Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-14

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/Madam,

I hope this letter finds you well. I am writing to express my concern regarding the shirts which I bought them from your company's website. I have been a regular customer for the past 11 years, and this is the first time I have encountered such a disappointing experience.

I purchased a five different color shirts online from your store about a week ago. However, after receiving, I noticed several problems with them.

To explain the problems clearly, two shirts were torn, and all the shirts were poor quality. In additional, they were not as described in the advertisement. I spoke to one of your company representives about 3 days ago, who assured me that my all shirts would be replaced promptly. However, I have not received any update or communication from your side.

Undoubtedly, resolving my issue would promptly restore my trust and confidence in your service. I would therefore be greatful if you could replace them to rectify my problem, and ensure better service in the future. I would be great if you can promptly replce it because I want wear those shirts in my sister wedding in the next week.

Yours sincerely,

Alpeshkumar

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

The response covers all parts of the prompt well. You clearly give details of the purchase, stating that you bought five different-colored shirts online about a week ago. You successfully describe the specific problems by explaining that two shirts were torn and all of them were of poor quality. Furthermore, you explain why a replacement is needed urgently, mentioning that you want to wear them to your sister's wedding next week. Your tone is appropriately formal for a complaint letter, and all bullet points are addressed effectively and developed with relevant details, fulfilling the requirements for a Band 7.5.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organised with a clear beginning, middle, and end, following a standard correspondence layout. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate your opening, purchase details, the problem description, and your closing request. You use some cohesive devices such as 'However', 'To explain the problems clearly', and 'Undoubtedly' to guide the reader. However, referencing is occasionally faulty, such as writing 'the shirts which I bought them', which creates minor cohesion issues. Overall, the logical progression is clear throughout, making this a solid Band 7 performance.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary for the task, including phrases like 'express my concern', 'regular customer', and 'promptly restore my trust'. However, there are several word choice and collocation errors, such as 'a five different color shirts' instead of 'five different-colored shirts', 'in additional' instead of 'in addition', and spelling mistakes like 'representives' and 'greatful'. You also make repetition errors like 'replce it'. Because these lexical inaccuracies cause occasional minor hurdles for the reader, your vocabulary fits the Band 6.0 descriptors.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'I spoke to one of your company representives about 3 days ago, who assured me that my all shirts would be replaced promptly.' However, there are multiple grammatical errors throughout the letter, including pronoun redundancy ('the shirts which I bought them', 'my all shirts'), missing prepositions ('in next week'), and tense or form errors ('want wear' instead of 'want to wear'). These persistent errors mean that while communication is not impeded, error-free sentences are not in the majority, placing your grammar at a Band 6.0 level.

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

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