Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-10-25

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 7.0)

Dear Sir,

I am writing to report a bag that I accidentally left in one of your taxi yesterday and to request your assistance in recovering it.

Yesterday, when I was travelling from Surrey to Vancouver airport. I was about to start my check - in process I realised that my bag was not with me. I was getting late for my flight and maybe in hurry I forget it in the taxi.

The bag is medium-sized black backpack with two shoulder straps and small zip on the front pocket with strawberry charm on it. In that backpack , there are some clothes and two books which are really important to me because gifted by my dearest friend.

However, I don't have any contact information for the person who was driving.I would be grateful if you could contact the driver who was working yesterday from Surrey to the airport and ask if my bag is still with him. I can share details where they can drop - off or somebody can pick it from his location.

Thank you for your time and assistance.I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully,

Karan Kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 8.0

The letter covers all three required points clearly: you explain that you left the bag behind while rushing to catch your flight, describe its size, colour, straps and strawberry charm, and ask the manager to contact the driver. The detail about the books being gifts adds a personal reason for wanting the bag returned, while the offer to arrange collection makes your request practical. The purpose and polite tone are clear throughout. To make the response even more complete, include any identifying details you remember about the taxi or journey, such as the approximate time or payment method, if available. Overall, the task is handled fully, with only a small opportunity to make the search request more specific.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.5

The information follows a sensible order: you state your purpose, explain when the bag went missing, describe it, and then request help. Paragraphing separates these functions effectively, and phrases such as “However” and “I would be grateful if” help signal the shift to your request. The closing is also appropriate for a formal letter. Some links between ideas could be smoother: the sentence beginning “Yesterday, when I was travelling…” is separated from its main clause by a full stop, and the transition from the bag’s contents to the request feels slightly abrupt. Joining related details more carefully and using clear references to the driver and bag would make the progression more seamless.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for the situation, including “recovering,” “medium-sized,” “shoulder straps,” “strawberry charm,” and “assistance.” These details make the description specific, and the formal expressions suit a letter to a company manager. There are some inaccurate or less natural choices, such as “one of your taxi,” “getting late,” and “drop-off,” which reduce precision but do not prevent understanding. The phrase “some clothes and two books” is clear, though a more exact description could help identify the bag’s contents. To move beyond adequate range, aim for more natural collocations and precise wording, especially when describing the journey and arranging the return.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The letter includes both simple sentences and attempts at more complex structures, for example “I would be grateful if you could contact the driver…” and the explanation of what happened while travelling. The meaning remains clear, but some grammatical errors occur. “Yesterday, when I was travelling from Surrey to Vancouver airport” is a dependent clause presented as a complete sentence; it should be joined to the next clause. There are also errors in articles and verb forms, as in “a bag… in one of your taxi” and “I forget it,” and the clause “because gifted by my dearest friend” needs a subject and verb. Review sentence boundaries and past-tense forms, and check that each clause has a complete grammatical structure.

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