General Training Writing Task 1 · formal · complaint

Formal letter to landlord regarding heating and water

You are a student at an English language school in Brighton and are living in private accommodation with other flatmates. You have not had hot water or heating for some time. The landlord's workmen have tried to fix the problem but without success.

Write a letter to the landlord. In your letter:

state your reason for writing
describe the problems and explain how you feel
propose a solution and risk the landlord to take action

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 formally express my dissatisfaction regarding the ongoing maintenance issues at the flat I currently rent on Marine Parade.

For the past ten days, we have been without hot water or functioning central heating. While I appreciate that you sent workmen to address these defects earlier this week, their attempts were unfortunately unsuccessful, and the system remains completely inoperable. Living in such freezing conditions is becoming increasingly difficult, especially given the current weather in Brighton. My flatmates and I are finding it impossible to maintain a reasonable standard of hygiene or comfort, and we are growing increasingly frustrated by the lack of a permanent solution.

As the current situation is untenable, I request that you instruct a qualified specialist to conduct a comprehensive repair by this Friday. If the system cannot be restored immediately, I expect a significant reduction in this month’s rent to compensate for the lack of essential services. Please confirm by tomorrow whether you have arranged for a professional technician to visit the property.

I look forward to your prompt response regarding this urgent matter.

Yours sincerely,

Julian Thorne

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

Why this scores well

This response achieves Band 8 by addressing all bullet points with a clear, professional tone and providing specific, logical solutions. A common mistake for Band 6 candidates is using overly aggressive or informal language, or failing to explicitly state the consequences if the repairs are not completed.

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

tenable: Able to be maintained or defended against attack.
inoperable: Not able to be used or does not work.
defects: Shortcomings, imperfections, or faults in a system.
comprehensive: Including all or nearly all elements of something.
compensate: To give someone something to acknowledge loss or suffering.
urgent: Requiring immediate action or attention.

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.

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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.