know if he can help' us, If you wish to cancel your order, you msy, but l

have fun ou: of tbe strengthened denim styte yO'u asked for. As you have particularly requested only this metetis), we will not otter a substitute, but hope we will get delivery' of s new consignment within the next then.

tnaueutetovereue.

Thank you tor your order for heavy=duty

Untottunstetywe

months, We hope you will contact us

We received your order for ACN ; dy' ' -n;'' ~m'o todey b 'u't- .rFa'Q"'.' 'rat- th"···eit d···,:j j'e~to d Oil ;." '10:7 , G" __,_ strik.e et the A,eN factory we' are una bla'
... '. . (;ii,

two

oresen:

think'you will find most msnuiscturers are experiencing the same difficulties at

......;J "f"'!

'_-

j'

a.

..'

,Q;'

." of".;!"

..... • !J G;t

'" - ,":' 5I. 6 Refusino an order

There are a number of reasons for a f rrn refusing an order, and some o't the most common .are given beliow. Wha.tevi'r you r r.E3'SSO,n,you must be po lite ':,he, t words r6joo't and refuse have a ,nega't~ve tone to them therefore il is better to use decline or turn down instead,

you informed of the ceveoomeote.

to fulfil the' order, a nd W~ rea! ae tha t other mOdt31s will not sai: your requirem erne. Hopefulty the disput.e will be settled soon so that 'we' will be a,bfe to supply you. You can rely on us to keep

6;6,2
D,ad reputation

1 6 6~:
!!! '::.
iI ::_-

Out of slock

You may be out of stock of the product

ordered, or indeed you may no longer make it. N,01e that, iln e ithe r ease, you have an oppo rt u n i1y to se II an alte rn atlve product (see 4.1 ,4)~ but remember not to, crltlclze 'the product: you can no ~onger supply.

The customer mlsy have a bad rep utatlon for ,settlilng thelj1r accounts Q r, in the, case of a retal Ie r ot~s BY ~ e lectrl cal or mechanlcal products! may have O'ff:f!ueda poor after ..sales serv lee whi~ch could in turn a.Hect your reputation. In th ese cases, it is bette r to ind ica te
terms on which you would be prepared to accept his 0 roe r, or, as iii n th e tast

three examples, find a dipll!oma1ic way olf sayingl 'no',

on a cash basis.

We would only be tseoereo to supply

We ale gorry to say met we are camp/s,tely' out of stock' of this item and it will be at least six weeks bekxe w,e 'Jet our nex: deilv&ry! bu: pteese contact us
then.

oro-tottte invoice.

We only s.uppJy on p'syment

,against

As there is heavy ,demand we have very'

f~'w of these products in stock, and ate

6,2 servin,g on a rote basis" It seems unlikely that we couta deliver within the next four months. As our ,plant is closing for the summer vacation 'we would not be B'ble to

6, Orders
provide references.

consider this sort of credit once W6~ have established a trading relalionship,

H'owe ver, we might

process your order for tne date you have to decline it,

beve given. Therefore, regretfully we

I am sorry to sa.y that we most turn down your order a's we have full order books at present and cannot glve a d'eflnlte

Our company relies on quick sales, low proiits, and a fast turnover, and therefore we cennot offer long -term credit ieoititiee.

5;6,;,4
Size' '01 order The quantity required might be tOIO Ilarge: We ere a slnall firm and could not
possibly handle an order for 20~OOO

date for detiver».

5 6' 3'
~ :!:.'

Unfa'vourabIe 'Ier'ms The ,supplier may not like the 'terms the cu stomsr h as asked tor, e ith e r tor delivery:
Delivery could not possibly be promsed within the time given in your
letter.

units. Our factory does not neve fa ci/ities to turn out ,30) 000 units a week.
The quantity required might be too

small: We only supply orders for ball pens by

th fa

Two months must be' ellowea for deliverYI' as we ourselves neve to get raw materials and rely on our own suppliers.
Or discount: It 'would be uneconomceito: us to offer turnover

meroiecturer

stationery wholesaler remer th'an

grosSJ but

sUQQ est you trv

we tnenutecture are sold in one colour find bytbe dozen. 'We never
sell individual

tnesnms

garments.

Our fa. ctory only sells material by 30metre rolte which cennot be

.suggest as we work on ,B' fast

end low profit margins,

our products at the discounts you

cut up.

The usual trade discount is 15% In thIs country, wh ich is 5%, lower than tbe fig-u re men t Ioned I.n your letter. The discount you eskec: for is rat more than w,e offer any of our customers.

Or payment: We' only eccept payment by tetter of

creot: offer quarterly terms on InltJaJ orders, even to customers who can

We never

6, Orders

63

5.7

Panton Manufacturing Ltd.

P anton Warks ~Hounslow
Tel;, os: 353 Q 125
Tele~; 21511
j

. Sp,eClmen 1etters

Middlesex, T\V6 2]3Q

Regjs:£ef'ed No. Engla:nd 266135

6.7.1

Delay in delivery

Fax: 081153 6783

Que,s,!io,ns
Mr H. Majid,

8th October 19=

Majid Enterprises, 'Grant Road,

Bombay,
INDIA

1 Why haven't Panton completed the order? 2 How do they intend to overcome the problem? 3 When do they now expect the order to'

Dear Mr Majid,
I am writino to you concerning your order No, CU 1184/d which you placed four weeks ago, At that time we had expected to be able to complete the orderwell within the delivery date we ,gave, you which was 18 Iune, bu.t since then we have heard that our main supplier of chrome has gone
I

4 Can MaJiJdEnterprlsea cancel the order if they want to? 5 What is, the, 'dectston' reterrsd to in
the last paragraph?

be completed?

bankrupt.
This means that we have to find another supplier who could fUlfil all the outstanding contracts we have, to complete" A2 you will appreciate this will take some time but we are confident that we should be able to arranqe to
I

6 Wh~chwords iinthe letter eorrsspcnd to the following: with reterenoe to; finish: complete; oerteln; put
tog',eth@r; trouble; tolerate. the
. '", . ~.-?

snueuon "

.get:our materials and deliver consignments to. our customers by the middle of next month, The units themselves have been assembled and simply now need
completing, We regIet this unfortunate situation oy'er which we had no control and apoloqize for the inco:nvsnience. If you wish to canoe] the order 1.t would be quite understandable! but 'we stress that we vvi]l be able to complete
delivery by next month and would appreciate it if you could bear with us fa

then,

Please let us know

consideration,

yOU!

decision as soon as possible, Thank you for your

Yours, sincerely ~

D, Panton
Managing Director

5,0rde-rs

sp' 'Wholesalers PL'C

Questions,
2 How does Mr York generali,ze his
1 Why is the order being retused?
Old Meadow Road] King's Lynn, Norfolk PE30 45W
Telephone: King's Lynn 60841 Cable: S.POLE Telex: 351214

refusal? 3 What ,isthe i:mp~~C'ationt ~in a U"i~S lnstan ce' in the last sentience?

Mr ,E.van 'G911en
131 Place Roget
Ref:

'DY/ML

B-121 0 Brussels
Dear Mr van Gel1en

7 May 19=
j

Thank you for your order No. HU14449 which

i i

W8

received today,

Unfortunately, we do not feel that we, can offer the trade discounts, which you have asked for! viz!35 ner cent as we on IV allow a 26per cent trade discount to all om customers reqsrdiess of the quantity they buy! 'Om prices are extremely competitive and it would not be worthwhile suppl ying on the allowance you he ve aske d for. Ther,efore in this instance I regret that "Fe have to turn down your order,
I

Yours sincerely!
~

.ror«

ffl" » ~ .,. r

..~'

D, York

5. Orders

[66
1

s.a

Points to remember
1 Even if you use an offlclal order torm

when placing an order, send ,8 covering letter confirming terms of p aymsnt, di scou nts, delivelry, and
packing.

2, Orders should be acknowledged

as

soon as received. 3 When send ling an advice, explaln how the goods are' beiJlg aent and let your customer know how to ~dentiiy the consignment 4, If there are prcblerns with delivelry" tell your customer imm,ediate~y what you intend to do to correct th em" Apoloqlze 'for 'the lnconvenlence. 5 I'fturrunq an order down be polite, and generalize 1he terms 'You use so that the customer does not think this refu sal on Iy ,a,pplies to him,
I

te rrns of: payment trade discount quan tit y: d· ,I lscount cash diiscount barker's draft s ilg: ht d ratt bll II orf exch a ng e to draw a bill on a customer diocuments agains,t acceptance lrrevocable letter ot credit qu arterly state men ts :10 ng-te rrn credit facili t les shilpping documents alr waybill bUI ol lading in surance ce r1 iifk::,ate , . comrnercra I'rnvotce goods in stock goods OIUt ot stoc k to pack go!od.s iin crates to ship goods to. arranae shipment a 'forwarding agent aii r fre ~g ht d.elivery date

5.9

WIOI'dlS a trla' order

--.

tOI remember

.. d a provrstcna 'I orosr a f~ ords r rm to place an order to confirm an order to acknowlsdqe an order to accept an order to rsfus e/ re'ject! t urn d own an 0 rde r to ii!1 ~/fuI1iVmak[eu p/cornpl ete/meeti supply an order to deliver an order' to cancel an order

an orde r form a ICO m p~ment s itp i a covering letter an Invoice

a pro-forma invoice

an advice of despatch a consignms1nt note

67

Payment
_· ' _ .., . t'.-:... ;:.. t t .,"." '.'.'. _.S f; ceo - - - , nVQ'lCe,S,pto-totme,.' " mvoices, sa '.'·,em en.' t~·os a..'.' un t~ 1 methods of payment (home tieae end foreign trade); .' . r ..•........ oip« "y:m' . " < .. " .. r n ,.'....•... ..•."'g'e" " " advice ",'~~_~.,:_:~. . .ei: t·, a" r ck:v n"0' iwle' , '.a:; ,-m.etit.~'_._~ -'s' 'e,Y"--':' ,.,."; '.' .,:__"~ Q-··f-··p· vmont:
! -. .......;.... .
I

_,e"

'..

asking for more time to pa,y/ replying to teauosts tor fl' '. '. d _."- d .. .t,.. .' .' '. ~-_ ... ..' mo,relme,I" , .-' ,rs t· an>. secon·· , reques t. .lor 'paym'sn,i: ti: d .S .'·'11 ','. ·
. '."., ..·.c :;-., ..

