Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-16

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 am writing to express my dissatisfaction about the jacket that I recently purchased from your online website.

I attached the receipt of purchase along with this email. I purchased it last friday on 24th april and it delivered on sunday. It was a black color jacket with three pocket and hood.

I was very wondering to opened the parcel, but my happiness was turned to dissapointment because it was completely a diffrent jacket, that I watched on your website. It supposed to be black in color but the jacket I received was navy blue. Moreover,size was also wrong because I ordered medium size but you sent small.

I would really appreciate if You could look into this matter and assured to send its replacement on urgent basis. I need this jacket to attend my friends birthday party next monday.

I hope you will understand my situation. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully,

Vishal Goyal

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

You have successfully addressed all parts of the task requirements outlined in the prompt. You gave clear details of the purchase by mentioning the date and the attached receipt, described the specific problems regarding the incorrect color (navy blue instead of black) and wrong size (small instead of medium), and explained why you need a replacement urgently to wear it to your friend's birthday party next Monday. The tone is appropriate for a formal complaint letter, and your purpose is communicated clearly throughout. All bullet points from the prompt are fully covered with relevant and specific details. Therefore, this response meets all criteria for a strong performance on this task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

Your letter follows a logical overall organization, moving appropriately from the statement of purpose and purchase details to the specific issues and your urgent request for a replacement, ending with standard closing remarks. Paragraphing is used correctly to separate the introduction, details, problem description, resolution request, and sign-off. You make use of cohesive devices such as 'Moreover', 'Furthermore', and referencing pronouns like 'it', though some transitions feel slightly mechanical. Overall, information flows reasonably well, and the logical progression makes the letter easy for the reader to follow without any confusion.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate vocabulary range to communicate your message effectively. You successfully use task-relevant terms such as 'dissatisfaction', 'purchase', 'receipt', 'replacement', and 'parcel'. However, there are some noticeable word choice and spelling errors, such as writing 'diffrent' instead of 'different', 'dissapointment' instead of 'disappointment', and awkward phrasings like 'I was very wondering to opened the parcel' and 'on urgent basis'. While these errors do not impede communication, they restrict your score because they demonstrate occasional lapses in lexical control and word formation.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'I would really appreciate if you could look into this matter and assured to send its replacement on urgent basis.' However, your writing contains several grammatical inaccuracies, including tense and verb form errors ('it delivered' instead of 'it was delivered', 'dissapointment because it was completely a diffrent jacket, that I watched on your website', and 'assured to send' instead of 'assure that you will send'). Punctuation and capitalization errors also appear, such as capitalizing 'You' mid-sentence. Despite these errors, the meaning remains clear throughout, placing your grammatical control firmly in the competent range.

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.