How to handle customer complaint?

[Misty2]

My first customer complaint is a mystery to me. I'd love to hear your advice on how to handle it. Customer says she rubbed one of my CP bars on her thigh, that it burned mildly over a few days and then developed cellulitis for which she had to see her doctor, is now taking oral antibiotics and putting medicine on to clear up. Has anyone heard of a complaint like this??
I'm mystified as to how this could happen, how one bar (in a 37-bar batch) would be so off with all the mixing and mixing... and mixing and pouring that goes on and the 5% superfatting. (I check & recheck my recipes & check them off as I go. I'm SO careful.) I also wonder, how could the soap just bother a 2x2" patch on her thigh and nowhere else on her body, like her hands? I've contacted every customer of that soap and, so far, have gotten positive feedback. We retested another of the bars with good results. We rubbed the soap on our arms and left it there for hours and even overnight. No problem. Even when I'm making soap and get lye directly on my hands/arms, it doesn't do that kind of damage. Adding to the mystery is that this is from someone I've had a very strained relationship with in the past, and I was an idiot and mentioned on my personal tiny FB page that I had finally just gotten liability insurance. I feel bad for her, but I'm also suspicious it's not really the soap.
I've offered to take the soap back and refund her money but haven't heard back from her yet. I'm so upset about this.
What else should I do???
And has anyone else been through this :?:

 

[krissy]

no advice, only wishes for a good outcome. it sounds very suspicious though. if i was you, i'd contact a lawyer just in case.

 

[Deda]

be glad you have insurance.

 

[PrairieCraft]

That's too bad, there are people out there who just wait for something to have a lawsuit over. If dozens of other people have used your product with no problem I wouldn't be too worried. If I were you I'd get in touch with my lawyer to fill him/her in on the story in case you end up needing them. I also wouldn't have any more contact with this person what so ever. You offered to fix the problem for her the best way you can, now let it go and wait to see if she does something. If you try too hard to deal with her it could end up making it seem like you've done something wrong that you are trying to make amends for. There is at least one person I know that I will never give a bar of soap to and definitely wouldn't sell any to her because she is that type. People are scandalous.

 

[soapbuddy]

Sounds like BS to me. Cellulitis is a bacterial infection of the dermis - the deep layer of skin. If the soap "did" any damage, there would be damage also in the epidermis - the top layer of the skin. Soap would not reach that deep.

 

[cwarren]

I noticed you just joined and this is your first post....

cellulitis hum ... I dont think so, I have a friend whos husband has that!
What is cellulitis?

Cellulitis is a common infection of the lower layers of skin (dermis) and the subcutaneous tissues (areas underneath the skin) caused by a bacterial infection. While cellulitis sometimes develops around wounds in the skin or surgical incisions, in other cases it arises without an obvious source for the bacterial infection. Staphylococci are the bacteria that most commonly cause cellulitis, followed by Streptococci. Less commonly, other types of bacteria may cause cellulitis.

What are the symptoms of cellulitis?

Cellulitis usually begins as a small area of pain and redness on the skin. This area spreads to surrounding tissues, resulting in the typical signs of inflammation – redness, swelling, warmth, and pain. A person with cellulitis can also develop fever and/or swollen lymph nodes in the area of the infection.

Find out how cellulitis is treated »


What is cellulitis? What are cellulitis symptoms and signs?

Cellulitis is a bacterial infection of the skin and tissues beneath the skin. Cellulitis usually begins as a small area of tenderness, swelling, and redness that spreads to adjacent skin. As this red area begins to enlarge, the affected person may develop a fever -- sometimes with chills and sweats -- and swollen lymph nodes ("swollen glands") near the area of infected skin.

Unlike impetigo, which is a very superficial skin infection, cellulitis is an infection that also involves the skin's deeper layers: the dermis and subcutaneous tissue. The main bacteria responsible for cellulitis are Streptococcus and Staphylococcus ("staph"), the same bacteria that can cause impetigo. MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staph aureus) can also cause cellulitis. Sometimes, other bacteria (for example, Hemophilus influenzae, Pneumococcus, and Clostridium species) may cause cellulitis as well.

 

[AmyW]

If she has cellulitis, the only thing that might have happened is she ALREADY had it and the soap irritated it. It's not possible for one soap out of a batch of 37 that gave no one else problems, to cause anything like that. One bar wouldn't be lye heavy. An allergic reaction wouldn't cause that kind of problem, and it would have hurt her hands too. Definitely lawyer up.

 

[Dennis]

Agree. Your customer is looking for a check. A good lawyer is worthwhile.

 

[cerelife]

I'm not a doctor (but I play one on TV...OK, I just couldn't resist), but as a CT tech, I scan people all the time for cellulitus. As others have mentioned, this is a dermis (as opposed to epidermis) issue...and it's highly unlikely IMHO that your soap caused it. Soap, like anything we use on our skin, affects the epidermis...it could cause a rash, a burn, or the dreaded "alligator-skin"...but not cellulitus.
Since it was on her thigh, I'm wondering if she had an ingrown hair that was already infected (down the the dermis...could be MRSA also if she picked at it), then rubbed your soap on it and blamed you for the problem? I say don't back down an inch or accept any blame! If she has cellulitus, again IMH non-MD opinion...NOT YOUR FAULT!!

 

[Bubbles Galore]

Do nothing, say nothing. Let her put it in writing. Once it's in writing, then you would need to contact your insurance company.

Oh by the way, when did you make the soap and when did you get insurance? Hopefully, you made this soap after you got insurance. Would the insurance company be liable if you only insured yourself last week but made this soap 6 months ago?

 

[cerelife]

Good point, Bubbles...but even if this soap was made years ago and the seller had no liability insurance at all...claiming cellulitis from using a bar of soap is pretty ridiculous.

 

[Northland Naturals]

Do nothing, say nothing. Let her put it in writing. Once it's in writing, then you would need to contact your insurance company.

Oh by the way, when did you make the soap and when did you get insurance? Hopefully, you made this soap after you got insurance. Would the insurance company be liable if you only insured yourself last week but made this soap 6 months ago?

best advice. do nothing, say nothing. you have made a reasonable offer of refunding money, do nothing more. keep copies of everything and let them come to you. if you have records of feedback from other customers from that batch of soap, keep them. if, and only if, something really comes of it (and it probably won't), take it to the next level. if you have a lawyer already on retainer or someone you know as a friend, maybe seek their counsel. otherwise it's not worth a retainer fee to explore what is surely an absolute bunk claim.

 

[nursenancy]

i just had to add that cellulitis can start as a cut or bite and then can spread. i had an insect bite on my shin, scratched it in my sleep and ended up with a whopping case. she probably had something else going on there though, i agree.

 

[Bubbly Buddha]

What a nightmare. I hope this works out for you.