·t· _. -..

' ..

-c.' .~ ...

'7.,

....

,-.;,

;cc·

- ..

.!'=-

requests (Pinel Demeiids).

6:.1 lnvoices and statements

e.i.i
lnvetees

your remittance and wi!! then send the' .h .. J'.. . d'" c. ~Eurs0'.11 carnage torwera,
I . .. .- .. , -' . .....

discount. We look iorwerd to receiving'

Invoices are not only requests 'for payment but also records of tr ansact ion S w'h ~chgive both ,t he buyer and. seller information about what has been bought or sold, the terms of the sale and details ot the transaction. The' invoice may be accompanied by a short ooverlnq ~ etter offeri ng a ny add it! 0 nal Illnforrnaf on t he custom e r might need. Pteese find enclosed our invoice
No. B 195"1 for £29,,43. The plugs you

Our Invoice No. TR335118 tot £4,00 net Is ette ched. We' lOOK forward to receiving your cheque from which you ,may deduct 3 per cent cash discount if paym,ent is made within seven days. 'yOU! Order No, H f315D Is at present being processed end will be sent on to you within the next few weeks. Thank you for your order. We ere sure you will be plea.s.ed with tne units when you receive them.

6,;,1.2
piro... forma lnvetees A pro- forma invol ce is an invo lee w ith

should receive them within the next' few days, The enclosed invoice {No, D 1161} tor £56" 00 is for 2 'l.eyeezee ~chairs at £40.; 00 each less 33 per cent treae

ordered have afrea'dy- bee» despetched to you! cemeae forward, and' you

thie,'word s p ro..form a typ,ed or stamped

on I., an o is used: ~,t·· a ..._ ~_

011 I

1 i'f the customer has to pay for thie glood s beto re rece ~ n'g t he rn, l.e '" he vi pays aqainst the pro-torrna:

,~.

68
2 if the customer wants 10 make sure

6" Payment

3 if goods are sent on approval, or on sale or return, or on consignment to of the principal; 4 as a customs doou ment.
an agent who will se~~ them on behallf

that a quotation wi'll not be changed: the pro-forma will tel~hi m exactly what and how he wHI be oharqed,

broug hit: fo rwa rd from th e previa UIS period' and Ilist,ed as Account Rendered. lnvolces and debit: notes (see 7.5.1) are adoeo, whlil·e payments a,nd credit notes
(see 1'.5.2) are deducted.

A covering tetter may accompany a proform a, invoice ,:.

Th.eenclosed oro-totme No. 1164 for . 85.3.76 is for your order No. C1534 £ which is now packed and a'waiting despatch. As soon as we receive your
j

Statem ents of accou nt ra re'iy have letters accornpanyinq them unless there is a particular point that the supplier wants ·to make, 9.g; that the account is overdue; or that some special concessi on is,aval labile tor IP pt ram payment, Note the expression as at, which means up to this date,
I enclose your statement 8S at .3'1 July . Ms·..·y· I remind Y',Q'U': tie; .y.·:o· Ju n·-e«u
" •. e ~ ~" .'

ctieoue w,e wi" send the goods which wi'll reach you within a few ,days.
i

statement is .still outstandin.Q~ end est: you to' settle as soon as possible?

._,'."

t·..

~"

_ .... '_.

,':",

'.:

Plea-se find enclosed your steternem of

eccouni es at 31 May' this year, If the' balance of.£161.1s cleared within the next seven deys, you can deduct a 3

We are sending the enclosed pro-torme (No. H91,81) for £3 160 gross! for the' consignment of chairs you ordered on soorovel. We would eporectete your returning the balance of unsold chairs .by the end of Mayas agreed. Pro-terms invoice, tao. PL171.5r Is for your order. No. 652 1174', in confirmation of our quotation, The total of £15,351 includes cost. insurance, end freight.

per cent cesn discount.

62
iii! .

_·,··

Settlement of accounts

6.2;.1
Methods of pay,ment: home trade

6~i. 3

S'latements o,t account

payment of lnvolces, a supplier m.ay grant his cu sto me r cred it (see al so U n~lt a Credit) in the form of open eccount faciHtie,s for an Sl·g ree d per lod 0'1 tim e usually s, month but sometimes a. quarter (three months). At the.end of the perj'od a statement of account is sent to the customer, listing a~1 transactions the betwee n 'the buyer and sel ler for ·that pe riod. Th e s·tatern e nt II riel u des th e balance on the ,9'COQtU nt, wh ich liS
l

~ather fhan requiring immediate

Here is a i st of methods of payment which can be used in the home trace, whioh refers in this case 10 trade in the UK. P"Qatal Ord'sr Postal 0 rders can be bo ug1ht from th e Post Office, usually to pay small amounts, and eent to the suppli,er direct. T'hey can be, crossed or closeo, i.. . only e to be paid into the supplier's account, or open 'for CBS h. P'otUnda.ge~ l, e.,·the cost of buying ·the orcer itse!lf, ls expensive, so they would only be used for-small amounts,

6. Payment

69
the buyer si'gns (accepts) the billlJ before

Sts:mps

business.

postage stamps, but unusual in

It is posslble to pay someone with

'G,iro This postal cheque system is. run by the Post Office and aUow's customers to send payments to anyone whether they have a Giro account or not The Post Off ice offers a s e rvi ce by wh iich they wi I~dell~ivergo·ad s and accept payment om behalf of the supplier.
C.O .. . (cash ,onl ,delivery) D

the goods are sent, If this Is done throuoh a bank, the bank. will, ask the buy,er to accept the bill before handtng over the sh~ppjngdocuments: th~sirS known as ·a documents against accsptance (0 lA.) trans action. See 9.5 and 9.6 for b~U exchange tranaactions. of

Letter of credit
This mefhod of payment can be used lnternally, but is more common in

overseas
-

transacflons.
__ -

•..

S·.·:·e-'·:~ 2··,;· S'::

~ " .. II

2'··:··

..

'

Documentary credit.

'You must have, a current account, or certain types 01 saviings accounts, to pay by cheque (see Unit '9 Banking).
1

CheQiue

6'12.2
Methods
0"

p.ay'ment: 'foreign

traee

Cheques take three working days to clear th roug h the, cornrnerclal banks, and can be open, to pav cash, or closed (crossed), to be pald into an account. Unlike ~nmost countries ~UK cheques are valid IUp to six monrns.

Cheque It is posslble 10 pay an overseas supplier

IBa n. k. transter Banks w~11 transfer money by order from one account to another,
Credit transfer

German/UK. transaction, for example, the suppl liar could walt up to three weeks, for payment.
In t.e'rnatl·onI8 I G ire
Payment by lntsrnatlonal Giro, which

by cheque, bUlt U takes a 'long t~me before the SLJ ppUerF gets his money. In a

The payer f'iUsout a Bank Gilro s,lip and hands it in to a bank with a cheque. The bank then transfers the money to the
payee.

The payer buys a cheque from the bank for 'the' amount he wants to, pay and

Banik, draft

sends it to the payee. Banks usually require two of their Directors,' s~gnatUlr9S, on drafts~and make a small charge.

The bill states thlat the buye r pay me sell e r an am ount w ilth il n ,8 stated t.~ me,

The seller draws a bill on the buyer.

