Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-24

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,

My name is Manan Modi. Recently, I purchased a pair of shorts and T-shirts from your website. However, I am not satisfied with the quality of the clothes.

To begin with, I bought these clothes 4 days ago, and I got the delivery yesterday. I paid around 125 CAD for this purchase. Moreover, the order number was B-7625 and it was two pairs of blue colour shorts and three oversize printed T-shirts.

Nevertheless, there are some problems with my purchase. First and foremost, I got completely different colour shorts, as I ordered blue colour and I got light blue colour. Furthermore, print quality on T-shirts was not good. The print was fading and cracking.

I would like an urgent replacement because I bought this cloths for my brother's wedding and I need to ware them on sangit. Now, I do not have time to place a new order; hence, I need a replacement as soon as possible.

I am looking forward to hearing back from you at ealiest. Let me know If you need more details of my purchase.

Yours faithfully,

Manan.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The student covers all bullet points of the task effectively. The details of the purchase are clearly provided, including the order number (B-7625), date, and items bought. The problems are explicitly described, such as the incorrect shade of blue for the shorts and the fading print quality on the T-shirts. Furthermore, the writer explains the urgency of needing a replacement by mentioning a brother's wedding and the 'sangit' ceremony. The tone is appropriate for a formal complaint letter and the purpose is clear throughout. The response satisfies all prompt requirements nicely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter is logically organised with a clear beginning, middle, and end. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different points, such as purchase details, specific problems, and the urgent request for a replacement. Cohesive devices are used adequately, including phrases like 'To begin with', 'Moreover', 'Nevertheless', and 'First and foremost'. While some transitions feel slightly formulaic, the progression of ideas is clear and easy to follow, resulting in a cohesive overall arrangement.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, with appropriate terms related to online shopping such as 'purchase', 'delivery', 'order number', and 'replacement'. However, there are some lexical and spelling errors, such as 'cloths' instead of 'clothes', 'ware' instead of 'wear', and 'ealiest' instead of 'earliest'. The student attempts some less common vocabulary like 'fading and cracking', but the range remains somewhat limited overall, preventing a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The student demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'I would like an urgent replacement because I bought this cloths for my brother's wedding...' Grammatical control is generally fair, though there are noticeable mechanical and grammatical errors like 'I got the delivery yesterday' (rather than 'it was delivered') and the spelling/word choices noted previously. Punctuation is mostly accurate, and errors do not impede communication.

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

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