Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-06

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In the future, people may no longer be able to pay for things in shops using cash. All payments may have to be made by card or using phones. Do you think this will happen one day? Why do you think some people might not be happy to give up using cash?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

 

Student answer (Band 6.0)

In the future, people may no longer be able to pay for things in shops using cash. I would strongly disagree with this statement because even with the digital advancements these days, it would not be appropriate to imagine that all the services and shopping would go cashless.

The primary reason for going cashless in the present structure of various corporations and service providers is the ease of money handling and making an infrastrure where it would be easy to trust staff. For many services and products that usually require small amount of money, using cash instead of digital payment methods is more convienient for both the customer and the service provider. Because for the businesses providing services and products like these, installing the digital payment methods can be more hassle and expensive as compared to the convenience this digital payments will add. Additionally, the digital payments systems being installed in the businesses also require additional costs for the banking and technical services that make this digital payments happen. This directly cuts dows the profit for businesses, and raising prices for these services would have negative impact on the business regarding consumer exposure.

Considering the customer's perspective, making payments digitally adds the bank service fees in many scenarios, which make the services cost more for the customer. Thus, the already cheap services gets expensive relatively in the proportions as compared to direct cash services. This is a considerable factor for the customer who gets charged for the same service because just because it is digitally processed.

Also, many people who think convervatively about the cash handling and bank frauds, would always prefer payments made in cash and dealing in cash directly rather than digital methods. Considering the businesses' side, all the payments made digitally goes directly in the bank and then retrieving those funds for the business expenditure adds further complexity in the way a business run.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear from the opening: you disagree that shops will become entirely cashless, and you give relevant reasons, including the costs of digital systems, customer fees, and concerns about fraud. You also address why some people would resist giving up cash. However, the two parts of the question are not developed equally: the reasons businesses may retain cash receive more explanation than why individuals might be unhappy, and the discussion of fraud and preference for cash is brief. Some claims, such as digital payments necessarily reducing business profits, would be stronger with a specific example or clearer explanation. To develop the response further, explain how cash helps people who lack access to banking or technology, and support your main points with a relevant example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction states your view, followed by paragraphs presenting business and customer perspectives. Linking expressions such as “Additionally,” “Thus,” and “Also” help signal relationships between points. However, progression is not always smooth. The second paragraph combines several ideas about small transactions, installation costs, bank charges, and consumer exposure, so its central point becomes difficult to follow. The final paragraph introduces both customers’ concerns and business fund access without clearly connecting them. Some transitions, including “Considering the customer’s perspective,” feel mechanical, and “these services” has an unclear reference. Give each paragraph one main focus, use clearer links between cause and consequence, and add a conclusion that restates your position.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “digital payment methods,” “bank service fees,” “bank frauds,” and “business expenditure.” These terms make the subject clear, and you attempt more formal expressions such as “consumer exposure” and “additional complexity.” However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, which limits precision: “consumer exposure” does not clearly express the intended effect on demand, while “cash handling” and “digital payments happen” could be phrased more naturally. There are also spelling errors, including “infrastrure,” “convienient,” and “convervatively.” Aim for precise, conventional collocations and proofread spelling; for example, use “consumer demand” where appropriate and “cash transactions” for payments made directly in cash.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex structures, including a conditional construction in “Because for the businesses … installing … can be more hassle” and a relative clause in “a considerable factor for the customer who gets charged.” The overall meaning is generally understandable, but some sentence structures are incomplete or awkward. “Because for the businesses…” is a dependent clause presented as a sentence, and “which make the services cost more” has a subject–verb agreement error. Other examples include “the already cheap services gets expensive” and “all the payments made digitally goes directly in the bank,” where plural subjects take singular verbs. Review agreement, articles, and sentence boundaries, and revise long sentences so each clause has a clear grammatical structure.

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