Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-22

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 5.5)

Dear sir,

I am writing to complain about damged item which I had purchased from your shop and your staff not addressed my item.

My name is Priya. I want to inform you that last week I bought jacket which is in leather and its colour is brown also zipper on front of the jacket. When I reached at home I opened my jacket then I saw that its zipper is not working and also a hole near pocket of the jacket.

Furthermore, I went to shop and tell about my problem to the one staff member of your company. I honeslty speaking my situation but he cant listened to me and talked with me rudely.

I would need your help regarding my jacket and you would change my jacket within new piece.

I hope You take prompt action towards their misbehaviour staff. I would be very grateful if you would solve my problem as soon as possible.

Yours faithfully,

Priya.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response successfully covers all three bullet points required in the task instructions. You described the problem with the jacket by mentioning the broken zipper and the hole near the pocket. You also explained what happened when you tried to return it, noting that the staff member was rude and refused to listen. Finally, you stated what you would like the manager to do by requesting a replacement jacket and action regarding the staff's behavior. The purpose of the letter is clear, and the tone is appropriate for a formal complaint, even though some ideas could be slightly more extended to fully meet higher band descriptors.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter has a clear overall structure with a standard greeting and sign-off, and the information is logically divided into paragraphs. However, cohesive devices are sometimes mechanical or missing, such as in the transition 'Furthermore, I went to shop and tell about my problem'. Referencing is occasionally unclear, as seen in phrases like 'towards their misbehaviour staff', where pronouns and modifiers could be linked more smoothly. Paragraphing is present and helps separate different aspects of the complaint, though the flow between sentences could be enhanced for better progression.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, allowing you to communicate your basic message about the damaged item and the rude staff. However, the range is limited and contains noticeable errors in word choice and form, such as 'damged item' instead of 'damaged item' and 'within new piece' instead of 'with a new piece'. There are also minor spelling mistakes like 'honeslty'. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they restrict the lexical score to the band 5 level due to repetition and lack of precision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'I want to inform you that last week I bought jacket which is in leather...'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the letter, including missing articles ('bought jacket', 'went to shop'), incorrect prepositions, and tense inconsistencies ('he cant listened to me'). These errors occasionally cause difficulty for the reader and demonstrate weak control over basic sentence structures, placing your grammar score firmly in the band 5 category.

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

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