Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-11-11

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You work at home and have a problem with a piece of equipment that you use for your job.

Write a letter to the shop or company which supplied the equipment. In your letter

• describe the problem with the equipment
• explain how this problem is affecting your work
• say what you want the shop or company to do

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 to express my dissatisfaction with a product from your company, which is a laptop.

The laptop is not properly functioning and is causing multiple problems at the same time. While working on the laptop, the laptop screen continuously turning off and on and also it is even shuts down without pressing the power button. Additionally, a battery is drained considerably and it takes almost 2 hours to fully charged.

Unfortunately, this situation made me annoyed and wasting my lot of time while working. This problem not only was affecting my working hours, but it was also left me without finishing my work deadline on time. As all of my work depends on the laptop, working with the faulty laptop lost my ability to work faster and made me gutted at work.

I would like the company to replace this faulty laptop with the new one. If replacement it not possible, I will recommend fixing it as earliest possible.

I look forward to your prompt response to solve this problem.

Yours sincerely,

Krunal Patel

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

You address all three points clearly: you identify the laptop’s faults, explain their effect on your work, and request a replacement, with repair as an alternative. The examples of the screen switching on and off, unexpected shutdowns, and a slow-charging battery make the complaint specific. You also explain that the faults have affected your working hours and deadline, so the impact is clear. To strengthen the letter further, develop the requested action with practical details, such as asking the company to arrange collection or stating when you purchased the laptop. The purpose and desired outcome are already clear, but a little more precise supporting information would make the request more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter follows a clear, appropriate progression: you introduce the complaint, describe the faults, explain their consequences, and state what you want the company to do. Paragraphing helps distinguish these stages, and linking expressions such as “Additionally,” “Unfortunately,” and “If replacement is not possible” guide the reader through the points. Some connections are less smooth, however. The second paragraph combines several faults in one long sentence, while the effect on your work is repeated in closely related statements. Grouping the technical problems more cleanly and avoiding repetition would make the progression more fluent. Overall, the organisation is logical and the reader can follow your message without difficulty.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for a formal complaint, including “dissatisfaction,” “faulty,” “replacement,” and “deadline.” These choices communicate the main points, and the technical description is understandable. Some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or too informal for this letter. For example, “a battery is drained considerably” is not a natural way to describe poor battery performance, and “made me gutted at work” is conversational and unclear in this context. “Finishing my work deadline” is also an awkward combination. Aim for precise, natural phrases that suit a business complaint, such as describing the battery as losing charge quickly and saying that the problem has delayed your work.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including the contrast in “If replacement is not possible” and the paired structure “not only … but also.” The overall meaning remains understandable, but some errors in verb forms and sentence construction reduce accuracy. For instance, “the laptop screen continuously turning off and on” needs a finite verb, and “it is even shuts down” combines incompatible verb forms. In “this situation made me annoyed and wasting,” the two parts do not follow the same grammatical pattern; “it was also left me” is similarly faulty. Review verb forms after linking verbs and auxiliaries, and keep parallel structures consistent. More accurate control of these patterns would make the letter easier to read.

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

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