Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-09-12
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The graphs below show the number of drivers in Britain who have been caught driving too fast by speed cameras placed on roads, and the number of people killed in road accidents, over an eight-year period since the introduction of speed cameras. The tables show the results of a survey on people's opinions on speed cameras.
Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information below.
SPEED CAMERA FINES and ROAD ACCIDENT FATALITIES
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The line graphs illustrate number of people who got fines due to driving beyond the speed limit and number of people who got killed in road accidents because of driving recklessly over a span of eight years.
First graph depicts the data of number of people who get caught by the speed camera installed on the roads to track the driving speed as well as to give fines to those who are driving beyond the specified limit. We can see that the number of people who got fines has increased drastically over the period of 8 years starting from 2 lakh to 16 lakh at the end of 8 years.
Another graph portray fatalities happened over the same duration starting with 3100 in first year which got declined in the fourth year to 2900 and after that the data shows a continuous upward trend till the end. Apart from this there are tables displaying the views of people on the speed camera showing a majority of people thinks that installing speed camera has no impact in reducing the accidents and 71 percent people thinks that the reason of installing camera is to raise revenue and at last majority of people thinks that there are enormous number of speed camera on roads.
In conclusion, people are driving recklessly beyond the speed limit but it is contradict to the fatalities happened which we can depict from the line graphs.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The response covers all parts of the task by describing the trends in the line graphs and summarising the survey tables. However, the overview is somewhat weak and relies on a questionable interpretation of the data rather than a clear summary of main trends. For instance, the statement 'people are driving recklessly beyond the speed limit but it is contradict to the fatalities happened' is slightly confused and imprecise. The data points are generally accurate, such as noting the increase in fines from '2 lakh to 16 lakh' (though using informal Indian numerical terms like 'lakh' is less appropriate in academic writing than millions or standard figures) and tracking the road accident fatalities. To reach a higher band, the overview should clearly synthesise the overarching trends, such as the inverse relationship between speed cameras and fines versus the fluctuations in fatalities. Overall, the task is adequately addressed.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The report has a recognizable structure with an introduction, body paragraphs, and a brief concluding sentence. However, paragraphing is underdeveloped; the second body paragraph awkwardly combines descriptions of the second line graph with the survey tables in a single, run-on block of text. Cohesive devices are used, but sometimes mechanically or awkwardly, such as 'First graph', 'Another graph', 'Apart from this', and 'at last'. Logical progression within paragraphs is occasionally disrupted by abrupt shifts from the visual graphs to the survey data without clear signposting. Referencing is mostly clear, but the lack of proper paragraph separation for the survey tables impacts the overall organizational flow of the response.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, allowing the student to communicate basic trends using terms like 'fluctuated', 'upward trend', and 'fatalities'. However, there are noticeable limitations and inappropriate choices. The use of 'lakh' is informal and culturally specific, making it unsuitable for a standard academic IELTS report. Additionally, there are awkward collocations and word choices, such as 'fatalities happened' instead of 'fatalities occurred', and the phrase 'a majority of people thinks' contains a basic subject-verb agreement error. Less common vocabulary is attempted with limited success. Spelling is generally fine, but the overall lexical range restricts the score to a solid band 5.5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as relative clauses ('number of people who got fines due to driving beyond the speed limit'). However, grammatical accuracy is inconsistent. There are missing articles ('illustrate number of people', 'First graph depicts'), awkward phrasing ('which got declined'), and agreement issues ('majority of people thinks'). Punctuation is also sparse, leading to long, run-on sentences that lack necessary commas to break up clauses. While communication is not severely impeded, the frequency of basic grammatical slips prevents the response from achieving a higher band.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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