B:I,II of ex:cha'n'ge

replaced Money Orders, can be made whether the buyer has an account or not! and to a suppller whether he hasan ace-au nt or not. The Inte rnati onal G~ro form is obtain ad trorn a ny Post Off~ce filled out, then handec to 'the Post 'O,ff!ce' who forwards the order 10 the G~ro centre which w'illl send 'the amount to a PO,S.! OHi ce in the be n sf ~ci iry's cou ntry a 'where the supplier wi~'1 rs'ceiv'6 a postal cheque. Hie can then either cash It." or pay' It into his bank account. Giros are ch arqed at a 11 Irate, at
j

wm

e.g. 30, days. The bm iis sent to the buyer either by post, or through a bank, and

tntemaftona' Money Orders can be, bought at most banks in the UK and are paid for in sterUng or dollars. The ba.nk filis out. the order for' the customer; then

Interna,tionali Money Orders

70 for a smlalll chargI8" hands U,.e IMO over, an d th e b uyeir sends lt 10 the ,beneficiary, l.e, the perso n reQeiviing the money. I~MOs, an be cashed or c credited to the, reclp lent's account. Bank tlransfer Pa)l'ment can be made by ordering a hOM,S' bank to transfer money to 8Jl overseee accou nt. If tel egrap hed, th,e transter is,know n as a tele'QIr,ap hie t ranster (TT) ~and j'f mal ~ a m ai~ ed, tran,sfer (M'T}., The Socie1y for Worldw ide In terban k F~nanolal Communic:at~on,s (S,'WIFT) offers facl IIIit la S to r a 24 .. 0 u r tran s."fe of mon ey h r to a benet lelary on its compu tsr systems. ,International bankers draft 'Th,; ts a b <'.·IIIl\OrS eng _, ¥,I"wh.·Ieh th an ... ,IS I" - ••• ~,- ,~- Ih aq U .. ' ".~ bank draws on itsellf and sells to the customer, who 'then sends 11 his, to suppller as he would an ordinary inland cheque. So if you have to pa:y your supplier eaooo, you pu rehase the cheque 'for that amount, plus charges. Usu a:lly the recsl vsr's bank sh au Id elther have an account wi'th the, sender's bank, or an ,agre,ement.
Eii l:\;

-6 P~Y':ITI'ent
! ~ ..
l~"

.
'._

fro m th e 01reu Iar lstts r ,of c'r'ed!U, 10 rm e r'ly ussd by 'foreign travsuers ,a,ndnow largelly replaced by Euroc!heq'ue"s" trave ~h;l cheq usa ~and cash c heq ue r's orad Us. Docu mentary cred Its have to be appUed for from the buyer's bank, by 'filling out a form giving details of the type of' credi1 (l.e, revocable or lrrsvocaola), the, ben efi,ciary (the person race ivinlg 1he money), the amount, how long the credit: "'II b ·1 'I"d t' ') WII'.e - aVSLa bi ef or ('t.e. V8_1-, untn·'1.. '," the documents involved (bill o'f ,Ia,ding iinsur'ance invoice, stc.), and a deserlptlon ot the gocld-s, T he man ey wll;1 be crsd it,ed to the su p P1,1r's aecou nt as e soon as confirmation ot ahlpment is made. This is,do Mile when th e do-au ments . '. I' "d - -'d" . ' e ··t .k are' .0·· ge, WI't' ''111._ t"-h' customer s b>'ian··" See 7··· 9 9 t'OF d( DC'__ mentarv credit ·'U ~' rransaen 0 ns,
l'
l
-'1 ·c -

,--f.,-,

"_

g.

__

..

!I

ees=

!I

__

'"

_.

~V_.

_].

. .. _

6;2,,3
Advi,ce of payment

tette rs advi sin g pavrnen t ~ pa rt leu Ia rly in the horne trade ..tend to be short and routlna, We beve pleasure in ,enclosing our
Postal ,Order/Cheque/bank draft for t: .. in peyment of your etetemeot, Invoice No, . , . dated, , .
transfer £1.f3'1.00 to your account in ,payment of your 31 May steiemert:
J have instructed my bsnk; todey, to

Pr,oml,ssory notes A pro'mI1i'ss-orynote is not a method of pa ym ent but sim plY' a wlr:litten promise f,roml a d'ebtor to a cred iter that the fa rrner 'wlj'll pay the stl pul atsd amount ,ei~theron demand or after a. certaln date. lin effect a p roml aSH:) ry note ls an IOU (I O'Wf~'yo u) , B,III lof excha,nge The procedure is,1he same as for the horne trade, but shipping documents usually aocompany b:~llswhe,ril the bank acts as an lntermed iary in OVEH'se,a,5 tranaactlons. Documentary clredlt Th is te,rml is used to d iisti ngu ish, the normal le'tter of credit, used in business,

your

No. L2.'31 dated ,2 Augvst, This can be oeshed at any Post Oitice, or paid into

£26.00 in peyment oiyou: Invoice

L~ V'VIIS:·..

h',..~

.'~LjCJ, ~t.il

dtreW··:(}·' • a o:'0" telcbecue ,tv tor

'~"'. g

_:

",.'

·5····

: .. ~,

g._ .. ~

account,

letters conf riming payment in torsi gn trade transaenons may be more corn p Iiicated if you W3,n t to take' advantaos of the, letter to make ce rtaln points, ..but 1he-y ea n be, as strai ghtfo rwa rd as, th e horne trade letters,

6" Payment
~h8nk y~u for your prompt del/very, Please iind enclosed our draft for £2 341 drawn on Eastland City Bank,
1 . .. ',' <. :': '.

71
We received your Giro slip today !nf'orming' us that you nea paid £126,00

sommetvtue. Could you please acknowle,dg'/-eteceiot? ·.~f~!·

into our

We would Ilke to inform you that we ne ve art eraea for a credit fran ster thro.ugh our ben«, the Hamm',ergsbBnk~ Bergen" The transfer is- for £3,1 12,0 in payment of in voice No. Re164'1. Could you confirm the transfer has been
made as soon as the correspondent

No. L231. Thank you for letting us krow, we look torwera to h.earing from you In tne neer future .. Thank you for sending you: draft tor invoice No, 1181'1 so-prom'ptly, We' hope you like the consignment and look forward to your next order. We received an advice .from our bank this mornIn.g that your transfer for

account

in setitement of Invoice

bank advises you?

'We ~'ave pleasure in enclosing our bank draft for £5 1'41.53 ,8S payment on proforma. Invoice No. 5512, Ple.as€) eaviee us w_hen the goods will be shipps'd and
1

are lirtefy to reech

Sa rcetone.

'

invoice No. RE 1641 res been credited to our account, We would like to "thank you, and B_S.k you to contact us it you ,:eed anrthi.ng else in mensweer, or any intormeiion ebout fashions in this

You will be pieeset: to hear that we' have accepted your bill and now" have th'e documents. 'We shall couect the
Bonn and honour your drs ft at metunt». Our bank informs us that they now have the' shipping documents, and will be transferring the proceeds of our letter of credit to your eccoont.
consignment as soon as it

accepted our bill (No, BE 2255) and the

country. Ou r ben« inform,ed

US'

today thB t you

emves

in

have been nenaea to you. We' ere sure you will be pleased with the consignment.

documents

6.,2",4
A,ck,nowledgem'ent of 'p,B'ymen:1
Lette,rs acknowledging payment also

The Nippon Sank in Tokushim,a have told us that the proceeds of your letter of' credit have been credited our account, Thank you for your custom and we hope you will write to us ag.ain" We are enclosing our summer ..

to

cetetoaue which we are sure 'will interest your

'tend to be short" whether ln the home trade or in foreign trade.

Tbencyou for your Posta'! Order Cheque/draft/credit transfer/postal cheque for £, , , in payment' of our statement/Invoice No- - - a'a: ted.. v·
~ _ ••• .., I •• II

Our bank advised tiS today that your transfer of £76'1';.00 was credited to our eccount. Thank you for paying' so pror1}ptly! and we hope to neer from you a,g',Sln soon.

72

6~3 Specimen forms and letters

6 3' 1
,

o & R Flectncot
Tel: 05.312' 6401 B 1

IN'VOICE

Ltd,
Reg i sters d Londo n No. 115662 VAT Reg. No, 154662:7 19

35 Hill,Stre~t seac ron Leed s LS 14 1ND

I I

"

Invoice

This is a reia.t~velyslrnple lnvotce, Note the accitlon for Va~ue Added Tax (VAT) and postaqe and packing (p. & p.). The letters E & 0 E,at the bottom] mean Errons and Omtsslons are Ex,cap-ted: in other words, if theta is a rnlstaka on the lnvolce, the suopner has the right to co rrect ~t!by asking for more money or ,giiving a refund.

To:,P. Gwe~nt & Co. Ltd. 43 Ring Road Leeds L816 2BN

Date: '1 May 19-

Your order No" 16-7/5

Number

Description

40

RVA 260 volt plugs

@IS,an ...U~I
;2,Qt""!'h"

~CI.~"

Add V,AT 17Y2%

ii

£28.00
4.65 1.35
,

p&p

£31 90
..

"

_I!!._.:

c.

....

I,

'E-C:R'..

.;J{

0,

'.'

,',E':

73

po··.· -··E-·S······ "ITERI'

.

"'0 ·. GLA' ....: .. ····T···'<N···· •

- '-.

INVOIICE
.
'. -

6 3·;2
~ '. : ..i -,

Inv'oiee

S:···
"

'_

....

..

..

~
.

....-

','.

".

Clay-field, 8'!.Jrnley I3H 10 1RQ 1 elex: 8BO 1773

Tel: 0315 ~o·125

Fo=<; 31563182 0

MacK'enzie Bros, Ltd;

11July 19-

1~5Whale Drive Dawson Ontario

CANAD,A
YOUIorde: No, DR1432

Quantity
35 10

D'9scri [pti 0 n
Earthenware
g ..

