General Training Task 1 letter
IELTS General Training Letter: Lost bag on a train
Question type: General Training Task 1: formal letter
The question
You left a bag on a train last week.
Write a letter to the railway company's lost property office. In your letter: - give details of your journey - describe the bag and what was in it - say how they can contact you
Write at least 150 words.
You do NOT need to write any addresses.
Begin your letter as follows: Dear Sir or Madam,
Write your own answer first. Then get an estimated band and corrections from our AI marker.
Answer this questionHow to approach it
- Give precise details: date, times, route, carriage.
- Describe the bag and its contents clearly so it can be identified.
- Give your phone number and email, and say when you can be reached.
Sample letter
197 words (minimum 150). Written to show the features of a Band 8-level answer.
Dear Sir or Madam,
I am writing to ask whether a bag I left on one of your trains last week has been handed in to your lost property office.
On Thursday 9 May, I travelled on the 17.45 train from Manchester Piccadilly to Leeds. I was sitting in carriage C, near the back of the train. When I got off at Leeds at about 18.40, I left my bag on the luggage rack above my seat and only realised it was missing when I arrived home.
The bag is a medium-sized black leather backpack with a brown strap and a small silver logo on the front. Inside, there was a grey laptop in a blue case, a paperback novel, a black umbrella and a pencil case containing some notes for my university course. The laptop is particularly important to me, as it contains work for my final-year project.
If the bag has been found, I would be very grateful if you could contact me on 07700 900321 or by email at a.novak@example.com. I am usually available after 3 pm on weekdays, and I can collect the bag from Leeds station at any time.
Thank you in advance for your help.
Yours faithfully,
Anna Novak
Useful language from this answer
- has been handed in to
- has been given to (lost property)
- I only realised it was missing when…
- explaining when you noticed
- medium-sized black leather backpack
- ordering adjectives correctly: size, colour, material, noun
- I would be very grateful if you could contact me
- a formal request
- Thank you in advance for your help
- a polite closing sentence
Common mistakes with this question
- Using informal language, such as 'Hi' or 'Thanks a lot', in a formal letter.
- Missing one of the three bullet points. Each one must be covered clearly.
- Ending with the wrong phrase. After 'Dear Sir or Madam', end with 'Yours faithfully'; after a name, use 'Yours sincerely'.
Now write your own answer
Reading a model helps, but writing is what improves your band. Answer this question and get an estimated band for all four criteria, with corrections taken from your own sentences.
This model answer was written by TestWise Prep to show the features of a high-scoring answer. It is not official IELTS material. Use it for ideas and language, not to memorise.