Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-03

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You recently bought a jacket, but when you got home, you discovered it was
damaged. When you took it back to the store, you were told that merchandise
cannot be returned.

Write a letter to the store manager. In your letter:
• describe the problem with the jacket.
• explain what happened when you tried to return it.
• say what you would like the manager to do.

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 6.0)

Dear Sir or madam

I am writing this letter to express my dissatisfaction to you about the purchase I did from your store few days back. I bought a jacket and I did not check any damage at the store but when I reached my house I found out that the jacket was ripped from the back. There are tiny holes on the jacket as well at the shoulder area of it.

When I came back to return the item on same day at your store. The front person who was at shift told me that they can not take this item because it was written in their policy that there company did not allow the return on any purchase.

Employees also told me that I had to contact the manager if I want to discuss anything on this issue. I would request you to take action on this matter as soon as possible. I would love to take even fifty percent refund on this item return.

Best Regards,

Sukhman

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

You have addressed all three bullet points required by the task: describing the damage, explaining the store's refusal to provide a refund, and stating your desired outcome. The tone is appropriate for a formal letter of complaint. However, the development of ideas is somewhat basic. For instance, while you mention the jacket was 'ripped' and had 'tiny holes', providing more specific details about the location or extent of the damage would have strengthened the letter. Similarly, the request for a refund could be more persuasively framed. Overall, the response covers the requirements well enough to satisfy the task, but it lacks the depth of detail that would elevate it to a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organized into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the narrative. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'When I came back' and 'Employees also told me' to link your ideas. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes a bit mechanical. The transition between the description of the damage and the interaction with the staff could be smoother. Additionally, the use of referencing is occasionally unclear, such as in the phrase 'that there company', which is a grammatical error that also affects cohesion. Improving the variety of linking words would help the letter feel more natural and cohesive.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey your message clearly, such as 'dissatisfaction', 'merchandise', and 'policy'. However, there are some noticeable errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'purchase I did' (instead of 'purchase I made') and 'front person' (instead of 'sales assistant' or 'member of staff'). The phrase 'that there company' is also an error in word usage. While these errors do not impede communication, they indicate a limited range of vocabulary for more complex or formal contexts. To improve, focus on learning common collocations used in business correspondence.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text. Examples include 'I did not check any damage at the store' (should be 'check for any damage'), 'on same day' (missing article 'the'), and 'there company' (should be 'their company'). Punctuation is generally functional, but there are some issues with sentence boundaries, such as starting a sentence with 'The front person...' after a period when it could have been connected to the previous thought. While the meaning is always clear, the frequency of these errors prevents a higher score.

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

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