Cat" No.
R 1'94
T'21

.£ each
@ as.co @ 3160 @ 12;00 '@ 22.6,0

£
set 876,00
11

This invoice is ramer more compllcated, It is from Glaston Potteries to, their Canadia n customers M ac'Kenzi e" Bros, 11 would be sent with copies and shippijlng documents to The Canadian U1nion Trust Bank via 'the Burnley Bank who are 'thai r ag'ents in England. These documents prove' that a shipment has been made from Glaston 10 MacKsnLile so that the Canadian bank can now release the, money that MacKenzie Bros, committed to pay in their Lstterot
charqes that MacKenzie Bros, pay their bank for Ihandlh,g the transactlon.

Credlt, There w~111also be add~t~'Qna~

18
10

m~;r;o··-·:·o·-.. W.Qd· ._.-=, .' .. ' - ' d : Bone/Tea

W 161
S 73
c. i.f.

3'~ ~ -7" ·:·0,'·

~~:

il II

00.. 180,00
1',':",

Staffordshire Red
Less Cost & Freight

~"6.· 0'0·• 1656,00

1666,00 147.00
92;00 1417,.00 Less Disc, Total

Liverpool! Dawson
Less Insurance

It m ilgh1 be he Ipfu I to refer bac k to Ietters 3.3,.3,4.,3.3,5,4.5" and 5.4,6 to remind Y'ourself 01 the enquiry repl.y, order, and . advice that have been sent during the correspondence between MaeK.BnzieFs
agents· and GI aston Potteries.

10% discount off net price

141.7'0
1614,,30

E&Q,E,

Regi st€lr.ed No, 71 ~48 1

VAT Reg No, 1335341 08

You. will see from the invoice fhat Clost, lnsuran ce, and freight charqes have been dsdueted from the ,gras,s prtce. This. ls because under U'K law the customer must be told eKsic1!y what he is payiing for. And 'in this cese c,i,f. has also been ded ucted ~,O,that the 10°/0. spsol a i d iseou nt can be ta.ken oft the' net price,
Questions·

:2 How have Giaston explained they have the ri,ght to correct the tnvolcs jf there is a mistake? ,3, What sort of transaction is this?
4 Which reference would MacKenzie

1 What ls the net total of the mvolcs?

use when referr~ng to this invoice? 5 How are the Items identified? 6 What does the slqn @ mean?

74
6- 3····3·'~·
'! ... ", I
~ ..... ~ .. ',

6. Payment

S'tate,men1 of aeeou nt This staternen t is an accou nt of 'the, 1ransacnons 'that took place over th e month of May between S'eymore Furnlturs L1d. and their customer, C. R,. Mendez. You willi see that a, debit note corrected Th are are atso two payments which are li,s,tedhere es cash, although the wo rd cbeaue te also ussd in thls
i

I'

iib Str6~t, M~i den head, S6rk~, Sl6 ,5,1).2 Telephone 0628 ?~755 .__
Reg_I$ter~d No, 18514391

SEY,lo/IORE FURNTI,TURE LtJa,

l,ondon

STATEMEN'T

VAT No, 231 61883'

(DIN 311) and at crsdlt note (C/N C51 '7) are listed as 'well as the invoices they

C,:R"Mendez SA

31 May 19-

Avda del Eiercito 83

&-=4801 B Bilbao

context

Date

ltem
£

Credit
£

Balan·ce
£

Que'st ions 11 listhere, an allowance for payment: within a certain time? 2: How' much did C. R., Mendez owe at the begiinning O'f this month? 3 How much 'was the error in Mends'z'
'favour? 4, Wha1 did Mende,z pall du r'~ngthe

6 What was the total amount of Mendezr purchases during May?'

0, How will his 1 June statement open?

mornh?

8 12

.a

1 May
n
Ir
I,~

DiN 311

Account Rendered Inv L 8992

270.00
60,00

Ig,OO
100,,00 720,,00

330,00 34.2,00

14

It 11

20
25

~~

Cash Jnv L 8996 --!NC517_ C Cash

242.00
rH::!'1 0~U~Il'_""_
·0··· ....

600,,00

40.00

92~tOO
322·:',0:0 c
- -! ...

% id . hi C as', D' h -./lSC,'-3· if' paic WIt-In '1 d ays

6" Payment

75

4 6 3,',
_ I .~:-. Ii . ._.

F. Lynch & Co. Ltd.

(Head Office) ~N essen House , Newell Street ~Birmingham B3 .3 EL.

Advice of payment
correspondence at 3~3.4 (enqulrv), 4.3 ..5 (rep!y and quotation), 5. ,4~1 (order) and 5.4.3 (acknowledgement of order).

This letter connnues the

Telephone No; 0212366371

Fax: 0212368592

Telex,; 341641

Satex Sp.A via '.'.1 P' pdi •H3tIS i-apa

GO146 Rorna ITALY

Your Ref: ~ Out Ref:

Order 14463

16 [une 19~

The customer, Mr Crane o'f F'. Lynch &, Oo., uses this connrmatlon of payment to' ask to r th e terms, of paym ant to be reviised (see als Q 8.3): i'f you look back to 4.,3.5, you w:ill g,ee that Satex S,.p.A. di din tact say that: they wall ld reviiew the
terms, after a whi lie. Notice how the letter th e ri sta t:es th e p resen t arra ng erne nt,

Attn, Mr 'D" ,era usio Dear Mr Causio,

Thank you fOT bainq so prompt in sendinq the documents for our last

begins wltn confirmation of payment,

order, No, 14463, We have accepted the sight draft, and the, bank
should be sending' you an advice shortly;
We have been dealing with. you on a cash aga.inst documents. basis for

and iinally makes the next ord er subj eat to Mr ceusio accepting the new terms. The letter is 'firm, but still~pollte,

and would like to chance to 'payment by 40-day bill.of exchance, documents against acceptance;
When we first contacted you last February you told us that you would ., P":.," u ~'.:_.l. . - _~[....... ~ ~. .. '.:_.:.~.' _~;.' .:.,. ,,~'C;: U·_~t. '~.. sta blished :._. _. ... ...:. be. .:repared to re 1""10 n~sid er terms 'f paym e" t one' -e vee ,"had e" u... .' .. n
I

over

,8. year

Q 0'._.,. :~.'" '.': ~,: _. .. ....'....'.,., .. ' _.:.[L ..:.

,1 ...•.

_ ..

a. trading assoo iation. We think

that sufficient time has

elapsed

for us to

be allowed the, terms we have asked for, If you need references, w'e win be glad to supply them, .AB we win be sending another order within the month! could you please confirm that you.aoree to these new terms of paymen t?

Yours sincerely,

L; Crane

Chief Buyer

76

6, Payment
..
"

6 3' 8
.I ' ',; ,:

Advice of payment This letter continues the correspondence at 3.,3.3 (enquiry), 4.3,3 (reply), 5-,,4.5 (order), 5.4,6 (advice of despatch) and 6.,3.2 (lnvolce), MacK,enzha Bros, use the letter both to 00 nfi rm payment and to make a. complalnt about the packing (S'9'8 also U nlt 7 'Cr)mp/aJhts and lJ'djustments'). Note that MacKenzie Bros. will acceot eit her replacem ents 'far the broken crockery or a credit note. Glaston Potteries willi claim on their insurance company for the breakaqes, althouqh they might not g9'1 compensation as 'they ha ve be'en ne 9 I!~g nt in thei r packilng. a

~IACKENZIE BROS" LTD.,

1- S: Whale Drive, D a WSOtl ant ario, Canada Branches: Ottawa" Vaneotrve r ~N!lW Y ork, Chicago. T8J~ (613) 238 1.492 Cable: MAKIE Telex: 315.515
t

Mr ] Merton

i6 Dec-ember 19~

Sales Mana'ger Glaston Potteries Ltd

Cla,yftleld

Burnley BBIO lR'Q

UNITED KIN'GDOM
Dear Mr Merton

"
j

We have instructed our bank to arranoe for a letter of credit for fB IS8,92 to be, paid against your pro-forma invoice No, G 1I521S and
j

the prooeeds will be credited to you as soon as Canadian Trust receive the documents,
Wra usually ask you to wrap 8'8Ch piece of crockery individually and

pack no more than ten sets into a crate to allow' fo:r easy and safe handling; This was not done with 'Our last consicnment and as a consequence theI'€)were breakaces Attached you will find a list and W'8' would, like either replacements to be included in our next
shipment, or your credit note, Yours sincerely,

R. MacK8TIzie

16. Payment

'6.14,
641
[",

Delayed payment
' •.. I ,

claim so that we can renew our stock and pa.y our suppliers. because of the b,ankruptcy of one' of our main customete, who we booed w(Julej'
with us. The

We were not able to settte the account

ASiking tor more time 1:0 pay I:fYOLI ate writing to a supplier to teil him why you have' not cleared an account, remember that he is mainly interested inl when the account wililbe paid, S.Q~while you rnu st expl sin why y'olJ have not paid, you must aliso tell hi m when ano how you intend to pay.
Remelmber to begin the, letter with your creditor's name (thls should always be

neve c lea red his belsnce

suppliers.

debt was considersb te and its loss has mede it ,difficult for us to pay our

Nlo~iicein the last example above that 1he're ls no reference 'to the bankru pt

done once correspondence has been establ'~8hed~ it is essential in this but cas e: ilf yo u owe someone mon fJY'l you should know their name). R,sfs,r 'to the account and apologize in clear, objective lianguage (l.e, do not use Ilangu.age like 'Please forgive me for not setti ing Imy indebtedness to, YOUI ') . Notlce the VB rbs olea rand S',ettle the sccoum are used rather than pay.
I am' so rry that I Julyaccoun!..

customer's name, nor how much he, owed. It 'would be unethtcal to giiv,e this, sort of lntormanon Also nones how 'the debtor 9 e ne ral ~ the 51't uaf on zes exp Ilain~ng th at no ne of hills SU IPpll ers have been pa,jd yet.
j

Tell your supplier when you will pay' him; as far as he is concerned" th~s the is most irnportant piece' of inform atl 0 n in you r II tter. You may' be abl e to pay' e S,O!m'6 money on eccoum. l.e, ,to offer some money towards sstflernent; this
€<h- ""W-va
..-:;;!I

aw~-~II'lt9Ig- ness '*~...· elear. the oe bOt a ~ 1111:. I'~"'Q~ 0-' ~,~,. -_~~ and wi II g,ai In your creditor's contidence.
e

was not ebie

to cteer
B

my

We wlll try to cieer your Invoice within the next few weeks. Meanwhile the
enclosed

cheque to sente our quarter.

