R200 WRONGFULLY CHARGED, REFUND DELAYED AND UNACCEPTABLE CUSTOMER SERVICE

Subject: FORMAL COMPLAINT —

Dear McDonald’s Head Office,

I am writing to formally complain about an experience at your Beacon Bay Drive-Thru on 21 August 2026, which I consider completely unacceptable and fundamentally inconsistent with the standards one should expect from McDonald’s.

I went through the drive-thru specifically to purchase a R5 ice cream cone. I paid by card and, as anyone would reasonably do at a McDonald’s drive-thru, proceeded to the next window without checking my banking app. I trusted that the amount processed was the amount I had ordered.

At the next window, the employee who had taken my payment informed me that I had apparently been charged for the wrong order — approximately R200.

Instead of immediately correcting the obvious mistake, he offered me no solution whatsoever. Worse, he told me that it was my fault, claiming that he had confirmed the order with me before taking payment.

He did not.

I categorically dispute that accusation.

Why would I knowingly agree to pay approximately R200 for a R5 ice cream cone? The employee had clearly processed the wrong order, yet rather than accepting responsibility and resolving the matter, he attempted to shift the blame onto me.

I asked to speak to a manager because the employee continued arguing with me and still offered no practical solution. The manager eventually came to the window, yet, inexplicably, I was still told that they could not simply refund the incorrect transaction.

What should have been a two-minute correction turned into approximately 10 minutes of unnecessary arguing and frustration.

I asked for the area manager’s contact details. Those details were refused.

I eventually had no choice but to drive away, R200 out of pocket for an item that cost R5.

When I got home, I called the restaurant because I was still extremely dissatisfied. I requested that the area manager contact me to resolve the matter. My number was taken.

Nobody called me.

The following day, 22 August, I had to call the restaurant again to ask when I could expect the area manager to contact me. The new manager on duty again failed to resolve the matter.

Instead, she repeatedly told me she would “fix” the problem but wanted me to provide my bank card details over the telephone.

I was not comfortable giving my card details over the phone — and I do not believe I should have been placed in that position in the first place.

I again requested either:

1. The area manager’s contact details; or 2. A call from someone at McDonald’s Head Office who had the authority to resolve the complaint.

Neither happened.

The entire day passed without anyone from McDonald’s taking responsibility for the situation.

Eventually, in order to recover my own money, I had to physically drive back to the restaurant myself and insist on getting the refund. I then had to wait while they finally returned the money to me in cash.

Let me be very clear about what happened here:

McDonald’s took R200 from me for an order I did not purchase, accused me of causing the error, refused to promptly correct it, refused to provide escalation details, failed to return my calls, failed to have an area manager contact me, and ultimately required me to physically return to the restaurant to recover my money.

The financial cost to me was also considerably more than R200:

* Incorrect charge: R200 * Petrol to return to the restaurant: approximately R300 * Multiple telephone calls: approximately R200 * Total cost to me: approximately R700

So I effectively spent hundreds of rand of my own money and a significant amount of my time simply trying to recover R200 that McDonald’s had incorrectly taken from me.

That is not customer service.

That is not acceptable.

And frankly, the fact that I had to repeatedly chase McDonald’s to return money that should never have been taken raises a very serious question:

Is this really how McDonald’s expects customers to be treated when the restaurant makes a payment error?

I also have video evidence relating to the incident. I have deliberately not included it at this stage because I am giving McDonald’s Head Office the opportunity to address this matter properly and explain how this situation was allowed to happen.

I require answers to the following:

* Why was I charged approximately R200 for a R5 item? * Why did the employee accuse me of confirming the incorrect order when I did not? * Why was the transaction not immediately reversed or refunded? * Why was I refused the area manager’s contact details? * Why was my request for an area manager to contact me ignored? * Why was I subsequently asked to provide my card details over the telephone? * Why did I have to physically return to the restaurant to recover money that McDonald’s had incorrectly taken? * What action will be taken regarding the conduct of the employees involved?

I expect this complaint to be escalated to someone at Head Office with actual authority to investigate the incident, rather than simply being referred back to the restaurant.

I would also like a formal explanation of what McDonald’s considers to be an appropriate procedure when a customer is incorrectly charged at a drive-thru, because the procedure followed here was clearly inadequate.

I am not interested in receiving a generic “we apologise for the inconvenience” response.

I want accountability, an explanation and confirmation that this has been investigated.

I look forward to hearing from someone at McDonald’s Head Office who is authorised to deal with this matter.

Regards,

Adam Engela