Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-07-27

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,

I hope you are doing great today.

I wanted to put a request to return an order that shipped from your warehouse.

I bought a pair of shoes and shirts from your website and I got mail that they are shipped to your designated warehouse and pick from there. The delivery time was very short which was an interesting point that i checked in your company.

However, when I picked and reached to my accommodation, I felt upset as size of shirts and shoes was very small and some of them were not as same as brand I ordered. First, I tried to put replacement request on your website but there was not relevant order and option. So, I am writing here to you. My reference number is MSD[redacted phone] and I am seeking for same brand but in shoes, I need U.S.A 8 and shirts must be XL.

Thank you,

Harman

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all three bullet points of the prompt: providing purchase details, describing the problem, and explaining the need for a replacement. However, the explanation for why the replacement is needed 'urgently' is missing. The prompt explicitly asks to explain why the replacement is needed urgently, but the student only states the size and brand issues without justifying the urgency. This omission prevents the response from fully developing all parts of the task. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter, though the structure could be more professional.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organized, with a clear progression from the introduction to the problem description and the final request. Paragraphing is present, though the letter is quite short and could benefit from clearer separation between the problem description and the call to action. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'However' and 'First', but the flow is occasionally interrupted by slightly awkward phrasing, such as 'I wanted to put a request to return an order'. Overall, the message is easy to follow, and the referencing is clear.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to communicate the situation clearly. There are some instances of slightly unnatural word choices, such as 'put a request' instead of 'submit a request' or 'make a request', and 'interesting point that i checked' which is vague. The student successfully uses specific terms like 'reference number' and 'warehouse'. To reach a higher band, the student should aim for more precise collocations and a slightly more formal tone suitable for a complaint letter.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'I got mail that they are shipped' (tense inconsistency) and 'size of shirts and shoes was very small' (missing articles). Additionally, 'some of them were not as same as brand' is grammatically awkward. While these errors are noticeable, they do not impede the reader's understanding of the complaint. The punctuation is generally functional, though the sentence structure could be more varied to demonstrate better control.

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