Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-02

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 5.0)

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am very disappointed with your online delivery. Many times, I purchased online items,but Five days ago, I bought some clothes for my daughter's birthday , Like two pair of pajamas ,pants and shirt as well as undergarments.

Here , I describe that two pieces of pajamas were not reached me as well as one pair of pants and shirt is fully colorsless. I am not satisfied about this shopping.

Here, you should replace all these clothes

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

You identify the purchase as clothing bought five days ago and mention the missing pyjamas and discoloured trousers and shirt. However, the task is addressed only partially: the purchase details are incomplete, the problem is not described clearly enough to identify the items and quantities with confidence, and you do not explain why a replacement is urgent. The request, “you should replace all these clothes,” is present but does not specify a suitable action or timeframe. The response is also substantially below the required 150 words, leaving little room to develop the three required points. Add an order date or reference, clarify exactly what arrived and what was missing or faulty, and explain the time-sensitive reason for needing replacements.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

There is some basic organisation: you begin with your dissatisfaction, then describe the order and its problems, and finish with a request. This gives the reader a general sense of the purpose of the letter. However, the progression is limited, and the repeated opening “Here” does not create a clear link between ideas. The first paragraph also combines the purchase details and the complaint in a way that makes the information harder to follow. Use separate paragraphs for the order, the faults, and your urgent request, and connect them with straightforward transitions such as “Unfortunately” and “As I need these for…”. A conventional closing would also make the letter feel more complete.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use basic vocabulary relevant to the situation, including “online,” “purchased,” “clothes,” and “replace,” so the general complaint can be understood. However, the range is limited, and several word choices or forms make details unclear. “Online delivery” is less precise than describing the order, while “fully colorsless” does not clearly convey the condition of the items. “Two pair of pajamas” also needs a more accurate quantity phrase. Choose specific terms for the problem, such as “missing from the parcel” and “faded” or “discoloured,” and use clothing names consistently. More precise vocabulary would help the company understand exactly what went wrong and what remedy you expect.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response mainly uses simple sentence patterns, with a few attempts to combine ideas, such as “I bought some clothes… Like two pair of pajamas…”. These attempts are not consistently controlled, and errors sometimes make the relationships between items and problems difficult to follow. For example, “two pieces of pajamas were not reached me” has an incorrect verb construction, and “one pair of pants and shirt is” has agreement and sentence-structure problems. There are also inconsistent capitalisation and punctuation, including the capitalised “Like” mid-sentence and spaces before commas. Practise complete sentences with clear subjects and verbs, for example, “The parcel did not contain two pairs of pyjamas.”

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

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