Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-02

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 6.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am writing in this letter in reference to a recent purchase done by me at your store in Burnaby.

I had purchased a Gucci black leather jacket of long size, While checking it out at store I tried the sample product and after selecting it they packed me a fresh one. After reaching home I found there were small holes on the back side of the jacket.

On the second day after my purchase, I visited the store to file a complaint about the defective product, Where I was shocked to hear that there was no specific return policy for that merchandise. Furthermore, The behavior of the staff towards me was very rude and arrogant.

I am requesting you to take a look into this matter, As the product was very expensive worth 300 dollars. The store people mentioned me that the manager can help on a refund or a exchange of my jacket.

If refund is not possible, I am totally fine with an exchange also.

Your Faithfully,

Aditya Wagh

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The letter covers all three bullet points required by the task: describing the defect, explaining the failed return attempt, and stating the desired outcome. The tone is appropriate for a formal complaint. However, the development of ideas is slightly thin; for instance, the description of the damage is brief, and the explanation of the store policy could be more detailed. Despite this, the purpose of the letter is clear, and the reader is left in no doubt about the situation or the requested action. All parts of the prompt are addressed effectively.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organized with a clear progression from the purchase to the problem, the failed return, and the final request. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate these distinct stages of the narrative. Cohesive devices such as 'Furthermore' and 'If' are used to link ideas, though some transitions feel slightly mechanical. The referencing is generally clear, although the sentence structure in the second paragraph is slightly fragmented due to punctuation errors. Overall, the message is easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to convey the necessary information clearly. There are some instances of slightly unnatural phrasing, such as 'purchase done by me' instead of 'purchase I made' and 'store people' instead of 'store staff'. While the range is sufficient to communicate the situation, it lacks the precision and sophistication required for higher bands. The use of 'merchandise' is a good choice, but overall, the lexical range remains somewhat limited and occasionally imprecise.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The letter contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several punctuation errors, such as the comma splice in the second paragraph ('...jacket, While checking...') and the incorrect capitalization of words following commas ('...jacket, Where...'). Additionally, there are minor grammatical slips, such as 'a exchange' instead of 'an exchange'. While these errors are noticeable, they do not impede communication, and the meaning remains clear throughout the letter. A greater focus on sentence boundary punctuation would improve the score.

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

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