Complaints Management: the Value of Complaints course
In this course you learn to handle complaints effectively, conduct difficult conversations and draw up a workable complaints policy for your organisation.
NRTO quality markFree cancellation up to four weeks before the start, so feel free to book now.
In brief. Complaints Management: The Value of Complaints is a 2-day classroom course. You can attend it in Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam and Den Haag, among other places, or online, in a group of no more than 8 participants. The price is EUR 1250,- excl. VAT per participant, including course materials, lunch on site and a certificate of attendance. For a team or department we also deliver this course in-company.
- Getting to the heart of every complaint
- Dealing with emotional and difficult complainants
- Responding to an unjustified complaint without an argument
- A workable complaints policy for your organisation
- Plenty of practice in a group of max. 8 participants
Your trainer: Saar, Mieke, Rob or Christy 1.447 evaluations in total, with an average of 8,9. View the trainers
A complaint is more than a nuisance. It is a free tip from your customer. Those who handle complaints well win back trust and improve the product or service at the same time.
Description
Complaints are often seen as a nuisance, whereas in fact they keep your organisation sharp. A customer who takes the trouble to complain gives you the chance to put something right. Retaining a customer is also cheaper than acquiring a new one, so every complaint you resolve well delivers an immediate return.
In this course you work with practical examples from your own job. You learn how to respond to different types of complainants, from the aggressive customer to the emotional or the unreasonable one. You practise listening and questioning techniques to get to the heart of the complaint quickly, and you learn how to reject an unjustified complaint without damaging the relationship.
As well as conducting the conversation itself, you also look at the longer term. How do you set up the complaints process in your organisation? Which policies help to prevent recurrence and make good use of the signals you receive? You go home with concrete tools.
For teams and organisations. For a customer service team we run this course in-company, using complaints from your own practice.
Topics
- Different types of complaints and complainants
- Listening techniques: active listening and summarising
- Questioning techniques to get to the heart of the matter
- Dealing with emotion, dissatisfaction and unreasonable behaviour
- Setting boundaries without rejecting the customer
- Responding to an unjustified complaint
- Acknowledging your own mistakes and communicating about them
- Devising win-win solutions
- Making clear agreements and ending the conversation on a positive note
- Drawing up a complaints handling policy for your team or organisation
Result
After the course you will get to the heart of a complaint more quickly through targeted questioning and listening techniques. You conduct constructive conversations with different types of complainants, indicate your limits in a courteous way and know how to respond to unreasonable or unjustified complaints. You will also have the building blocks to set up a workable complaints policy within your own organisation, allowing you to make structurally better use of complaints.
Target audience
This course is intended for anyone who deals with complaints in their work. Think of customer service or helpdesk staff, sales staff, account managers, complaints line staff and managers who want to get a better grip on complaints handling within their department or organisation.
The course is also suitable for customer service teams that want to improve their complaints handling together.
Teaching method
The course is practical and interactive. You work with your own cases, practise in role plays and receive direct feedback from the trainer and your fellow participants. Beforehand, the trainer maps out your personal learning objectives in an intake, so that the programme matches your situation. The group is small, with a maximum of eight participants, so there is room to really practise.
Prior knowledge
No specific prior knowledge is needed for this course. Work experience in a role involving customer contact is an advantage, as it allows you to bring in examples from your own practice.
Practical information
- Number of days
- 2 days
- Course times
- from 10 am to 5 pm
- Teaching hours
- 12 hours
- Education level
- Suitable for all levels
- Preparation time
- None
- Included
- Course materials and lunch on site
- Certificate
- At the end of the course you will receive a certificate of attendance
- Cancel
- Free up to four weeks before the start (cancellation terms)
Language
The course is given in Dutch as standard. The trainer speaks English. English-language course materials can be used. If at least 3 participants register, the course can also be given entirely in English.
In-company
Would you like to organise this training for a whole group or several groups? This can be cost-effective. For example, we can tailor the content entirely to your organisation, and training a whole group is also cheaper.
Are you looking at large numbers of participants or a complete academy? That involves a great deal. Consider planning and communication, for example, or identifying and agreeing the objectives and content of the training. Or differences in level, feedback mechanisms and safeguarding. Fortunately, Learnit has extensive experience in this field (more than 25 years) and we are happy to help you through this process.
Request a quote More about Complaints Management: the Value of Complaints in-company
All start dates
2 training days. In order of date.
- Tue 27 & Wed 28 October 2026 Online · 10:00–17:00 Enrol
- Tue 27 & Wed 28 October 2026 Utrecht · 10:00–17:00 Enrol
- Tue 3 & Wed 4 November 2026 Amsterdam · 10:00–17:00 Enrol
- Tue 10 & Wed 11 November 2026 Rotterdam · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 13 October Enrol
- Tue 24 & Wed 25 November 2026 The Hague · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 27 October Enrol
- Thu 17 & Fri 18 December 2026 Rotterdam · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 19 November Enrol
- Thu 4 & Fri 5 February 2027 Amsterdam · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 7 January Enrol
- Thu 1 & Fri 2 April 2027 Groningen · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 4 March Enrol
- Thu 1 & Fri 2 April 2027 Zwolle · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 4 March Enrol
No suitable start date? Send us a date request, and we'll look at the options together.
This course by city
This course for your team?
Plan your own group on a date that suits you, at your office, at our premises or online. We tailor the content to your day-to-day work, and training a whole group is cheaper than individual bookings.
- Your date and location
- Tailored content
- Multiple groups or an academy are also possible
- More than 25 years' experience
The trainers for this course
Ratings from participants after completing their course, across all courses by this trainer.
