Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-21

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,

i am writing this email to express my dissatisfaction regarding my recent purchase at your store . Actually , I bought a leather jacket with was from your latest collection but later i found the article is damaged underneath the sleeves . i tried to contact store same day but i was unable to connect with them .

Next day, when i went there and explained the issue to team they said this was limited edition and merchant has been stopped its manufacturing so exchange would not be possibe and they do not have any return policy at store which is so dissappointing because i spent a plenty of amount on this purchase.

I am not sure about any store credit policy you have but it would be great if you provide me credit back so that i can get any other product instead of jacket . As it is vivid that you are going to deduct your taxes and I am totally fine with that because it is far better than the whole loss .

i am loking forward for your response . Thank you so much for your understanding .

your Faithfully,

Sania

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The candidate has successfully covered all parts of the task prompt. The letter begins by describing the problem clearly, noting that 'the article is damaged underneath the sleeves'. Furthermore, the response explains what happened when trying to return the item, mentioning the staff's refusal due to the jacket being a limited edition with no return policy. Finally, the writer clearly states what they would like the manager to do, requesting a store credit. The tone is appropriate for a formal complaint letter, and all bullet points are addressed effectively, leading to a strong band score for this criterion.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter maintains a clear logical organisation with an appropriate greeting and sign-off, although the sign-off contains a slight capitalization and spelling slip ('your Faithfully'). Ideas are sequenced sensibly from describing the purchase and defect, to the store encounter, and finally the proposed solution. However, paragraphing is somewhat cramped, and transitional cohesive devices are basic or missing. For instance, sentences like 'Actually, I bought...' and 'Next day, when i went there...' provide basic time links, but referencing and cohesion could be smoother. Overall, the message is easy to follow, fitting the level 6 descriptors well.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully using terms such as 'dissatisfaction', 'collection', 'limited edition', and 'store credit'. However, there are notable word choice and spelling inaccuracies, such as 'merchant' instead of 'merchandise', 'possibe', 'dissappointing', and 'loking'. The phrase 'spent a plenty of amount' is also unnatural and unidiomatic. While these lexical errors do not impede overall communication, they prevent the response from achieving a higher score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as conditional and relative structures ('it would be great if you provide me credit back so that i can get any other product'). However, there are frequent punctuation and capitalization errors throughout the text, including lowercase 'i', missing commas, and spacing issues around punctuation marks. Grammatical slips such as 'with was from' and 'if you provide me credit' instead of 'provide me with credit' demonstrate a lack of thorough proofreading, placing this response firmly at band 6.

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

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