Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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 unsatisfied online shopping experience with you. After a strong recommandation of one of my friend, I order a jacket online from your website on 21th June. I carefully checked all the descriptions under the picture of that particular jacket and compared with my body measurements before purchaging.

However, upon the parcel arrived on 27th June, the size did not fit me. As per the description it was a medium in size but I received small may be. Because for all other clothings, medium size fits me perfectely. I felt really disappointed because it was my first purchage for this winter and I was super excited to wear it in a college.

It is unwearable to me and a complete wastage if it is kept at home.I would appriciate if it can be replaced. My classes are starting within 15 days and I have not bought any other winter cloth. So, please provide me the information on return application and send me replacement for bigger size as soon as possible.

I look forward for your prompt response and action to resolve this problem.

Yours sincerely,

Rahul

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

You successfully covered all three bullet points required in the task instructions. You provided clear details of the purchase, including the date of purchase (21st June) and the item description (a jacket). You clearly described the problem, explaining that the jacket was too small despite matching your usual size and the website's description. Furthermore, you explained why you need a replacement urgently, citing that your classes start in 15 days and you have no other winter clothes. The tone of the letter is appropriate, and all parts of the prompt are well-addressed with relevant and extended ideas. Therefore, this performance meets the criteria for Band 7.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

Your letter follows a clear logical progression, starting with the purchase details, moving to the problem, and concluding with the request for replacement and a prompt response. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct ideas, such as grouping the purchase information in the first paragraph, the delivery issue in the second, and the urgency in the third. You used some cohesive devices effectively, like 'However' and 'As per the description'. However, there are minor issues with referencing and flow, such as the slightly disjointed sentence 'It is unwearable to me and a complete wastage if it is kept at home.I would appriciate...' where spacing is missing. Overall, the organisation is clear and logical, earning a Band 7.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrated an adequate range of vocabulary for this task, successfully attempting less common items and phrasing such as 'prompt response', 'body measurements', and 'dissatisfied'. However, there are several spelling and word choice errors throughout the text. For example, 'recommandation' should be 'recommendation', 'order' should be in the past tense 'ordered', 'purchaging' should be 'purchasing', 'clothings' should be 'clothing', 'perfectely' should be 'perfectly', 'wastage' is slightly unnatural compared to 'waste', and 'appriciate' should be 'appreciate'. While these errors do not impede communication, they restrict your lexical score to a Band 6.0 because they show some inaccuracy in spelling and word formation.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You attempted a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as conditional and prepositional phrases (e.g., 'After a strong recommendation of one of my friends, I ordered a jacket...'). There are, however, a number of grammatical errors and awkward phrasings. For instance, 'unsatisfied online shopping experience with you' is unnatural (better: 'dissatisfied with an online purchase'), 'upon the parcel arrived' should be 'when the parcel arrived', and 'received small may be' has incorrect word order. Additionally, there is a missing article in 'wear it in a college' (should be 'to college'). Because errors in grammar and punctuation occur frequently alongside your complex structures without fully impeding communication, this warrants a Band 6.0.

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

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