Master TOEIC Reading: Practice Test on Handling Customer Complaints via Email

TOEIC Reading Practice Test: Parts 1 & 2

Part 1: Incomplete Sentences

1. The customer service representative must _____ to the customer’s complaint within 24 hours.
   A. respond
   B. response
   C. responsible
   D. responsive

2. It is essential to maintain a _____ tone when addressing customer concerns via email.
   A. professional
   B. professionalism
   C. profession
   D. profess

3. The company’s policy requires all complaints to be _____ in the customer database for future reference.
   A. logged
   B. logging
   C. log
   D. logger

4. A _____ apology can go a long way in diffusing a tense situation with an unhappy customer.
   A. sincere
   B. sincerely
   C. sincerity
   D. sincering

5. It is crucial to _____ the customer’s issue before proposing a solution.
   A. comprehend
   B. comprehensive
   C. comprehension
   D. comprehensively

6. The support team should always _____ the customer’s perspective when handling complaints.
   A. consider
   B. considering
   C. considerable
   D. consideration

7. Effective email communication requires clear and _____ language to avoid misunderstandings.
   A. concise
   B. concisely
   C. concision
   D. conciseness

8. Customer service representatives must be trained to _____ with difficult customers in a calm manner.
   A. deal
   B. dealing
   C. dealt
   D. dealer

9. It is important to _____ the customer’s concerns and provide a timely resolution.
   A. acknowledge
   B. acknowledgment
   C. acknowledging
   D. acknowledged

10. The company’s reputation can be _____ by how effectively it handles customer complaints.
    A. affected
    B. affecting
    C. affect
    D. affection

11. A well-crafted email response should _____ the customer’s specific issues point by point.
    A. address
    B. addressing
    C. addressed
    D. addressable

12. Customer feedback should be _____ to improve products and services continuously.
    A. utilized
    B. utilize
    C. utilization
    D. utilizable

13. It is essential to _____ empathy when responding to customer complaints via email.
    A. express
    B. expression
    C. expressive
    D. expressively

14. The support team must be _____ to handle a high volume of customer emails efficiently.
    A. equipped
    B. equipment
    C. equip
    D. equipping

15. A _____ approach to complaint resolution can turn dissatisfied customers into loyal ones.
    A. proactive
    B. proactively
    C. proactivity
    D. proaction

16. Customer service representatives should avoid using _____ language that may escalate the situation.
    A. confrontational
    B. confrontation
    C. confront
    D. confronting

17. It is crucial to _____ customer expectations regarding the resolution timeline.
    A. manage
    B. management
    C. manageable
    D. managerial

18. The company’s email template should be _____ to address various types of customer complaints.
    A. customizable
    B. customize
    C. customization
    D. customized

19. Effective complaint handling requires active _____ skills to fully understand the customer’s issue.
    A. listening
    B. listen
    C. listened
    D. listener

20. Customer service representatives must be _____ in multiple communication channels, including email.
    A. proficient
    B. proficiency
    C. proficiently
    D. proficience

21. It is important to _____ the customer for bringing the issue to the company’s attention.
    A. thank
    B. thankful
    C. thanks
    D. thanking

22. The support team should strive to _____ a positive relationship with customers, even in difficult situations.
    A. maintain
    B. maintenance
    C. maintaining
    D. maintainable

23. Customer complaints should be viewed as opportunities for _____ and improvement.
    A. growth
    B. grow
    C. growing
    D. grower

24. It is essential to _____ up with customers after resolving their complaints to ensure satisfaction.
    A. follow
    B. following
    C. follower
    D. followed

25. The company’s email responses should reflect its commitment to customer _____.
    A. satisfaction
    B. satisfy
    C. satisfying
    D. satisfactory

26. Customer service representatives must be able to _____ complex issues into simple, understandable terms.
    A. break down
    B. breakdown
    C. breaking down
    D. broken down

27. It is important to _____ the customer’s loyalty by going above and beyond in resolving complaints.
    A. reinforce
    B. reinforcement
    C. reinforcing
    D. reinforced

28. The support team should be trained to _____ potential solutions to common customer problems.
    A. offer
    B. offering
    C. offered
    D. offerable

29. Effective complaint handling requires a _____ understanding of the company’s products and services.
    A. thorough
    B. thoroughly
    C. thoroughness
    D. thoroughgoing

30. Customer service representatives must be able to _____ between different types of complaints and prioritize them accordingly.
    A. distinguish
    B. distinguishable
    C. distinguishing
    D. distinguished

Part 2: Text Completion

Questions 31-34 refer to the following email:

Dear Valued Customer,

We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience you experienced with our product. Your satisfaction is our top priority, and we appreciate you bringing this matter to our attention. We would like to (31) _____ the following steps to resolve your concern:

1. Please (32) _____ the defective product to our returns center using the prepaid shipping label provided.
2. Once we receive the item, our quality control team will inspect it thoroughly.
3. We will then either repair or replace the product, depending on the assessment results.
4. The (33) _____ item will be shipped back to you within 5-7 business days.

