How to write an IELTS complaint letter
5 min read · Updated 7 October 2026
Complaint letters are among the most common General Training tasks: a faulty product, a late delivery, poor service, a noisy neighbour, broken heating. They can be formal (to a company), semi-formal (to a landlord or neighbour), or occasionally informal.
The structure
- Purpose: what you are complaining about, in one sentence. "I am writing to complain about a bookcase I ordered from your website, which arrived both late and damaged."
- The background: what, when, where. Give specifics: a date, an order number, a price.
- The problem: exactly what went wrong, and how it affected you.
- The solution: what you want, as a clear request, ideally with a deadline.
- Closing line: "I look forward to your prompt reply."
The three bullet points almost always map onto steps 2, 3 and 4.
Describe the problem with detail
| Vague | Detailed |
|---|---|
| The product was bad. | One of the side panels was cracked and several screws were missing. |
| The service was slow. | We waited fifty minutes for our main course. |
| The noise is a problem. | The drilling starts at seven in the morning, including on Saturdays. |
Details are what take a bullet point from "covered" to "developed", which is the difference between band 6 and band 8 for Task Achievement.
Ask for something specific
The "say what you want" bullet needs a clear answer. A refund, a replacement, a repair, an apology, a change of schedule. Add a deadline or a detail:
I would therefore like you to collect the damaged item and send a complete replacement within the next seven days.
Firm but polite
You can be clearly unhappy without being rude. Strong but acceptable: extremely disappointing, unacceptable, I expect, I would therefore like you to. Too much: ridiculous, a joke, useless, I demand.
In a semi-formal complaint, to a landlord or a neighbour, soften it further. You want the problem solved and the relationship kept: "I wondered if we could find a solution together."
Model complaints
- Formal, to a company: complaint about a late, damaged delivery
- Semi-formal, to a landlord: asking for the heating to be fixed
- Semi-formal, to a neighbour: asking them to reduce building noise
Check your complaint
Write one of the tasks above or paste your own into the letter checker. It checks that each bullet is developed, that the tone suits the reader, and that the request is clear.
Check your letter
Paste any letter task and your letter. Get a band, with every bullet point, your tone and the format checked.