We regret we' were unsbie to send

account for th8' last

paym'Bnt

on account

cheque for £200,00 is pat!

Explaln why you can not: clear th e

~fyo u can not aHe r a. pa rt pay ment ~give as p reclse a data of paym ent as "1,0 U

account, But do not be d ramatlc.

can"
Once
has been setued, which should be within th€J next faw daysr we

The dock strike w.hich ties been in opetetion for the past six weeks has

tne strike

made it imposslbte to ship' our p toauc te,

wit, be able to cteer the balance"

and as our customers have not been ebte to pay USr we have not been able to clear our own sup,pliers) accounts yet"

As scon as the insurance co.mpany sends us componeauoo we' 'will settle the account. We expect this to be

A warehouse flood

majority .of the componente that were to be fitted f n to Zenith ,90.0. 'We ,a re waltl ng for our insurance' company to setue our

deetrovea the'

within the' next two wBeks,

78

6, Payment.

Rep~ylngto requests f,or mere tlme There are three possible wa.ys tn which you m igh t reply to a requ est from a customer for more tlms 10 settle his account; you may a'gree to his request, or refuse it, or suggest: a compromise"
is alii that ls needed.

642
!I"
'I .;,,:

would' Ilke to otter you mere time to clear the beience, our own financial position mekee [t··h~';s··-' lm'·,'·.p,o·,s··'slb··1e·· T~-h- ere..tore w·e··· ~;f\ ... .r-. r _'. _. ," _ .. _. must' ss« y;ou to settle the account witi?in
r_ '__ .: ..... ~ _.
I ,_ .•

the next lortnight.

An offer of a compromise, (e,g~ part payrnem) w i!111 need an expl anet ion . also Then« you for writing' an.d letting us .know why the' May account is stilt outstanding. Un forlunat:elYI we eel nno: extend the credit any longer as Wt5~ euowet: consiaeretse discounts in lieu of a prompt oeyment. Nevertheless! in view of the difficulties you have been having with your rwo major customers in c fearing their eccoume, we are prepared to compromise and Bugge'st creaue for £4~ 871,71 and clear the remainder by the end of next month. 'We tooi: forward to your remittance and confirmation that me balance of the account will be cleared in July, I regret to hear about the strIke which has held up production in your plant tot the pest few weeks and' can understand why you need more time to cteer your account 'with us, Ne vennetess, when we allowed open account terms, we emphasized this was only on the conott to. t· h- b:···.:~t[a> . i Ci'('j '£:I;r:-.o 'eered . promptly on due dates as credit teoitities put a streio on our own cash flow situation, Because of this we . cerrot extend the credit by another two months" However, beceuse otyoor previous custom with us 'we are quite willing to a Ilow you to c tee r ne If the beience, viz. £5 1'89 by'sending us a sight draft, see enclosed B/E No. 898101~ and a/ear the outstanding amount by accepting the encloeed draft B;j~No. 898108~ drB'wn at 30' days, We look totwerd to' reoelving your
'W-'v_' _".. ~.~. _.'
a ,__ .

~Tyo u 8,g re e to ,t h e req u est, a sho rt il eUe r'

Thank you for your tetter concernlng the

outstanding belence on your eccount. I sympathize with tne problem you neve had in clearing the balance end sm six we,eks; 'Would you please' confirm that the credit witl be settled then?
wi IIIng' to extend the credit for enothe r

beve to insist on paym.ent by the end ot July'.

accounts. Tbereiore your account has been extended enotner month! btl! I will

other ,suppliers) and reenze that without sales it Is difficult to settle outstanding

you have been experiencing in getting components to complete otders from'

I was sorry to nee r a bou t the' d i.fficu Itie s

the t you ctee r hB'1f tne au tst an din g belence immediately by sending a

I'f you 'refuse the req uest, you w ill nee d ,toexp Ial n ~ pol i;te Ily, why you a r'e rsfus in g., Thank you for your letter explainln.g why
you

stetement for £2, 167.54; I certainly apprecJa'te your difficulty but we ourselves h8.'VB to pay our own supp tiet»
and therefore must

cannot

0/8'.81(

yo ur Jenu aty

n: ,

':

!!) _I~I t,-

ei

~,a ,·~O:-O If'! W·",:0 .

F'" 0 ILJto.~I'IU._··

totwera to rece1ving

insist on payment within the next ten days" We look

your remittance,

in which you explelned why the

With reference to your letter 0 f BAugus t

the current reces-sion. However,

the problems JlOU have been .fac;n,g in

(Jutstanding invoice, No, YR'8'81.90 C, has not been cteereo, we understand

in consideration of the present economic cumete that we allow'ed,You~' two~month cenod to settle, and while we

it was

ecceptence and contirtnstior:

79

6,.5
Re"q:uests 11 p avment ,> for =--:-.1:<
c,', ~_"
",'.c i' ,',-, .",.'

'e B" 'm-o' r In-t? If- ,1/ ,:~"w· e r 0 u ne ve h'Q, 'a'lready sent a remitt« nee, then pI esse
~ C- {,iDB',

r
,

t'· h'.',::

"

""

bI'

,'I

~jl:l If V'

t- y. :'

,','

..'

disregard'this fetter.

6 6' 1
, ,: 'j

. 6. 2'-~ 6:
.
..
,._.'
,"

First r,equest

Second requests

assume your customer has no h,te'ntion of paying hils account if the balance is overdue, There may be a number of reasons for this. He Im,ay not have received your statement. He may have sent a cheque Whiich has been lost. He mi'Q ht have jlust overlooked the account. Therefore a 11 request is in the form of a porte, rst enqulry. One ot 'the ways of doing this, is to make the letter as irnperson a I as possible. Thts can be' done by using the def~nite article, s.,g. this outstandlne balance, instead of your a utstandlnq
ba '[Ia: no '-e'", U·,,'..:,'_' the:_:. pas = s'e" :--,'
, _I _. ,'.

YOLI should never lm1mediateliy

answers a first request immediately, off'errnng ani ape,logy for having overlooked th e acco unt, or an explanatlon. Bu1 if he acknowle,dges yo ur re Q U es.,1 b ut ,stll II does not: pay lor do as not ,8 n swe r yo u r lette r at all, t h enl you can make a second request. As, with first requests, you should include COpi9'S, ot th e relevant invo lees and statements, and mention your previous, letter. This wlll save time. You snoutd 81so refer to p revi 0 us co rrespordence ~ We wrote' to you on 3 M'a'fch concerning our January statement 'which is still outstanding; Enc/os8'd you 'will find a copy of the statement and our teuer. This is the second letter I neve sent you with reaera to your Marc.h account which has not been cleared. My tlrst tetter aetea 21 Aprit., esked why the eccoun: had not been peic; and you will se',e from th e enclosed tne: "", State the t yo u have not received payment if this was promised in the, reply'~,.orthat no repiy has bsen received.

If a customs r lnte nds to pay, he usually

<, S", "I"V--': . --

e' vo -.-ice....J, -,v' -

Q ~. ".

g~:'1o.t L"

be' cleared, instead of' which you must cteer; and m10diifying lmperanvss, e.q, snou Id ~,Instead of rna s.t. Th e fi rst exampie willi give you ,an idea of' this

-t lis' Y,€.

ou.tstan.ding Octooet sccount for £3) 171,,63 B copy of whic.h' is enctoseo and which should have been cleared last month Please tet us know' why' the
1

We ere writing concerning

the

balance' has not been paid.

