Dear LPG,

I just want to offer a bit of advice about what happens when you find yourself on a website and want to ask a question, send some feedback or leave a message.

There are usually a few ways to get in touch and the easiest is to go to the contact page.  Usually, if you do this, an online form will pop up and all you have to do is enter your name, your email address and message.   This is often the easiest way to do it because there is less work for you to do and, when you click the ‘submit’ or a button with a similar instruction, your message is on its way. 

It is true that many website owners automatically send a copy to your email address or you might be able to opt to have this happen by clicking an extra button, but in a lot of cases you have no proof that you ever sent it, let alone when, and no record of what you wrote.  

In my experience companies who are trying to get you to buy something from them will always respond, but some government departments can be a little remiss about getting back to you. This is all fine if you are not interested in getting a response, but in the event that you expected one and it doesn’t materialise, you will probably call the organisation concerned after a reasonable length of time has passed, and when you call to ask what happened to it, you will have forgotten when you sent it and exactly what you asked for and, when you are told that they cannot find your email, you will have no proof that you ever sent it at all.

Perhaps there will never be a need to go back to it and perhaps people would see such confirmation as just another email to help clog up your inbox, but I always think that it is better to have such an email even if you don’t want it, as opposed to not having it when you could do with being able to check what you put or when you put it.

So, if you find yourself on a website contact page which gives you a choice, even though it might take a bit longer and although just filling in the form is easier, it might be worth writing your own email if you can or making a note of what you wrote and when you sent it. I think that there is some value in opting to send your message from your own emails so that you can prove it existed in the first place.

KA, Brockley Cross.

LPG found a little bit of interesting online research on the subject…

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