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Turn down a warranty claim without blaming the customer

Practice: Getting the tone right. About 5 minutes.

About this exercise

A customer's earbuds claim was denied because the repair tech found liquid damage, which the warranty doesn't cover. Write the email in under 90 words, plain text: the decision in the first sentence, no blame (describe what the tech found, never what the customer did), then the paid repair offer with its exact discount and link. Don't open with "Unfortunately" and don't apologize more than once. Write a prompt that gets you exactly that.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting. Ask for "under 90 words" and it often lands well over. Try: Cap each part instead: "5 sentences, each under 16 words."
  • Burying the decision. The AI opens with thanks and an apology, so the answer lands in paragraph two. Try: Add: "First sentence: the claim isn't covered. Don't start with 'Unfortunately'."
  • Sounding like an accusation. The AI writes "water damage from exposure to liquid" in a way that reads as "you got them wet." Try: Add: "Say what the tech found, never what she did."
  • Dropping the offer details. Squeezed for space, the AI says "we can offer a discounted repair" with no price or link. Try: Add: "Give the 40% off price ($29.40), the link and the claim number."
  • Ignoring where it will be pasted. AI loves bold and headings, which show up as stray ** and # symbols in the email client. Try: Name the place and the format: "For the email client. Plain text, no bold or headings."

What a strong prompt includes

  • Puts the decision first
  • Avoids blame
  • Includes the offer details
  • Bans 'Unfortunately'
  • Sets a word limit

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