KFC closed my complaint without my agreement and failed to properly address my concerns

I am extremely disappointed with both the service I received at the KFC Garden Route Mall branch and, perhaps more importantly, the way KFC Customer Care subsequently handled my complaint.

This is now the second serious issue I have experienced at this particular branch. On the first occasion, I was served a half-cooked drumstick. Fortunately, I was dining in and was able to bring it to the manager's attention. The meal was replaced, but I had to specifically ask whether anyone was actually going to apologise or acknowledge the seriousness of serving undercooked chicken to a customer. I initially decided to let the matter go at my wife's request.

Unfortunately, the next incident occurred at the same branch.

My wife purchased three meals to take home. Before leaving the branch, she noticed that my son's soft drink was missing. When she queried this with the employee who had served her, she was met with an attitude and was asked what she was talking about. Another employee eventually intervened and provided the missing drink.

When she arrived home, we discovered that the chips from the Streetwise Two were also missing.

I therefore submitted a formal complaint to KFC. I explained that this was no longer simply about a missing item. It was a combination of food safety, repeated order inaccuracies and poor customer service at the same branch.

KFC Customer Care subsequently phoned me, and I explained the entire situation again.

The response I received left me extremely disappointed. I was essentially given an apology and told that the matter would be investigated internally. I was also initially told that I could simply go and collect a Streetwise One.

When I questioned whether they seriously expected me to travel back to the branch at my own expense to collect food that I had already paid for, the proposed resolution was changed to telling me to return with my slip to collect the missing chips.

I explained my dissatisfaction and specifically stated that, having worked in customer service myself for many years, I did not believe the complaint had been handled appropriately. I also made it clear that I intended to pursue the matter further.

KFC subsequently sent me an email stating:

“We would like to thank you for accepting our Apology…”

and:

“An apology has been extended, and no further contact will ensue.”

The problem is that I never accepted their resolution or indicated that I was satisfied with the way the matter had been handled.

In fact, I had expressly communicated the opposite. I therefore sent a further email on Sunday to correct the record and explain my continued dissatisfaction. KFC did not respond to that email.

The only subsequent contact was an incoming telephone call from KFC. The call remained connected for approximately 49 seconds, but nobody spoke to me. I eventually ended the call myself, and there was no further attempt to contact me.

At this stage, my complaint is no longer about a packet of chips.

It is about accountability and how KFC treats a customer who takes the time to raise legitimate concerns.

I understand that mistakes happen. What I don't accept is repeated poor service, a food-safety concern, missing items, an unsatisfactory response from Customer Care, and then having my complaint effectively recorded as resolved when I never agreed that it was resolved.

I was not looking for free food. I wanted KFC to take the complaint seriously and demonstrate that it valued my continued business.

If KFC had offered a reasonable gesture of goodwill that acknowledged the inconvenience and the additional expense I would have incurred travelling back to the branch to rectify their mistake, I would have viewed that as a genuine attempt to address the situation. Instead, the initial solution effectively required me to spend more money to correct KFC's mistake.

I have now given KFC several opportunities to address this directly.

I am posting this review because I believe other customers should be aware that the issue was not simply the original mistakes at the branch — it was also how my subsequent complaint was handled.

I would still welcome a meaningful response from KFC management, but I believe the record should accurately reflect what happened.

Not every unhappy customer is looking for compensation. Sometimes they simply want a company to take responsibility, listen properly and demonstrate that their business matters.

Jeremy Pieterse