Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-08-24

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 5.5)

Dear sir,

I my writing this letter to consider about the problem that I'm facing with sewing machine.i purchase it last week and after doing some of my work it's relevanty having problem with the finishig of sewing.because of the quality my customer were not happy and they are stay away with me.Im unable to get proper work, moreover the material I used waste largly.I have a only skill to fullfil the need of my family by sewing clothes for public.Now I face difficulties to make money instead I am in a deapth. I have to do some other work to earn for my belonging. The earnings are very low to purchase a proper amount of food for my home.

So, I request you sir, please do change my machine to a newer one or solve the problem which is appearing regularly while doing work.uts my humble request to you.

Thanking you

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

You have addressed all three bullet points required by the prompt: describing the problem, explaining the impact on your work, and stating your desired outcome. However, the development of these points is somewhat limited. While you mention the machine has a problem with 'finishig', you do not provide specific details about what is wrong (e.g., broken needle, motor failure). The explanation of the impact is clear, but the personal details regarding your financial situation are slightly tangential to the professional nature of the letter. To reach a higher band, focus more on the technical issue and the specific business consequences rather than personal financial hardship.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter follows a logical progression, moving from the introduction of the problem to the impact and finally the request for action. However, the use of cohesive devices is very limited. You rely on basic connectors like 'because' and 'moreover', but the flow between sentences is often abrupt. There is a lack of paragraphing, which makes the text appear as a single block. Using clear paragraph breaks for each main point would significantly improve the structure and readability of your letter.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

Your vocabulary is sufficient to communicate the basic message, but it is quite repetitive and contains several errors in word choice and spelling, such as 'relevanty' instead of 'relevantly' or 'recently', and 'deapth' instead of 'debt'. Phrases like 'stay away with me' are unnatural; a more appropriate expression would be 'taking their business elsewhere'. To improve, focus on learning collocations related to business and equipment, and proofread carefully for spelling errors that hinder the professional tone of the letter.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

There are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, including issues with verb tense ('I my writing', 'I purchase it'), subject-verb agreement ('customer were'), and sentence structure. Many sentences are fragmented or run-on, which makes the text difficult to follow. While the meaning is generally understandable, the high frequency of errors in basic sentence construction prevents the text from reaching a higher band. You should focus on mastering basic sentence patterns, specifically subject-verb-object structures and correct tense usage for past events.

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

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