Saar
Trainer in team coaching and communication 9,0 from 459 evaluations
Mieke
Trainer in conversation techniques and train-the-trainer 8,8 from 386 evaluations
Rob
Trainer in communication and leadership 8,6 from 346 evaluations
Christy
trainer in communication and leadership 9,2 from 256 evaluationsWhat others say about this course
Complaints Management: the value of complaints course: average 8.8 from 8 reviews
“It is a good course for discovering how you come across to others.”
“I found it a very pleasant course; for me it was partly a refresher, but I did notice that some knowledge and skills had faded. The course was engaging throughout. Definitely recommended.”
“The course was instructive (partly thanks to the trainer); I learned more than I had expected. There is more background to handling complaints than ‘just’ speaking to someone in a friendly manner.”
“It was a very pleasant course for me. I learned a great deal!”
"An excellent course for discovering where your own sticking points lie. You are given 'tools' that you can use in practice. Of course, the success of this course will depend on what you are able to do yourself and will actually put to use."
"Practically oriented and highly applicable in practice. Nice combination of theory + practice"
“Charlie was very good and professional. I would certainly recommend her to other companies interested in a course on complaints training/handling. She was enthusiastic but also serious and involved us a great deal. Definitely recommended!!”
"Tailor-made course! Based on the intake, the course was adapted to our (my) requirements. The course ties in nicely with day-to-day practice."
“A very useful course that I would certainly recommend to anyone who handles complaints.”
“The information given during the course is not only instructive but also certainly applicable in practice – real tools you can genuinely use. The substantive information given during the course was delivered well, not too long at a stretch but also not too short or too fast. The way the information was conveyed was clear and sufficient. This course gives anyone who deals with customer or complaint contact extremely good tips & tricks.”
Training formats
Classroom
2 days€ 1250,-- Pleasant venue with a good trainer
- Small groups
- Inspiring and motivating
In-company
Bespoke trainingOn request- 100% for your group
- Bespoke training
- At your place or ours
Workshop
Up to 4 hours for groupsOn request- Suitable for events
- Interactive and inspiring
- Large groups too
Private training
At our place or yoursOn request- 100% just for you
- Achieve a lot in little time
- Whenever you want
Frequently asked questions
Can I cancel free of charge?
Yes. Up to four weeks before the first day of the course you can cancel free of charge, without giving a reason. You then receive a credit note or, if you have already paid, a refund. If you cancel later, you pay part of the course fee: 25% between four and two weeks before the start, 75% in the two weeks before it and 100% in the final week. Moving to another start date is free of charge up to two weeks before the start, after that 50%. Sending a colleague in your place is always possible. Read the cancellation terms.
What will you learn in the Complaints Management course?
You learn how to handle customer complaints professionally and turn them into an opportunity. We cover listening and questioning techniques, dealing with different types of complainants, responding to unjustified complaints and devising win-win solutions. You also learn how to set up a sound complaints handling policy within your organisation.
Who is this complaints management course intended for?
The course is suitable for anyone who deals with complaints in their work. Think of customer service or helpdesk staff, sales people, account managers and complaints line staff. Managers who want to improve complaints handling within their team are also very welcome.
Do I need any prior knowledge for the course?
No, no specific prior knowledge is required. It is useful, however, to have work experience in a role involving customer contact, so that you can bring your own practical examples into the course.
Do I receive a certificate on completion?
Yes, on completing the course you receive a Learnit certificate of attendance. This certificate shows that you have followed the Complaints Management course.
How large is the group during the course?
We work with a maximum group size of eight participants. This leaves ample room to bring in your own cases, to practise in role plays and to receive personal feedback from the trainer.
Can I also take the course in-company?
Yes, this course is also available as an in-company programme. In that case we tailor the content to the situation within your organisation and use examples from your own practice. Get in touch to discuss the options and receive a tailored quotation.
Why is good complaints handling important?
A well-handled complaint strengthens your customer's trust and gives you valuable information for improving your product or service. A satisfied customer also stays with you longer, and retaining a customer costs less than winning a new one. Complaints are therefore essentially free advice.
How do you deal with an aggressive or emotional complainant?
Start by listening without immediately becoming defensive. Acknowledge the emotion, summarise what you hear and ask calm questions to get to the heart of the matter. Only once the emotion subsides can you work towards solutions. During the course you practise these conversations in a safe setting, so that you are no longer caught off guard in practice.
How do you respond to an unjustified complaint?
An unjustified complaint calls for tact. You take the customer seriously and calmly explain why, in your view, the complaint is not valid, without undermining the customer. Often there is another signal behind the complaint, for example unclear communication or an expectation that was never voiced. In the course you learn to hold these conversations without damaging the relationship.
What is a good complaints handling policy?
A good complaints handling policy makes clear how your organisation deals with complaints: who picks up the complaint, within what period the customer receives an answer and how lessons learned are fed back to the team. It ensures consistency towards the customer and helps your organisation to structurally improve on the basis of the signals that come in.
How do you close a complaint conversation on a positive note?
At the end of the conversation, summarise what has been discussed and what has been agreed. Be specific about what is going to happen, by whom and when. Thank the customer for taking the trouble to report the complaint and check whether they feel heard. That way the conversation ends on a constructive note, even if the solution still takes time.
What does the Complaints Management course cost?
You can find the current price at the top right of this course page, along with the schedule, location and delivery format. For in-company or bespoke courses we are happy to provide a quotation on request.
Next start date: Tue 27 & Wed 28 October 2026 in Utrecht, also available online
Free cancellation up to four weeks before the start, so you can secure a place now.