1

No. 8145316~ fo(£1 710 (see eueoned

copy) which we expected to be clesred three weeks ago, we' still have not yet received your remittance, Wbuld you please either let us ha.ve yo.ur cheque, or an explanation of' why thei mvotce ;s SJ~ au.tstet»: Ing'.? · , tOil t d" . ~,(3 We think ,you ,may have overlooked invoice No. 5A 1,910 for £351,.95 (see

With reference to your InVOIce,

S{nee I wrote' I have not received either

a reply

or remittance from ,you.

neitber replied nor sent Sf cheque' to

I would like to know why you have'

balance.

clear the outstanding

copy) which was due tes: month. Please could you let us have your cheque to

promised the: the account would be cleered by the end of May) yet I have not received your remittance or an explanation,

In your reply to my letter of 21 A,p.,n you

80
tnsist that you recelve payment oran answer within a certain time"
eccount within the next seven days) or at least offer en explanation for not .o::Jy~'- .. P-alng - it

6 Paym en t
i ~.: ... !" "'." ..

We must now insist that you clear this

months since you wrote promiSing the' account would be cleared. We now essume that you have no intention of cle'ar.tn.g the balance. been settled at least two monthS' ago) but you have shown no indication of co=
operating with

We bed expected this matter to have

As we have traded for some time, we neve not pressed for peyment. Howe vet, w.e must now insist that enner

us.

you settle the account or offer 8 reasonable explanation tor not doing so,

I would like your remittence by return of pest, or failing the; your reasons for not

clearlng this

account.

Let the customer know' what you intend to do, but do not threaten ~egal action unless you intend to take it, as it wUl make you look weak and lndeclslve. In the two examples below lega'i acnon is not threatened.
We teet t.hat you have been given sufficient time to clear this balance and now insist on ceymen: within the' next ten days.

6.5!,3
T'hir'd requests (Fi'nal Demands)

Review the sltuanon from the time the account should have, been paid. We have written you two letters on 22 September end 19 October, end neve sent cooies of the outstanding invoices with them, but have not received either
.B' reply or remittence.

We mus: now press you to clear this outstanding sccoun; Please ,s'end your
remittance immediately,

I have written to you twice, on 8 May and 4 June'. concemino your be Ian ce ot £934,8·5 whict: has· been outstanding since April, but as yeti he.ve not

received a reply.

tn 'the' next two exarnpl es I,egal action is' threatened" Notice the lanlguag 8 used to. do this. Do not use obscure ~angua.ge (e.g. "We wijl~take other steps' or IWe 'wij~1s-e, other methods to enforce u payment'), and do not try' to sound :Iike a ~awyer (e.gl. 'Unless payment is forthcoming, we w'iU have to take steps to enforce our claims'). A direct statement wW produce better results.
i

1em writin.g to you about your ,June eccount which l bed hoped you would

Augus( I sent tetters with copies of invoices and stetements, asking you to cleer the balance or at least offer an explana'lion of why you have not sent a rem Uta nc e. Explain that you have been patient,
Wh,en w,e arrang,ed terms, we oitetea you payment ti1'gainst monthly statements] yet it has been three

have' cleereo bv now,. On 5 July end '12

you he VB feft us ro ene m etive but to take legBI action,

bother to reply to either of our tenets asking you to clear your eccoum ..and'

'We 'were ,disa.ppointed

that you did not

We 8re r;;i ving you a further seven de ys to send your remtttence after which the matter will be deel; with by our
solicitors.

i6, Payment

6.6

D. van Basten SA
Heidelberglaan 2., Posrbus 80.1157 NL-3508 TC, Utrecht Telephone: (31) 3a-~32 044 'T'defax. (31) 30-581 6[ 7'

Specimen letters
6; 6,,1
A,equest 'for mere time
DOl van Basten S.A. write to their suppliers to warn them that payment wi III be delayed"

The Director

IS January

]9~

DVB Industries G:mbI, Correnstr 8JSSe 2,60

0-4000 Munster Dear Mr Schubert; I am sorry that we were not able to clear yow: November statement for $318.0.0 and December invoice I No, 771.3for $289..We had intended to pay the statement as usual but a large cash shipment to one of our customers in Australia was part ofthe cargo destroyed in the fire on the SSTiQPa when she docked in Bombay in late November,

Questi,ons balance? 2, W'hat explanatlon is given for nonpayment? 3 When does Ms van 'Basten intend to clear the account? ,5 What does the expression hope y'ou can bear with· us mean? 6 Which words ln the letter correspond to the foUow'ing: pay; meant; goods; rneke up for foss; understand'?
,4 Why is she confident that she can 1 What is the total outstandinq

P~a-y-_.?
• I ,.

insurance company have promised us compensation within the next few weeks, and once we have received this the account will be paid in full
'OUI

We know you win appreciate the situation and 'hope you can bear with us until the matter is settled,
, . '-',-= , -.- . .." Y .'ours .'sincere 1Y
I '. .,.

,-0.0 _.D van B!'2. ste'n Director

i

'l

__

I,

82

B, Payment

6~6i2

A,glreeing to mora I:ime

6.6, l' , Mr' sctiubert accepts the request
possible.

This is a. reply to the previous letter at

DVB, Industries GlllhH

C orrens tea sse 25,0 D~4o.00
n~]~ (4.9) 25,1-86613-

and asks for payment as soon as

Fax: (49)25]-~O271
Tel ex ~ 612593.0

The 0 irector D" van. Basten SIA.

Heidelber g']aan. 2 Postbus 8"'0' 1.0 r-i: r
;.:;.1/.,'"" ",

20 January 19~

NL-3503 TC
Utrecht Dear Ms van Basten. Thank you for your letter of the l5 January regarding statement and December invoice No, 77'13,
OUI

Nov,ember

the situation, but would appreciate it tfyou could. clear the account as soon as,possible, as we ourselves have suppliers to pay,

We were sorry to hear about the difficulties you have had, and understand

W.f!;look forward 'to hearing from you soon.

,.

y~Jfl·
'-':
,

Yours sincerely,
'_
... ".~:;~~~

D, Schubert

Director

6, Payment

83

L. Franksen PLC
Prince of Wales RQad Sheffie Id 89 4EX
I

6.61.3
Request for an ex1enslonl bi II of exchan'ge to be extended for another 60 days.
[Questions In thh;;.Iette r the custo mer asks for his

Telephone: (0742) 24789

fox::'D74225193

[.

M:r D" Bishkin Zenith S,A,

Haldenstrasse 118

19 May 19-

1 Wha.t expression does Mir Franksen -use- .InS:~8a.'O_'~.·; s' y? -- - - * d f P

2 Wha1 is an embargo?

3000 Bern 22 SWITZERLAND

Dear Mr Bishkin

I am sorry' to tell you that I will not be able to meet mY' bil], No; BE7714! due on 6 June, My gov',ernm,ent has put an embargo on all machine exports to Zurimbe, and consequently we have found ourselves in temporary difficulties as we had three major cash consienments for that country. However I am at present discussinc sales of these consiqnrnents with two large Brazilian impo rters, and am certa in that they 'will take the goods.
I

for' the, cargo h,ecannot ,sell? 4 W:ha.tsolution does he sugqest to the probltem? 5 How does he propose to compensate Mr Bishkin? 6, Whi ch words in tne letts r 00 r.res pond to the fol'lowing: paid for good's;

3 How does he intend to get the money

mes» out a draft?

Could you allow me a. Jurther 60 days to clear my account and draw a new bin on mel with interest ofl say 6% added for the extension. of time? I would be most grateful if you could help me in. this matter;

' .._- : . t:~ k~

.anksen L ..Frankser

Yours sincerely

84

6, Payment

6,6~4
Offer af a comprcmlse
In tihis case Mr Bishkin, the suppter, has the le'gal! rig hit to present the bill to his bank for payment, then if the bill is

Zenith S.A.
Hcldenstrosse 1] 8.1 3000 Bern 22i Switze·rland
Tel: Bern a0172

paid 'by the customer. However, the customer ~nthis ease has not said he will not pay~ but cannot pay at present Iiithe supplier forced his. customer 10 pay, th e resu It ml ght be ban kruptoy an d. al il
i

not met, call a naraIY public (a Iawye r) to protest t he bi ll, i.e. prsvs nt th e· d fa W6'e (the person who would pay) f.rom denying the biH was presented for payment, or disho.nourlng (not paying) the draft. The costs of th·ils procedure are

Fax ~Bern 82357 Mr L. Franksen L. Franksen FLC

23May 19-

Prince of Wales Road Sheffield 89 4EX

UNITED KIN'GDOM
Dear M:·j"1"·a'n csen Fr
0··· .. ,.1... .~~
j

Mr Blshkin w~11et is a percentaqe of his g eustornsr's debts like, other creditors.

Bill No" :BE 7714

I was sorry to learn about the embargo your country has placed on exports
to Zutirnba and of the problems this has created, However, the above bill has already allowed credit for 40 days and although 1appreciate your offer for an additional 6% intere-st on the £4 3.60 outstanding, it is financially impossible to allow a further .so days credit as I myself have commitments.
1 1

Th is cou Id be as srnal I as 50/0.of the total debt, So Mr Blshkln would be reluctant to force the bill on Mr Pranksen. On the other henc, he has waited long enough for his m oney ~and cann ot bs expected to walt another i60 days, even wilth the interest otte red. So in his rep Iy to Mr Franksen he offers a compromise. Qu,estlons '1 Is Mr Blshkiin sympathetic to

I think the following solution might help us both,

You need not add interest on the present amoun tl but I haViS enclosed a. new' draft (BE 7731) for £2, 180 which is half the outstanding' balance; and will allow you 40 days to pay it. But I expect you to pay the remainder viz. £2, 180 by beaker's draft!
Pleass confirm, your acceptanc e by signing the enclosed bill and returning it to me 'with your draft by return of post.

