Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-07

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 or Madam,

I am writing this correspondence to ask for my lost bag which I left yesterday in one of your cabs with license X234 due to hurry.

This happened when I was about to squeeze in a cab yesterday and I left my Adidas kit there at the back seat owing to the comfortability and more space for other passengers. As I was traveling such a 10 kilometers route so for a minute it was out of my mind and I had my important seminar at my university. That is how I messed up.

As far as the details are concerned, it has two pockets on the exterior and has two sides. It is compact-level 20' * 22' sized bag which is grey in color with zig-zag strips. There is a zinc plated logo on the top which can get this recognized in a second.

I would really appreciate you if you could have a dig into looking for it immediately or there is any report made of found item until now from your executives, can you please inform me with the details, and the address, I will grab this on my own.

Best regards,

Navjeet Kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The letter covers all three bullet points: the loss is explained, the bag is described, and a request for assistance is made. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter to a manager. However, the explanation of how the bag was lost is slightly confusing; phrases like 'due to hurry' and 'squeeze in a cab' are a bit informal and lack clarity. The description of the bag is detailed, which is a strength. To improve, ensure that the narrative flow is more logical and professional, avoiding colloquialisms like 'messed up' or 'grab this on my own'.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organized into paragraphs, each addressing a specific requirement of the prompt. There is a clear progression of ideas from the incident to the description and finally the request. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'As far as the details are concerned' and 'As I was traveling', which help guide the reader. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical or slightly awkward, such as 'That is how I messed up'. Improving the variety and naturalness of linking words would elevate the score.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, with some specific descriptive language used for the bag (e.g., 'zinc plated logo', 'compact-level'). However, there are instances of imprecise word choice and non-standard collocations, such as 'ask for my lost bag' (should be 'inquire about' or 'report a lost bag'), 'comfortability' (should be 'comfort'), and 'have a dig into' (which is too informal/idiomatic for this context). Expanding the range of formal vocabulary would be beneficial.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The letter uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is clear, there are several grammatical inaccuracies. For example, 'I would really appreciate you if you could have a dig' is grammatically incorrect (should be 'I would appreciate it if...'). There are also issues with preposition usage and sentence construction, such as '10 kilometers route' and 'report made of found item'. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher band score.

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

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