How to reply to a bad review when the customer is wrong

A bad review with wrong facts feels personal, but the reply is for the people who read it later as much as for the person who wrote it. Check your records, acknowledge how they felt, state the correct fact once and invite them to get in touch. Keep it short, keep it polite, and leave it there.

What to say

Before you type a word, go and look at your records. Actually look, rather than relying on the feeling that you’re right. You’d hate to correct the record and get the record wrong.

• Start with how they felt. You don’t have to agree with the review to say you’re sorry the experience left them disappointed. It costs nothing and it sets a fair tone.
• State the fact plainly, once. Something like “we don’t charge for tap water” does the job. No build-up, no repeating it three different ways.
• Own your bit. If any part of it was your mistake, say so. Admit it, apologise if needed, and move on.
• Explain what you can and can’t do. If something was outside your control, don’t take the blame for it, but do say how you handle it. Google’s own example is an event cancelled by bad weather: explain that you monitor the weather and send advance cancellation notices when possible.
• Invite contact. You can ask them to get in touch in person, by email or by phone. Take the detail off the public page.
• Sign it. Replies appear as the business and your personal name isn’t shown, so a first name or initials makes it read like a person wrote it.

Google’s own tips are simple: clear, helpful, polite, short, and no deals or promotions. Reply in good time, too. The reviewer is notified when you reply and can still change their review afterwards, so a fair tone is good manners and good sense at once.

What not to say

This bit is easy to get wrong when you’re cross, so let’s be blunt about it.

• Don’t call them a liar. “You’re lying” and “that never happened” turn a factual correction into a row, and the row is what the next reader remembers.
• Don’t reveal private details. No booking information, no messages they sent you, no description of what they bought. Never share the reviewer’s private info, even if it would prove your point.
• Don’t attack them personally. Stick to the facts of the thing, not the character of the person.
• Don’t argue back and forth. One reply. If they respond, you don’t have to. The offer to talk privately is already there.
• Don’t offer anything to change the review. No refund in exchange for an edit, no discount, nothing. Offering incentives to change or remove a review is prohibited.
• Don’t take the blame for what wasn’t yours. Being gracious is different from accepting responsibility for the weather, or for something the customer agreed to.

Example replies

Restaurant, charged for tap water

Fictional example. The review (1 star): “Charged me for tap water.” The facts: tap water is free, and the restaurant never charges for it.

Hello, and thank you for telling us about your visit. I’m sorry you came away feeling short-changed. We don’t charge for tap water. If you’d like to talk it through, please email or call us and we’ll be glad to help. Sam

Outdoor event company, “cancelled for no reason”

Fictional example. The review (1 star): “Cancelled for no reason.” The facts: the event was cancelled because of a storm warning, and ticket holders were emailed the day before.

Hi, and thank you for your feedback. I understand how disappointing a cancelled event is. We cancelled because of a storm warning. We monitor the weather and send advance cancellation notices when possible, and ticket holders were emailed the day before. Please get in touch with us directly and we’ll do what we can to help. Priya

Decorator, ceiling not painted

Fictional example. The review (2 stars): “Didn’t paint the ceiling.” The facts: the ceiling was not in the agreed quote.

Hello, thank you for the review, and I’m sorry you’re not happy with the finished result. The ceiling wasn’t part of the agreed quote, which is why it wasn’t painted. I’d be glad to talk about it, or anything else you’d like us to look at, if you call or email us. Tom

Should you report it?

Usually not. Disagreeing with a review isn’t grounds for removing it, and Google doesn’t get involved in conflict between businesses and customers. A factual disagreement with a real customer is generally something to answer in your reply, which is what everything above is for.

There are exceptions. Google’s Maps content policy prohibits content that isn’t based on a real experience, and “false or misleading accounts of the description or quality of a good or service”. If a review genuinely breaks policy, report it. Evaluation typically takes several days, and if the report is rejected you can submit a one-time appeal.

If you suspect the review isn’t from a real customer at all, see how to reply to a review you think is fake and how to get a fake Google review removed. If the complaint is really about a rule you have rather than a factual error, how to reply to a complaint about a policy is closer to what you need, and the wider picture is in how to respond to negative Google reviews.

Google checks replies against its content policies before posting them. That usually takes up to 10 minutes, though it can take up to 30 days. To draft your own, add the correct facts to the review reply writer.

Questions people ask

Can I say the customer is wrong in my reply?

You can correct a fact, calmly and once, after checking your records. What you shouldn't do is call them a liar or attack them personally, which Google's reply tips warn against. State what's true, for example "we don't charge for tap water", and let readers draw their own conclusions.

Can I use my records to prove my point?

Check them, but keep them out of the public reply. Google says never to share a reviewer's private information, so no booking details, messages or what they bought. Say the relevant fact in general terms and invite them to contact you, where you can go through the detail privately.

Will Google remove a review that gets the facts wrong?

Usually not. Google only removes reviews that break its policies, says not to report a review just because you disagree with it, and doesn't get involved in conflict between businesses and customers. A factual disagreement with a real customer is normally something to answer in your reply.

What if they reply again and keep arguing?

You don't have to answer. One calm reply with the correct fact and an invitation to get in touch is enough, and a public back and forth rarely helps. The reviewer is notified when you reply and can still change their review, so leave the door open rather than having the last word.