General Training Writing Task 1 · formal · complaint

Formal letter of complaint to bus company manager

There have been some problems with the bus service, especially its reliability, in your area over the last two weeks.

Write a letter to the manager of the bus company. In your letter:

describe what the problems are
explain how these problems are affecting you
suggest what you would like the company to do

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

Band 8 sample letter

Dear Mr Henderson,

I am writing to express my serious concern regarding the unreliable bus service on the Number 42 route over the past fortnight. Despite the published timetable, the service has become increasingly unpredictable.

Specifically, the 7:45 a.m. bus has failed to arrive on four separate occasions this week, and when it does appear, it is frequently delayed by over twenty minutes. This lack of consistency has made it impossible to rely on public transport for my daily commute.

These persistent delays have had a significant negative impact on my professional life. As a result of arriving late to my office, I have missed several crucial morning briefings and have received a formal warning from my supervisor regarding my attendance. The stress caused by this uncertainty is becoming unsustainable.

I suggest that you review the current scheduling and investigate why these specific morning services are being cancelled or delayed. Furthermore, I would appreciate an update on what measures you intend to implement to restore reliability to this route. I look forward to your prompt response regarding this matter.

Yours faithfully,

Julian Thorne

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

Why this scores well

A Band 8 response covers all three bullet points with specific, logical details while maintaining a professional and firm tone throughout. A common Band 6 mistake is failing to explain the personal impact clearly, often resulting in a generic list of complaints rather than a cohesive argument.

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

fortnight: a period of two consecutive weeks
unpredictable: changing in a way that cannot be known
commute: the regular journey to and from work
unsustainable: unable to be continued at the current level
implement: to put a plan or system into action
prompt: done without delay or in a timely manner

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.