Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-31

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You rode in a taxi yesterday. When you got home, you realized you had left your bag in the taxi.

Write a letter to the manager of the taxi company. In your letter
• explain how you lost your bag.
• describe your bag.
• ask the manager to help you find it.

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'm writing this letter to report you for my missing 7 kg bag. I booked a taxi from your company to travel from airport to hotel Fairmount. The driver was in rushed and forgot to drop my 7 kg bag. I believe he put this bag underneath the second row of the car seats. Due to this, he might not got attention to the bag while he was dropping me at the hotel.

This bag is of the brown leather material and has a 3 big compartments. There is a steel Gucci logo on the right side of the bag. Also, there are two tiny side pocket on each side. It looks like a brand new bag since I bought it recently.

I would like you to reach out to the taxi driver and ask for the missing bag. Also, please let me know if you need any further details. I hope you could have any leads on this bag.

Thanks for helping me and I look forward to your response.

Best Regards,

Ram Patel

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response successfully addresses all three bullet points: explaining how the bag was lost, describing the bag, and requesting assistance. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter to a manager. However, the opening sentence, 'I'm writing this letter to report you,' is slightly aggressive and unnatural; 'report a lost item' would be more accurate. The ideas are relevant and clearly presented, covering the necessary information to allow the manager to take action. The letter is well-structured, and the purpose is clear from the beginning.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each serving a specific purpose. The progression of ideas is easy to follow, moving from the incident to the description and finally the request. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Due to this,' 'Also,' and 'Finally,' though some transitions feel slightly mechanical. The referencing is generally clear, although the connection between the driver's actions and the loss of the bag could be smoother. Overall, the paragraphing is appropriate, and the information flows logically throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to describe the bag and the situation effectively. There are some minor inaccuracies in word choice, such as 'report you' instead of 'report a missing item' and 'in rushed' instead of 'in a rush.' The description of the bag is clear, using specific terms like 'leather material' and 'compartments.' While the range is sufficient to convey the message, it lacks the more sophisticated collocations or idiomatic expressions that would elevate the score to a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'he might not got attention' (should be 'might not have paid attention') and 'two tiny side pocket' (should be 'pockets'). Additionally, 'The driver was in rushed' is grammatically incorrect. While these errors are noticeable, they do not impede the overall meaning of the letter. The student demonstrates an attempt at complex structures, but control over verb tenses and pluralization needs improvement to reach a higher band.

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

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