Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-11-03

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

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 7.0)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am writing to complain about an ergonomic work desk I purchased for work last week from your shop.

I like the colour and style of the desk which is exactly as it looks on website and it is one of your best-sellers. But from first day I started experiencing few problems with it's functionality. After height of three feet the desk becomes very unstable and it makes loud noise whenever I move it up or down.

Both the issues are very distrating while I am on a call or in the middle of my work. Furthermore, I am concerned about the stability and security of the work desk. I don't keep any heavy stuff on the desk as I am scared about desk's strength. It looks so fragile that heavy stuff like monitor might break it, so I am very cautious of what I put on the desk.

This looks like a defective desk, could you please send me another desk of same make and model. Please arrange the pickup of the defective desk sometime this week as next week I will be travelling.

Thank you for your assistance, I really appreciate it. I am looking forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully,

Swetta

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response8.0
Coherence and Cohesion7.5
Lexical Resource6.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy6.0
Overall7.0

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 8.0

The letter covers all three required points clearly. You identify the equipment and purchase time, describe both faults—instability above a certain height and loud noise during adjustment—and explain their effects on calls, concentration, and confidence in placing heavier items on the desk. Your request for a replacement of the same make and model, together with pickup this week, is specific and practical. The explanation is well supported by details such as being cautious about what you put on the desk. To make the response even more complete, clarify whether you expect the replacement to be delivered at the same time as collection, but this is only a minor omission; the purpose and requested action are already clear.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.5

The letter is organised in a clear sequence: purpose, description of the faults, impact on your work, and the action you want the company to take. Paragraphing supports this progression, and linking expressions such as “But,” “Furthermore,” and “so” help connect related points. The closing is appropriate and follows naturally from the request. Some connections are a little mechanical, particularly the repeated use of “desk” and the transition from the noise problem to concerns about strength. You could improve flow by grouping the two faults together, then using a concise transition to explain their separate effects. Overall, the reader can follow the message easily and understand the relationship between the problem and your request.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

Your vocabulary is adequate for the complaint and includes useful task-specific expressions such as “ergonomic work desk,” “functionality,” “unstable,” and “defective.” These choices make the problem and requested remedy clear, and you attempt some less common language. However, a few word choices or collocations are inaccurate or informal: “distrating” is misspelled, “heavy stuff” is conversational, and “security” is less suitable than a term referring to the desk’s physical safety. “Best-sellers” and the comment about the website are understandable but not especially relevant to the complaint. Aim for more precise, formal phrasing and check spelling; this would make your vocabulary more controlled and natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including clauses with “whenever,” “as,” and “that,” and the message remains clear throughout. Some grammatical errors are present, but they rarely interfere with understanding. For example, “from first day” needs an article, “After height of three feet” is missing a determiner, and “desk of same make and model” also needs an article. The apostrophe in “it's functionality” should be removed because the possessive form is “its.” There is also a comma splice in “This looks like a defective desk, could you please send me…”. Separate these clauses with a full stop or use a suitable conjunction. More consistent control of articles and sentence boundaries would strengthen accuracy.

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