M r Frarnk·s,en~s problem? :2 'What compromise does hiesuggest? 3 W'hy dloes he s,ay he cannot 'wait a
fu rthe r' 6[0 days for payment?

4 Does he 'want the 6°~ interest added

5 How will he know that Mr Franksen has accepted his off,e'ir?

I wish you luck with your neqotiations wi.th the Brazilian importers and hope that this setback win soon be resolved, . Y ours SIncere)1
._ . ,'. _. .. '.. T i

on?

""AAlb- .~ .',

~..:

..

;'J1
1'._

'_' N, Bishkin

EncL Bill BE 1731

6" Payment

°6

0····

6 6·5
!Ii : ,", i .:

HOMEMAKERS Ltd.
54-,59 Rivers ide; Co rd i Her 1 1jW
Talephone: ~(Jt222) 9721 4 Te,lex: 38217 Registered No, C13S162

First request See 3,.3.5 and 4.3.,6 tor ether examples ot co rresponds nee between these two firms,
Below is an exempts of
,9. first: req uest,

R;,H:ughes &, Son

21 Mead Road
Swansea

Ltd"

20 November 19=

Glamorgan SST I D,R

Dear Mr Hughes
j

I am wri tine to ask why you have not

'£5·19,63'11 a oopy otwhich is enclosed.

settled

our in voice' No. H931 for

I know' that since we began trading you have cleared your accounts regularly on the due dates, That is why I wondered if any problems have arisen which I rniqht be able to help you with, Please let 'me know if Ican be of assistance.
'y.. , ~a . ,our
a~-n- '-c-' i;;;IOL .----'

'8' relv . j!

-R C'liff'.T :. --• ~ •"'[1 ,':. .. •••• ~

86

.."_ 6 ru' -_ Payment

i

616~6

,Re·plly to fi rat requa,st

CI'iff's letter (6.6.5) that the invoice had been paid, ['l,01 by cheque, which was Mr Hughes' usual metho,d of payment but by credit transfer. llf Mr C:~iffhad lcoksd .al his bank statement, he would have seen that the money had been credited, On the other hand! if Mr Hughes wanted to change his method of payment, he should have informed his s.upp' ler, as banks may not always advise credit transfers. This is a. good example of why y'OU should not BSSUlme a. reason for your customer not payi:ng an account There is a runner example on 6·~6.7and r6..6.8.

Yo u wll 'I sere' from iMr iH ug has' rep ~y10 Mr

R. Hughes & Son Ltd.

21 Mead Road, Swansea, Glamorgan 3ST '1 D R
Telephone: Swansea 58441 VAT No. 215 2261)0

Telex: B81821

Mr R, 'Cliff,
Homemakers Ltd, i:I.tI_t.9.Riversid_. ~ U'1: i;J _. y~
I

24th November 19~

CardiffCFllJW

Dear :Mr' Cliff, I was surprised to receive your Letter of the 20th November in. which said you had no-treceived payment for invoice No, H931!
I

yOU!

I instructed. my bank, The W'elsh Co-operative Bank Swansea~to credit your account in. Bamley's Bank" Cardiff; with the £6.19,63some time ago. As my bank statement showed the money had been debited to my account I assumed the tit had been credi ted to your sccoun t as wen. It is possible that your bank has not advised you yet, Could you pl,.ease check this. with

Barnlev's, and if there are any problems let me know! so that I can make
enquiries here? Yams sincerely,

R., Hughes

61, Payment

87

· · Ingenleros Id ustrte e's S· tn· :. A

Barrio de. lbceto sin

Sec;ond request
T'ijl; 1341 943 212BDO Fax: ~34' 943 618590
Tetex. 302196 rec~a:

6.6.7

E-20009 Sa n Seb r)S' in n

Suref:~

Ns, re : 613102

30 August 19,-

This is an example of a second request for payment, but you wm see that, eve n t h oUigh this is a second ~etter, Sn riO Costello stlll uses a careful and f'rirendly tone.

The Accountant Omega S,p,A,

Via Angelilo 2153,

20121 Milan.o
Italy
Dear Mr Giard ianino,

We wrote to you on 10 August and, enclosed copy invoices which made up your June statement. the balance of which still remains outstanding
Having dealt with you for some time, we were disappointed in neither receiving' your remittance nor any explanation as to why the balance has not been. cleared, Please would you either send us a. reply or cheque to. clear the account within the next seven days? Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

R, Costello Credit Controller

88

6. Payment

6·.6,8
R:epty to second request

Here is Mr Gior[dianino's r,ep~yto the previous ietter, Questions

1 Why didn~t IMr Giiordianino receive the statement and tette r? 2 What has he done about the outstandlnq account, and 'what will he
'" .i", ,~ ;;J

omlega
• ......, •

5A :".p.",~, •.
.
,

'.'

[...

r.

Vlole MorHdio 61269 [1=10125Torino

T131 ~f::on 139)~ 1 1-598.146 1 Te lefcx: [39)~ 11 =628351 T~I ~X; 77931 05 Q;

r"t .~.. If

6·131,' O;fj ,.' 'c.

Ns. riC

Doto:

1 September 19~

do in future? 3 Wh,at has he asked Mr [Costello to do to ensure that le1tetrs [g6ft to him? 4 Why do you think Mr Cos1e~llod~d not receive Mr G:iordliianinois letter? 5 Thera ls no reterenosto it in either letter. but 'what could have happeneo
for the letter to have been rnislald?

The Credit Con troller lngenieros, Ind ustriales SA

Barrio de Ibaeta sin

:&-20009 San Sebastian.
Dear Mr [Castello
i

First let me apolooize for not having cleared your June statement or
replying to your letter of 10 August However, I am surprised that you did not re ce ive out circular letter informinc ell our suppliers that 'V'Jf= were moving from Milano to Torino. Ihave checked 'Ourpes book, and find that a letter was sent to' you on June 30. As you will see from the copy enclosed, we warned suppliers that during the move there mi.ght be some delay in cleerino accounts and replying to correspondence as the move would invo lve replacinq more than half our staff with new people who needed time to get used to OUI accounts and
fihng systems.

You will be pleased to hear that w'e have now settled into our new offices and 'will have' a fully trained staff by the end of next month Meanwhile, lam

enclosing ,a cheque for Lit. 300! 000 on accoun t and will send a full settlement of your June statement within the next fev1f days.
1

Could you please note our new address, which. is on he heading of this
letter; for future reference?

Yours sincerely,

D"Ciordienino
AC.COW1 tant

Bnc. Bank Draft No ..421322 for 'Lit! 300'1000

6, Payment

Delta Computers Ltd.

Bradfield Estate ~Bradfield Road! Wellingborough,
Telephone: 09':3~1643·11213/4 Tele1(: 48:5881

Third request (Final Demand)

N orthamptonshi re NN8 4HB

Que&tlions

R~g, England 1831.713· VA T' 2A·19 62114

Your Ref:
Our Re·f;

1 How many time·s has Delta written 10

2 How long has the balance, remained
"d? unpaid?

Mlr Theopolls?

Fax: 0933 200 16

TYG Ale

P. Theopolis SA 661 8rd September Street

9 December 19-

G·R-10432
Athens

3 Do Delta 'want 10 take any actriion? 4 What exoresslon is. WIsed whilch means the same as il eg,91 action"?
1

5 What was included with the letter?

Dear MI Theopolis,

A.ocount 'No, ITO 9'9'014

I wrote to you on Me occasions, 21 October and 14 November,

concerning the
I have

which now has an outstanding of£1,541i.46 and is made up of the copy invoices enclosed.
above account

balance

months for either a reply to explain why the balance has not been cleared, or a remi ttance, but have received

waited three

neither.

Although I am reluctant to take legal action to recover the amount you leave me no alternative. Therefore; unless. I receive your remittance within the next ten days, my solicitors 'will be instructed to start
I

procsedinqs to recover the debt

~I

......-r-IA JtV'lI\III'trW ;/
~

Yours sincerely

if'""

J, Minar

(MILS)

Accountant

Encl. invoice copies

I

II

9"'0"
...

