General Training Writing Task 1 · formal · complaint

Formal complaint letter regarding a faulty camera repair

You have bought a new camera but when you got it home you found it had some problems. You returned the camera and spoke to the company representative a week ago but the camera has still not been repaired.

Write a letter to the company. In your letter:

introduce yourself
explain the situation
say what action you would like the company to take

Write at least 150 words. You do not need to write any addresses. Begin your letter: Dear ...,

Band 8 sample letter

Dear Customer Service Manager,

I am writing to express my dissatisfaction regarding a faulty camera I purchased from your store on 10 October. My name is Arthur Pendelton, and I am a frequent customer at your branch.

Upon arriving home with my new Lumix GX9, I discovered that the shutter mechanism was jammed and the LCD screen flickered incessantly. I returned to the store on 15 October to report these defects. Your representative, Sarah, confirmed the faults and assured me that the camera would be sent to your technician for an urgent repair, promising that I would be contacted within three working days. It has now been a full week since that conversation, yet I have received no updates, and the store remains unresponsive to my follow-up inquiries.

Given the significant delay, I request that you either provide a definitive completion date for the repair by the end of this week or process an immediate full refund. I have attached a copy of my purchase receipt and the repair reference number for your convenience.

I look forward to your prompt response regarding this matter.

Yours faithfully,

Arthur Pendelton

188 words. Names and details are invented; write your own.

Why this scores well

A Band 8 response clearly addresses all three bullet points with a coherent narrative and a consistently formal tone. The most common mistake for Band 6 candidates is failing to mention specific details, such as the product name or the representative's name, resulting in a generic and unconvincing letter.

Write to an organisation or someone you do not know: open with Dear Sir or Madam, close with Yours faithfully.
If you know the person's surname, use Dear Mr or Ms and close with Yours sincerely.
No contractions, no slang; polite indirect requests such as I would be grateful if you could.

Useful phrases from the letter

dissatisfaction: a feeling of unhappiness because something is not good
incessantly: continuing for a long time without any interruption
defects: faults or imperfections in a product or machine
unresponsive: not reacting or answering to communication or requests
definitive: final and settled with no possibility of change
prompt: done or delivered without any delay

Write your own and get a band

Answer this prompt in a timed General Training writing test and get a band for task achievement, coherence, vocabulary and grammar, with the sentences to fix.

Practise IELTS General writing

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Frequently asked questions

Is this letter formal or informal?

Formal. Write to an organisation or someone you do not know: open with Dear Sir or Madam, close with Yours faithfully.

How long should an IELTS General Training letter be?

At least 150 words, and 160 to 200 is the comfortable range. Spend about 20 minutes on it and leave 40 for Task 2, which carries twice the marks.