Describe a time you received bad service in a shop or restaurant.
This test has appeared in 3 seasons · 3 reported by test takers
- Jan–Apr/2024
- Sep–Dec/2023
- May–Aug/2022
Reported by test takers Forecast only
Part 1
The examiner asks about you and two familiar topics. About 4–5 minutes.
Your home
- Do you live in a house or an apartment? (Why?)
- Which room do you spend the most time in? (Why?)
- What would you like to change about your home? (Why?)
- Do you think you will live there for a long time? (Why not?)
Sports
- Do you play any sports? (Why is that?)
- Which sport is the most popular in your country? (Tell me more about that.)
- What sports did you play when you were younger? (Tell me more about that.)
- Do you think children should be made to do sport at school? (Why is that?)
News
- How often do you follow the news? (Tell me more about that.)
- What kind of news are you most interested in? (Tell me more about that.)
- Did your family watch the news together when you were a child? (Why is that?)
- Do you prefer getting the news from your phone or from television? (Why is that?)
Part 2
One minute to prepare, then speak for one to two minutes.
Describe a time you received bad service in a shop or restaurant.
You should say:
- where it happened
- what went wrong
- what you did about it
and explain how you felt about the experience.
Follow-up question after your talk: Have you been back there since? / What exactly went wrong?
Part 3
A broader, more abstract discussion of the Part 2 topic. About 4–5 minutes.
what customers expect
- Can you explain why customers remember bad service for a very long time?
- How would you compare the service in small family businesses with the service in large chains?
- In general, what makes the service in a restaurant feel good?
the people who work in service jobs
- Can you explain why service jobs are difficult to do well?
- What could be done about staff who are badly trained and badly paid?
- Can you speculate on how machines will change the service that customers receive in shops?
Test titles follow test-taker reports and each season's forecasts — IELTS does not publish its papers. "Reported" means someone reported meeting this topic in a dated test. The questions are written by us in the format of the real test.