Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-16
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 have using samsung fully automatic washing machine from last year. Now i am facing the problem that is its water drain automaticaly.i face this problem from last three days. i purchased this machine in last year in october month. norw this machine in under warranty. All clothes washing is pending due to washing machine. today my child goes to school without washed uniform. Kindly send service enginner to rectify this problem as soon as possible.i called my electrician for check washing machine, as per elctrician its drainage solinoide valve not proper working , but due to warranty period he suggest me contact to washing machine company.some time automatic not take water whenever we put cloth in the machine. so its cycle not completed.i humble requiested to you sir, please send service engineer to check both problems and suggest to us what is the main cause to this problem . i am waiting your response. Thank you
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The response successfully covers all bullet points required by the prompt. The student describes the problem with the equipment, explaining that the water drains automatically and the machine occasionally fails to take in water. The impact on work and daily life is clearly explained by stating that clothes washing is pending and a child's school uniform was left unwashed. Furthermore, the writer clearly states what they want the company to do by asking them to send a service engineer to inspect the machine. Although the tone varies slightly between formal and informal, the purpose of the letter is fully achieved. The ideas are relevant and appropriate for a general training letter, fulfilling all task requirements to a standard that aligns well with the Band 6 descriptors.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The letter lacks proper paragraphing, as it is written as a single, dense block of text, which negatively impacts overall cohesion. However, there is a clear communicative intent and logical progression from describing the fault to the consequences, and finally to the requested action. Cohesive devices are minimal and basic, and punctuation issues (such as missing spaces after periods and inconsistent capitalisation) disrupt the flow of reading. While the overall arrangement is understandable, the complete absence of paragraph breaks prevents the response from achieving a higher score in this category, aligning it firmly with Band 5.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, successfully using terms related to household appliances such as 'fully automatic washing machine', 'warranty period', and 'drainage solenoid valve'. However, there are notable spelling errors ('automaticaly', 'enginner', 'elctrician', 'solinoide', 'requiested') and awkward word choices ('All clothes washing is pending', 'i humble requiested'). These errors do not entirely impede communication, as the reader can still grasp the intended meaning, but they restrict the lexical score. The vocabulary is minimally adequate for the task, fitting the Band 5 descriptors.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as 'as per electrician its drainage solinoide valve not proper working , but due to warranty period he suggest me contact to washing machine company'. However, grammatical control is weak, with frequent errors including missing auxiliary verbs ('I have using'), incorrect verb forms ('water drain automaticaly'), and missing articles. Punctuation and capitalisation rules are frequently ignored throughout the text. These errors cause some difficulty for the reader and reflect a limited command of grammatical accuracy, placing the response in the Band 5 category.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.