Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-14

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 or Madam,

I am writing to complain about my recent purchase from Shein(Booking Reference-CYD[redacted phone]). I have ordered three shirts from this seller that had 5 stars. I wanted them in three different colors because I was planing to wear the shirts for my next trip. I carefully read all the comments before ordered the shirts since there are many scams happening at the time. I believed this will be a good seller because it had 5 starts.

Unfortunately, I recieved the parcel today and those are in the same color. In addition to that that is not the size I ordered. I have orderd small size and I received large size shirts. I cannot wear these shirts now due to the size issue.

I would like to ask for a immidiate replacement or full refund since I had to wait more than three weeks to receive the parcel. I would be greatfull if you can look into the matter as a priority.

Kind Regards,

Thilan Senawirathna.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The letter addresses all three required points: it identifies the purchase and reference number, explains that the shirts arrived in the wrong colour and size, and requests a replacement or refund. The reason for urgency is present in the planned trip, but it is not fully explained: the writer says the shirts were intended for the trip without stating when it is or why a replacement must arrive before then. The long wait of more than three weeks supports the complaint, though it does not itself clarify the deadline. To strengthen the response, state the trip date and request delivery by a specific time. The purpose is clear throughout, with some details more fully developed than others.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter has a clear progression from the purchase, to the delivery problems, and then to the requested remedy. Paragraphing helps separate these stages, and links such as “Unfortunately” and “In addition to that” make the sequence easy to follow. The opening and closing also suit a formal complaint. Some connections are less smooth: the discussion of reading comments and scams interrupts the purchase details without clearly advancing the complaint, and “In addition to that that” contains an unnecessary repetition. A more direct sequence—order details, specific faults, urgency, and requested action—would make the progression even more efficient and cohesive.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for communicating the complaint, with relevant terms such as “purchase,” “replacement,” “full refund,” and “priority.” However, spelling errors and imprecise or unnatural expressions are noticeable, including “planing,” “recieved,” “5 starts,” and “look into the matter as a priority.” “Scams happening at the time” is also vague and does not add much to the complaint. These choices do not prevent the reader from understanding the main message, but they limit precision and control. Use standard spelling and more specific customer-service language, such as describing the items as “the wrong size” and requesting that the replacement be “sent urgently.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response uses a mix of simple sentences and more complex forms, including “I carefully read all the comments before ordered the shirts” and “I would be greatfull if you can look into the matter.” The message remains understandable, but some errors in verb forms, articles, and sentence construction reduce accuracy. For example, “before ordered” needs a gerund or a subject and verb, while “I have orderd small size” needs a correctly formed verb and article. The sentence “Unfortunately, I recieved the parcel today and those are in the same color” also has unclear reference and tense consistency. Review verb patterns after “before,” present perfect forms, and article use; these corrections would make the varied sentence structures more controlled.

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

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