Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-10-03

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 5.0)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am writing to inform you that I purchased an item from your store which I discovered was damaged but when I returned it back, it was rejected.

Actually, the item I bought was a jacket and it was two days ago when I visited the outlet to buy a T-shirt for my husband that I saw the wear on the manique and immediatly i saw the jacket,I loved it, which made me to ask the sells person to package it without checking the cloth out. However, Ihad to try it on immediately I got home, that was when i discovered that the inner sleeve and the colar is torn and I had to return it immediately.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.5

Your response addresses the task only partially, and importantly, it falls well short of the required minimum length of 150 words, containing only 121 words. While you mention buying a damaged jacket, describe seeing wear on the mannequin, and note that the store rejected your return, you fail to clearly state what specific action you would like the manager to take regarding a refund, exchange, or store credit. To move to a higher band, you must ensure you meet the minimum word count requirement and fully develop all parts of the prompt, including a clear call to action for the store manager.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

There is some basic organisation in your letter, but it lacks a clear overall progression and logical paragraphing. Your second paragraph is a single, extremely long run-on sentence that crams multiple ideas together without proper breaks. Cohesive devices are inadequate or inaccurate, such as using 'immediatly i saw the jacket,I loved it, which made me to ask...', which creates a mechanical and confusing flow. To improve, you need to divide your writing into clear, logical paragraphs, use referencing carefully, and employ appropriate cohesive devices to connect your ideas smoothly rather than linking everything with commas and conjunctions.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

Your vocabulary range is limited but minimally adequate to convey your basic message. You attempt some less common vocabulary, but this leads to noticeable errors in spelling, word choice, and collocation, such as 'manique' instead of mannequin, 'sells person' instead of salesperson, and 'colar' instead of collar. Additionally, 'returned it back' contains unnecessary repetition. These errors cause some difficulty for the reader. To achieve a higher band, you should expand your range of vocabulary, ensure correct word forms and spellings, and use more precise terms relevant to shopping and customer service.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You display a limited range of sentence structures, relying heavily on long, convoluted sentences that lead to frequent errors. There are issues with punctuation, run-on structures, and awkward phrasing, such as 'that was when i discovered that the inner sleeve and the colar is torn' where subject-verb agreement is affected ('colar is' instead of plural 'are' or modifying the structure). Frequent errors in punctuation and sentence boundaries can cause difficulty for the reader. To improve your grammar score, aim to write a mix of shorter, clear simple sentences alongside well-controlled complex structures, paying careful attention to punctuation and agreement.

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

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