We value your feedback and are committed to continually improving our products and services. As a token of our appreciation for your patience, we would like to offer you a 20% discount on your next purchase. Please use the code “LOYAL20” at checkout to (34) _____ this offer.

Thank you for your understanding and continued support.

Best regards,
Customer Support Team

31. A. outline
    B. outline
    C. outlining
    D. outlined

32. A. return
    B. retrieve
    C. retain
    D. review

33. A. repaired
    B. repairing
    C. reparation
    D. reparable

34. A. redeem
    B. redeeming
    C. redeemed
    D. redeemable

Questions 35-38 refer to the following email:

Subject: Update on Your Recent Complaint – Order #12345

Dear Mr. Johnson,

I hope this email finds you well. I am writing to provide an update on the complaint you (35) _____ regarding your recent order #12345.

First and foremost, we would like to extend our sincerest apologies for the delay in shipping your item. We understand how frustrating this experience must have been for you. After (36) _____ into the matter, we discovered that there was a temporary system glitch that affected our inventory management, resulting in the delay.

We are pleased to inform you that your order has now been (37) _____ and is currently in transit. You can expect delivery within the next 2-3 business days. As a gesture of goodwill and to make up for the inconvenience caused, we have upgraded your shipping to express at no additional cost.

Furthermore, we would like to offer you a 15% discount on your next purchase. This discount will be automatically (38) _____ to your account and can be used within the next 30 days.

We value your business and appreciate your patience throughout this process. If you have any further questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us.

Thank you for your understanding.

Best regards,
Sarah Thompson
Customer Relations Manager

35. A. submitted
    B. submitting
    C. submission
    D. submittable

36. A. investigating
    B. investigated
    C. investigation
    D. investigative

37. A. processed
    B. processing
    C. processor
    D. processable

38. A. applied
    B. applying
    C. application
    D. applicable

Questions 39-42 refer to the following email:

Subject: Resolution for Your Recent Product Complaint

Dear Ms. Rodriguez,

Thank you for contacting our customer support team regarding the issue you experienced with our XYZ-100 model. We take all customer feedback seriously and are committed to ensuring your complete satisfaction.

After carefully reviewing your complaint, we have (39) _____ that the malfunction you described is indeed covered under our product warranty. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you.

To resolve this matter promptly, we would like to offer you the following options:

1. Full replacement: We can send you a brand new XYZ-100 model at no cost.
2. Repair: Our technicians can repair your current unit, which typically takes 5-7 business days.
3. Refund: We can process a full refund for your purchase if you prefer.

Please (40) _____ your preferred option, and we will proceed accordingly. Rest assured that we will handle your case with the utmost priority.

Additionally, we would like to extend our apologies by offering you a complimentary 1-year extension on your product warranty. This extension will be (41) _____ to your account once we receive your response.

We value your feedback and use it to improve our products and services continually. Your experience has been shared with our quality control team to prevent similar issues in the future.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. We appreciate the opportunity to (42) _____ this situation and hope to restore your confidence in our brand.

Best regards,
Alex Chen
Customer Resolution Specialist

39. A. determined
    B. determining
    C. determination
    D. determinable

40. A. indicate
    B. indicating
    C. indication
    D. indicative

41. A. added
    B. adding
    C. addition
    D. additive

42. A. rectify
    B. rectifying
    C. rectification
    D. rectifiable

Answer Key

Part 1: Incomplete Sentences

1. A
2. A
3. A
4. A
5. A
6. A
7. A
8. A
9. A
10. A
11. A
12. A
13. A
14. A
15. A
16. A
17. A
18. A
19. A
20. A
21. A
22. A
23. A
24. A
25. A
26. A
27. A
28. A
29. A
30. A

Part 2: Text Completion

31. A
32. A
33. A
34. A
35. A
36. A
37. A
38. A
39. A
40. A
41. A
42. A

This TOEIC Reading practice test focuses on the theme of handling customer complaints via email, covering essential vocabulary, grammar structures, and comprehension skills required for effective communication in a customer service context. The test simulates real TOEIC exam conditions, helping candidates familiarize themselves with the format and improve their performance in the actual test.