Refunds And Regret: 4 Examples Of Companies Saying 'I'm Sorry'

(RTTNews) - While building a strong relationship with your customers is a key step in building any successful business, it is always hard (and often expensive) for a company to try to make amends when something goes wrong.

Recently, online foreign exchange trading company FXCM Inc, (FXCM) decided that it will forgive most clients who incurred negative balances as the result of recent announcement by the Swiss National Bank.

This is just one example of companies that have decided (or have been forced) to make amends after an unfortunate situation arose.

Here is a list of 4 recent corporate apologies (most with refunds included):

1. TurboTax Issues Refund Following Software Changes

Intuit (INTU), the maker of the popular TurboTax software, said it will a issue a refund of $25 following anger surrounding a more expensive update to the tax-preparation program.

2. Sony To Issue Refunds As Part Of FTC Settlement Over Misleading Ads

Government regulators announced a settlement with Sony over claims of false advertising, which included a refund to consumers.

3. Google To Issue Refund Over App Purchases By Kids

A separate government settlement called on Google to issue at least $19 million in refunds related to kids buying apps from the Google Play store.

4. Facebook Sorry For Grieving Dad's 'Year In Review'

This one didn't involve a publicly-announced financial payment, but it still offers an example of a company giving a mea culpa. In this one, the social networking giant apologized for an algorithm that seemed to disrespect the father of a young daughter who passed away in 2014.