Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-04

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You live in a small apartment building with a parking lot in back, and you often cannot find an empty parking space when you get home from work.

Write a letter to your landlord. In your letter
• describe the situation.
• explain why it bothers you.
• suggest something the landlord could do to solve the problem.

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear ____

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear Kim,

I am writing this letter to inform you about the issue related to the parking. Although, there are parking lots arranged according to the occupancy of residents staying in the premise yet, recently the problem for parking has become a more serious concern than before.

So, all this process took place over the last couple of weeks. Every time whenever I came back from either my work or university, it became hectic for find a suitablr parking space for my car. However, than i have to find a alternative solution which is street parking ,adding up to extra roadside tickets. Moreover, it become a combersome task for me to remove snow around while wearing formals .

yours faithfully,

prem.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The letter covers all three bullet points: describing the situation, explaining the impact, and suggesting a solution. However, the response is significantly under the 150-word minimum, which limits the development of your ideas. The suggestion for the landlord is also missing; you mention the problem but fail to propose a specific action, such as assigning parking spots or issuing permits. To improve, you must expand on your points and ensure you provide a clear, actionable suggestion to the landlord. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter, but the lack of length and the missing solution prevent a higher score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter is short and lacks clear paragraphing, which makes the structure feel disjointed. While there is an attempt to use cohesive devices like 'Although' and 'Moreover', the flow is interrupted by grammatical errors and awkward phrasing. The progression of ideas is logical, but the lack of development makes the overall coherence feel thin. To improve, ensure you use clear paragraph breaks for each section of the letter (introduction, body, and conclusion) and use a wider variety of linking words to connect your sentences more fluidly.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is adequate for the task but quite basic. You use some relevant terms like 'occupancy' and 'residents', but there are several errors in word choice and spelling, such as 'suitablr' and 'combersome'. The phrase 'remove snow around while wearing formals' is slightly unnatural. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise vocabulary related to the context of housing and parking, and ensure you proofread for spelling mistakes. Expanding your range of collocations will also help you express your ideas more naturally.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

There are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede the flow of your writing. For example, 'Every time whenever I came back' is redundant, and 'than i have to find a alternative' contains both a spelling error and an incorrect article usage. The sentence structure is mostly simple, with limited attempts at complex sentences. Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with capitalization and comma usage. To improve, focus on mastering basic sentence structures, ensuring subject-verb agreement, and using articles correctly. Practicing complex sentence construction will also help improve your range.

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

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