Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-28

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 this letter to draw your attention to my problem which is i faced in your woodland clothing store. I bought a one leather jacket from your stote yesterday on flat 50% off as seasonal offer going on.

You one of employee guide me on this jacket about pricing and sizes and after trying the two or three jackets i select one jacket which is black in colour.I paid anount through my credit card and they pack the jacket once i done the payment.

Today when i wear and noticed that one main front button is missing and without button i am not able to wear or zip the jacket properly. After that i called at your store and describe my problem to your front counter staff, first they denied and not paying attension to my complaint thereafter they cut my phone call which is so embarrsing for me. However i request them to place a button if possible.

So i am requesting to you kindly replace my jacket or refund my amount fully. you revert

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response successfully covers all three bullet points required by the prompt. You described the problem with the jacket ("one main front button is missing"), explained what happened when you tried to return it ("merchandise cannot be returned" context reflected through the staff denying the complaint and hanging up), and stated what you would like the manager to do ("replace my jacket or refund my amount fully"). The tone is appropriately formal for a complaint letter despite some grammatical lapses. All parts of the task are addressed adequately, earning a solid band score.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The letter shows a clear overall progression from describing the purchase to the issue, the staff's reaction, and finally your demand. However, paragraphing is somewhat problematic; the text lacks proper indentation and some paragraphs are overly fused (e.g., combining the store visit and the purchase details). Cohesive devices are basic and sometimes repetitive, such as the frequent use of "and" or sequential transitions like "after that" and "thereafter". Referencing is generally clear, but the logical flow between sentences could be enhanced with better punctuation and varied transitional markers.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is generally adequate to communicate the core message, featuring words like "merchandise," "seasonal offer," and "credit card." However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward word choices, such as writing "i faced in your woodland clothing store" instead of "at your store," and "I bought a one leather jacket from your stote" containing a typo and grammatical mismatch. Attempts at less common vocabulary are limited, and spelling slips ("stote" for store, "anount" for amount, "attension" for attention, "embarrsing" for embarrassing) restrict the lexical score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writing demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but grammatical control is weak. There are frequent errors in article usage, subject-verb agreement, and sentence boundaries (e.g., run-on sentences like "You one of employee guide me..." and comma splices). Capitalisation is also inconsistently applied at the beginning of clauses ("i faced," "you revert"). While the meaning remains mostly clear despite these errors, the high frequency of basic grammatical mistakes prevents the response from achieving a higher band score.

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

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