Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-02

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 5.5)

Dear sir,

I am writing this letter to share my dissatisfation with dress i purchased from your store .

T o begin with ,Last sunday i visited your shop in evening for bought dress for my sister engagement . the dress was in blue colour with stones on top near neck ,as its a long dress i purchased it not only i like the fabric but also blue colour is my favourite .

what is more, am facing problem with dress as its stones are coming out .it was expanse dress i purchased ever ,moreover it costs me nearly 1560 doller .

i need urgent replaement beacuse we have arranged my birthday party and everyone is busy doing preparations .however only 2 days left in my birthday event and tomorrow i have my salon appointment so thats te reason i am unable to come to your store .it would be great if u could provide y replacement to my address i will pay for delivery charges.

I look forward to your replay .

your sincerely

komalpreet kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

You have addressed all three bullet points required by the task: providing purchase details, describing the defect, and explaining the urgency of the replacement. However, the development of these points is somewhat limited. For example, the explanation regarding the urgency is slightly confusing, as you mention a birthday party and a salon appointment, which makes the reason for the urgency feel a bit cluttered. To improve, ensure your ideas are presented more clearly and directly. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter, though it could be more professional in its structure and phrasing.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow your points. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or inaccurate. For instance, 'what is more' and 'however' are used, but the transitions between sentences are sometimes abrupt. The punctuation is inconsistent, particularly with spacing around commas and periods, which disrupts the flow of the text. To reach a higher band, focus on using a wider variety of linking words more naturally and ensure that your paragraph structure is clearly defined with consistent indentation and spacing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

Your vocabulary is sufficient to communicate the main points, but it is quite basic and contains several errors in word choice and spelling. Examples include 'dissatisfation' (dissatisfaction), 'expanse' (expensive), and 'replaement' (replacement). Additionally, the phrasing 'stones are coming out' is functional but could be more precise, such as 'beads are detaching' or 'embellishments are falling off'. To improve, focus on learning the correct spelling of common words and expanding your range of descriptive adjectives to better convey the quality of the item and the nature of the problem.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

There are frequent grammatical errors throughout the letter, including missing articles ('dress i purchased'), incorrect verb forms ('for bought dress'), and issues with sentence structure. The use of 'u' instead of 'you' is inappropriate for a formal letter. While you attempt some complex sentences, they often contain errors that can make the meaning slightly difficult to follow. To improve, pay closer attention to basic subject-verb agreement, the correct use of articles, and standard punctuation. Proofreading your work for these common errors before submitting will significantly improve the clarity of your writing.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.