6, Payment

6-17' Poims to remember

!II -;
-I

'1 lnvotces record goods, that have been sold, The, cornmerctal invoice is. one of th,e m aln documents used in

2 3

t red ing. It may be aecornp antec by .a short covert n9 Ilette r. P re-form a invoices are' se nt in the c-ase of IP re -o ay m e nt i or to Info rm tlhe customer of the price, Statements or account are sent monthly or somstlmes quarterly, and inel ude dele ii is. of al I tra ns act lo ns wlthi n the period, 'There are varlous methods of: payment available through the Post j'"i;e· nk ,"s.. ~H~ rs Off''I" '1.#.-. .' ~and' ba Ji I. .... ~~,,~v_". _ accompanying payments are usua~~ly' short, giving information about the pa ym e m arid wh at tt raters to, but th sy can aliso be used to make tu rther comments if necessary, Letters advising and acknowledqlnq payment 'tend t.o be. short and routlne, but they may be used to, say, propose new terms of payment or to make complalnts, Ilf you ate asking 'for more t~me, o pay, t you should! apolog:ize for not having cleared the account on the due, date, explaln why you have not paid and " when and how you intend to clear the balance, ,Remember, your creditor is m 0 re interesteo in wbe n he gets his money, than good excuses. As ,a,suppller, tihr,es steps are usually take n ,to riacove r' a debt. Th a f irst is to write a polite lette r which anows tor th e fact t hat there may be a good reason why 'the account has not yet been cleared. The second is 'to send a more lnslstent request whic.h reters to the ,I tter you have already sent with e enol osu res of eccles of invo lees and staternen ts, Yo u can, in the secon d rsqu est, state that you expect
e- .. ~., ..
!

pay-men t :r or a rep, IY"i W.I, In a lthl reasonable time, A final demand must be handled with restraint. Revlew what has happeneo, explain me balance has been outstanding for a long perlcd, and i'f necessarv threaten I,ega,1acn 0 n I'fth e accou nt is not paid "t' " ;f'" 'd wr hlIn a. specme d pence
i

a, ban k d'raft

a s,i9 ht d ratt a biB of exchanqe a letter of credlt a money order a promissory note
documentary

credit

Value Added Tax (VA.T) postage and packi ng (p&p) errors and omissions are excepted
(E&.OE)

6.,8

Words to remember
an invoice

The Society f,or Worldw~de Interbank F,inanclal Telecommunications

(S,W~FT)

L'

a remittance a pro-forma , .'. ,. , . .' . '.' .. ." - .. - -'.' ~ I ~. a Staternent 0f' account ~
-

a credit/debit ~ b,~1 nee .~-. a II~.

Q
~I

no-te

a refund
'i"'" A ...... nt R: an·~·d. ered':.' due date
_\#~"'0'" .
U" ~ _._. _ _

open accou nt tacl I i'ty

.
Q' C ..,-

prompt payrne nt to c~ /settla an El'CCOU nt ear overdue account to extend orad iit a flrst/second/thlrd request a f~nal smand o to recove r a debt ca rr~ Eli 1'0 rw ard 89 trade discount cash discount , goods on approval/sale or return a postal order a G~ro C'OD (cash on delivery) a eu rrsnt accou nt til savl ngs, accou nt a bank transfer' s te Ie'g rapn i c tr an ste r (TT)
at mail transfer (MT)

a cheque

91

.••. )-a· aints.•. Com p1.... an, a:]us'ments d di t

. '.. . -.' .

'*

..

•.•

]f lsi 1"·'· h bl snaueae ctcomoismts. extueuuna tbe ptotuem. s,uggesting a eoiution); replying to letters of compleint _f " ••• Ieini h .- k ~gettlng time to mvestiaete, expuumna the m'lsta~~e, -,,· · '. 1")" · so 1vlng the pro bl em. rejectinq a, compism t); eccountinq errore and adjustments (debit' notes, credit notes),

·, 1. ,.. lsi 'UnjustJ'ti'ed compiemts; writing genera 1 comptsmts (tt: ttne

7.1 Unjustified complaints

To have to complain is ,annoying~ but to complain without good reason 'wlill~also annoy your correspondent, Ilfyou

restrained, and remember that we can all make mistakes.

Below are two examples of unJust~fied cornolaints, with the replies to them. '-N' co how rest ral n ed- the re n I',C!, a re 'Int"i~ ":JV!:_'_:'~ _,~.'.'_.'~, _ ...
'~~_!~ _"'~':' ••• ' ~ .~~ :~~ __ ~~ ... :_,_'~'.':~

u- njustiT,ied compte lnt, be polite and

compl alin:,make sure you get.you r facts F'ight. And i'f you have to answer an
-.._---

-,_

Dear Sirl

~-

....

-- -- ._ -.,-.

I strongly object to the extra charce of £"9,00 which you have added to my statement; \Nhen I sen t my cheque for £66,00 Last week I thought it cleared this balance, Now I find. , ,
__ -

Dear Mr AxebYI

W~, received your letter today complaininq of an extra charge of £9,00 on your Ma Y' statsmen t. 1. think 'if you check the statemen t you will find ttha t the,

amount due' was £68,00 not £56.00 which accounts, for the £9',00 difference. I have enclosed a, copy of the statement and, , ,

92
....
~._"..,..
','

7. Complaints and a.dj ustments

.....

---

'""" ......

'

--

,_.

'Dear Sir,
I could not believe it when 1. read that your prices have now been

.increesed by £7,00. To 'have to pay £ 12,00for an article that was, :£,5,00 only a few months ago is outrageous! 'I'hs g,overnment is fighting
inflatio ':n"
. Q..ll .. ,.
'I

Dear M'r Richardson,

-,

'_',

_ ..

~,'

Thank you for yOU! letter. I checked the item you referred to, which is in fact the Scri va Pen ca.taloque No, G 14 on our price-list The pen has been increased .!Q £7,00, not Qy, £7'.00"and I think you will agree that for a fountain
pen this is not an unreasonable increase consi derinq that the, price of OUI rnaterials has doubled in the past few months: .

Writing genera.!
complaints 7'! 21,1
Ope,niing Do not del,ay and do not apoloqlze, Co,mlplain as soon as you realize a mistake' has been mads; delay not only weakens your case, but can cornpllcate the matter as the people you are dealing wi1h might f.orget the details. And there is no need to open y'our letter by epc log lzl n'Q'for the n eed to camp lal n (jW,e regret to inform you .. .', ~Iam sorry to have to wdte to you about ... ')~this also weakens your case. B'egin simply:'
We would like to inform you. , .
, em wri.ting to compte in about" , "

7 2,'
:"

7.21.2,
The Ilangluag,e e,f; complaints

T e rims Iiik,e 'd ~ u sted', i ntu ria ted! sg 'enraqeo', 'amazed' have no place in business" You can express dlseatlsfaetlon by saying:
,I 'I

This ;s the third time this mistake has occutred and we ere far from scUisfied with the service you 0 'fer. Unless you can fulfil our orders efficiently in the tuture we wIll have to consider otner sources of supply,
Please ensure that thls does rot ettse 8galn,

sort

of problem

I am 'writing with reference to Order No. P32 which we received yesterday,

Do not be rude or personal. In most cases correspondence be:tween firms, takes place between emplovsee in various dspartments. Nothingr is 'gaine,dl by be,ing rude to the lndlvidual you are wr~rting to; you may antagonize someone who has probably had nothing to do wi1h the error and, rather

1'. Complaints and adiustmsnts than gl9tti n9 th e erro r co rrected, s/he could become defensive and awkward
to deal wllth. Therefore, do not use

17.2,3
E.xpla.ining the problem

sentences like: a's possible.

*You must correct

you: mistake

8.S

soon

prices.

*You made an erroron the stetemen: ""'y'OUOu . ~t' undo i:iIr - ter: d the te Fm' so, _. d ,. ,-~S·6,·> me terrtis o discount. We told' you to deduct discount' from net ptices, not o.t. t.
Flo

'was made, you may poUtely point n out to you r' supplier, Sometlrnes when ,at mistake occurs several times, you may be, able to work out why it is happeni ".g mar's q ulckly th an the f itm you are
dealing with, Could you telt your despetch department to take special care' 'when addressIng' my' oonsiqnmem? My neme

If you think you know how the mlstal«

Use the passive and Impersonal struetu res mentoned in 6.S.1 , The mistake must be corrected es soon as posslble' '

is C. ,J, Schw.artz:, Bergstr. 1'01 Kdln. But there, is a C. Scbwsttz, Berqstr. 110 Koln who also deals in electticel .fittings ,.

stetemen:

There appears to be an enor on the

There seems to be so-me

vout accounts dep erunetv: to' cneck my' code c·a·'·{·a'ull·y'· In future? My account number is 246Could you ask
bi·

··.-a~-~~. ~

.:'

.),,_. 0· ':.,['-_" ",: '.' u'.·_ ~.. - ", .-:", ull,_.·.·:· ..

misunderstanding

reg8;rding terms of

statem'en.ts coded 642~246; l think the

(S'BSOn

642~and they have been .sending me

pricee, D o no,t

discount. Discount is deducted from net

not c. I, t. prices.

jour fault') or 'blame' Cyou are to blame'): these expressions are not only rude, but childish. Therefore, do not write:

_ I: S· w-ord S I"k's· 'tautt r. t you- I tau .. , U·:'e....':. _: n (:~- - _. - ta It' ....

r"

been sent to' me is becsuse I am

ordering in

that wrong sizes have sizes,

sending me sizes meesurea in feet and inches. I would eptsectete your looking into this,

metre

and you are

of your despatch depenment.

Sut:

*ft is not our fault)

n is probably

the fault'

7.2.4
Sugg1esting a solution ltyou think you know how the mistake can loe' corrected, let your supp,liet know. (For the reterence to 'oeblt note' and 'ersdlt note' in these examples, see 7.5.)
If 1 send you a debit note for £ 18.00 end deduct it from my next stetement that should put the metter fight.,

The mistake coatd not neve originated nere, and must be connected with the
despatch of the goods,

Never blame your s'ta.ff~ and finaUy,whill! 'writing the eornplalnt remember that your supplier wants to help you and correct me mistake. He is nat in business to irrita-te or confuse his customers bu t to oNer 1he m a service.

II
I

The best solution would be for me to return the wrong articles to you, postage and packing' forward,