Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-07-26

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You have bought some clothing online and are not satisfied with your purchase.

Write a letter to the company that you bought the clothing from. In your email:

• give details of the purchase
• describe the problem
• explain why you need a replacement urgently

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

My name is Kevin, and since being your regular customer, I used to made few purchases from your store via online. But unfortunately, I did not received correct item recently, as I paid extra money for the limited edition product is heated winter jacket.

Provide the some context, over the few weeks, I decided to buy winter jacket from your company. After getting a huge discount sale on this limited winter jacket, which has an excellent feature such as a heated jacket will keep temperature warm inside the jacket. In addition, that jacket has awesome design definitely look likes a eyes catchy.

Upon a delivery of my online order, I checked immediately that it had to belongs to me and after the opening the my package. I tried on myself, as it was exactly look like I wanted. However, it was not heated feature inside in it.

Based on my current situation as usual winter will starts, i would like to request for urgent replacement at the earliest.

Thank you.

Regards,

Kevin Mitchell

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The letter addresses all three bullet points: purchase details, the problem, and the need for an urgent replacement. However, the development of these points is somewhat hampered by unclear phrasing. For instance, the description of the product as a 'heated winter jacket' is clear, but the explanation of why the replacement is needed is quite brief and lacks a compelling reason beyond the upcoming winter. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal complaint, though the lack of clarity in the second paragraph makes the narrative slightly difficult to follow. To improve, ensure that each point is explained with more precision and logical flow.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is organised into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure of the complaint. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or inaccurate. Phrases like 'Provide the some context' are non-standard and disrupt the flow. Referencing is occasionally unclear, such as in the sentence 'I checked immediately that it had to belongs to me', where the pronoun usage is confusing. While there is an attempt to use linking words, the transitions between ideas are sometimes abrupt. Improving the variety and accuracy of cohesive devices will help the text read more naturally.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but shows significant limitations. There are several instances of awkward word choices and non-standard collocations, such as 'eyes catchy' instead of 'eye-catching' and 'used to made' instead of 'have made'. The student attempts to use descriptive language, but the execution is often imprecise. While the meaning is generally clear, the frequent errors in word formation and collocation prevent the response from reaching a higher band. Focusing on learning common collocations and standard phrasal verbs would be highly beneficial.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout. Common issues include tense inconsistencies ('I used to made', 'did not received'), subject-verb agreement errors ('it had to belongs'), and incorrect preposition usage ('inside in it'). These errors are noticeable and occasionally distract the reader, although they do not completely impede communication. To improve, the student should focus on basic tense consistency and subject-verb agreement, as these are foundational elements that currently undermine the accuracy of the writing.

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