You are not happy about a service you received a couple of days ago from a company and you have decided to complain about it. Write a letter to the company to complain about the poor service you received from its employee. In your letter express: - why you went to the shop/office - how the employees behaved to offend you - what you expect the company to do
Sample Response
Dear Sir or Madam, Recently I went to your office to inquire about the air conditioner repair services that you offer at residential homes. But your staff members were not professional at all, to say the least. One of my air conditioners had not been functioning properly for the last couple of days. So, it was an emergency situation for me to get my AC fixed as soon as possible to survive in this terribly hot weather. But, when I visited your office last week, I was kept waiting for a long time just to talk to someone. On top of that, when I was finally able to talk to one of your experts, he did not seem to be too interested in listening to my problems. To tell you the truth, I didn’t expect such disturbing behaviour from a company like yours, especially, when I drove about 45 minutes to arrive at your office. Anyway, I did not lodge a complaint, but I felt offended by such behaviour. Therefore, I would highly appreciate it if you get all of your AC repair experts to value all of your visiting customers and solve their problems like true professionals. Yours faithfully, Rabid Menon
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Fix formal transition Original: But, when Suggested revision: However, when Why it matters: The original combination uses unnecessary punctuation and an informal sentence opener.
- 2. Fix clause link Original: especially, when Suggested revision: especially since Why it matters: The unnecessary comma is removed and 'since' clearly gives the reason for the disappointment.
- 3. Use polite conditional Original: if you get all of your AC repair experts to Suggested revision: if you could instruct all your AC repair experts to Why it matters: The conditional request requires a polite modal rather than the present-tense verb 'get'.
- 4. Improve word order Original: Recently I went Suggested revision: I recently went Why it matters: Placing the subject first creates a smoother opening after the salutation.
- 5. Make wording concise Original: the air conditioner repair services that you offer at residential homes Suggested revision: your residential air-conditioning repair service Why it matters: The revision expresses the service more compactly and precisely.
- 6. Use formal contrast Original: But your staff members Suggested revision: However, your staff members Why it matters: A formal connector better suits a complaint addressed to a company.
- 7. Remove informal aside Original: at all, to say the least Suggested revision: at all Why it matters: The conversational aside weakens the otherwise formal complaint.
- 8. Use direct wording Original: had not been functioning properly Suggested revision: had not been working properly Why it matters: The simpler verb sounds more direct without changing the meaning.
- 9. Organise the complaint Suggested revision: Use separate paragraphs for the visit's purpose, the staff's conduct, and the requested remedy. Why it matters: Paragraphing by function would make the complaint easier for the company to process.
- 10. Identify the encounter Suggested revision: Clarify whether one employee or several employees caused the delay and dismissive treatment. Why it matters: The letter shifts between plural staff and one expert, leaving responsibility slightly unclear.
Suggested Rewrites
- But, when However, when
- especially, when especially since
- if you get all of your AC repair experts to if you could instruct all your AC repair experts to
- Recently I went I recently went
- the air conditioner repair services that you offer at residential homes your residential air-conditioning repair service
- But your staff members However, your staff members
Why this response received Band 7.0
The complaint has a clear formal purpose and gives relevant, well-sequenced details about the urgent repair enquiry, the wait, and the employee's dismissive response. The main weakness is that the requested remedy remains broad and some expressions are exaggerated or awkward. The highest priority is to state a specific action the company should take while tightening collocations and sentence punctuation.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Detailed feedback by IELTS writing criterion after the annotated essay.
Task Achievement
All three bullet points are addressed in an appropriately formal complaint, but the expected remedy is expressed only in broad terms.
Request a concrete outcome, such as an apology, a prompt repair appointment, or staff training, and specify when a response is expected.
Coherence and Cohesion
The account progresses clearly from the reason for visiting to the offending conduct and the requested response, though several connectors are repetitive.
Organise the complaint into distinct paragraphs and vary or remove repeated opening linkers such as 'But' and 'On top of that'.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is sufficiently varied for a formal complaint, but phrases such as 'disturbing behaviour' and 'solve their problems like true professionals' lack precision.
Use more measured formal collocations, such as 'dismissive conduct', 'address customer concerns', and 'arrange an urgent repair'.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
The response uses a range of complex structures with generally clear control, although comma placement and the final conditional request are awkward.
Revise the closing request to a controlled form such as 'I would appreciate it if you ensured that your staff treated customers professionally'.
Use this task for your next draft
Feedback is more useful when you actively apply it in a draft, rather than only recognising improvements on the page.
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