Describe an item on which you spent more than expected

You should say
What it is?
How much did you spend on it?
Why you bought it?
And explain why you think you spent more than expected.

Model Answers and follow up questions to describe an item on which you spent more than expected IELTS cue card:

One thing that I spent on more than expected was my phone charger. The price of

the charger was 250 rupees but I purchased it for 1000 rupees which was four times

more than the original product cost. It was the charger of ABC company (you may

use the name of your choice here). This happened before a few years when I had

gone for a vacation with my family.

I had to purchase it because the cable of my charger broke. I was in a helpless

situation because unfortunately, I did not carry the power bank with me on the P

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holiday. It was also not possible to order it online because I was not at home and I

needed a new charger urgently. Since I was on a hill station my phone battery

drained fast searching for the network.

I had to spend more than expected because there was only one mobile accessory

shop in the entire area. The shopkeeper was a cheat and he took advantage of my

situation. I requested him a lot to not charge me so much and also showed him the

original price on the internet. However, he did not cooperate and charged me four

times more. I had no choice but to give ill intention to earn more.

This was an unexpected situation and I was very disappointed with the experience.

The cable breakage was acceptable but being fooled by the greedy shopkeeper was

a sad feeling. I felt very upset but at the same time I was relieved that at least I could

manage a charger and my phone did not discharge completely. Money saved is

money earned and so whenever I think of this incidence it does not give me a good

feeling.

Model Answer 1:

Introduction:
Well, I must say I am a frugal spender who really do not believe in wasting money and spending it on unnecessary things.

But, lately, for my cousin’s wedding, I ended up spending too much money. The fact is that at this wedding I was going to be the best man and I was super excited about it. And of course, I wanted to look for something special on this day. For that reason, I visited the branded store at the local shopping mall where I could buy some party wears.

What it is?
At this store, I was able to found what I was actually looking for. It was a pant coat black in color and elegantly designed; the cost of this suit was 15,000 that was too little high.

How much did you spend on it? and Why you bought it? and Explain why you think you spent more than expected?
However, I liked it so much, so I decided to buy it. In fact, the sales guy showed me a white silk shirt that would go really well with this pant coat, and he compelled me to buy it. Finally, I paid 20,000 at this store and came back with these two things, and later in the evening, I tried this attire to check my looks.

At this point, I realized that I did not have matching formal shoes to wear with this dress, so I went to the market to buy a new pair of shoes, and it cost me another 4000 rupees.

Finally, I thought it was all over now, and I was ready for this wedding. One of my friends suggested that this dress is incomplete without some accessories. I must wear a tie or a bow and a brooch to look more classy and elegant. Hence, I had to spend few more thousand rupees to get all these things now it was the wedding evening.

Conclusion:
I was beautifully dressed up, and I must say that I received hundreds of compliments from my near and dear ones for looking so handsome in this dress, and I realized that it was worth spending this much money.

Overall it was a time when I spent a lot of money on something.

Model Answer 2:

Introduction:

• Well, Customers always want to pay as little as possible. 
• Customers, like everyone else, want immediate gratification, especially when they’re spending money. If you can satisfy your customer’s desires sooner than the competition, they’ll usually pay a premium. 

What it is?

• Here I would like to talk about a product for that I paid more than expected. 
• I mostly do online shopping, and I pay delivery charges for every product. But last month I bought a table. 
• It is a mirror table which contains two draws. 
• I purchased it from an online shopping site. 
• The seller had done special packing that ensured the safe delivery of fragile items. 
• It is designed in that way, I can easily fit in any place such as dining room, kitchen, living room and bedroom. 

Why you bought it?

• I bought it because two months ago I changed the colour and interior of my home, so the old table was broken while making all these changes, so that’s why I bought it. 

How much did you spend on it?

• The price of the product was 15,000, but I paid one thousand extra for its safety. 

Explain why you think you spent more than expected? and Conclusion:

• I did not regret it; even I felt very happy because the first time I ordered an expensive item from the Internet, and I received the product without any damage. 

Model Answer 3:

Introduction:

• Recently, my old phone broke down, and I had to buy a new phone.

What it is?

• I considered various models, but ultimately, I decided to buy the Apple iPhone.

Why you bought it?

• I think I made the purchase because of the brand name and because of friend’s reviews.

How much did you spend on it?

• The phone was much costlier than I expected.
• It was priced at Rs 70,000.
• I still went for it because I wanted to own an iPhone.
• Previously, I had a Samsung phone, but all my friends told me that Apple is way above Samsung in quality.
• After buying it, I also felt that Apple is better.
• The camera quality was better; the response rate was faster, the look was more elegant.
• However, deep down, I knew I didn’t care about these things.
• I rarely click pictures with the phone, and even if I do, I am fine with a lower resolution.
• The response rate was faster, but then I was comparing the response rate of a new Apple iPhone with a 3-year-old Samsung phone, so the comparison was not apt.

Explain why you think you spent more than expected?

• And, above all, the price was way higher than the other models in the market.
• I bought the mobile phone not because of need but because of impulse.
• I know I am not a heavy mobile phone user.
• I mainly use the mobile phone to call and to check WhatsApp messages.
• Besides that, I use barely 2-3 apps like Zomato for ordering food and Uber for travelling.
• I knew I could have that done all that I wanted with a much cheaper version, but I still went for the Apple iPhone.
• Finally, because of this decision, I had to postpone the decision of buying a new laptop, which I urgently need.
• My old one is about 6 years old, and sometimes it takes nearly half an hour to start up.
• A new laptop would have made my life much more comfortable than the iPhone did.
• Conclusion:
  • For all these reasons, I regret buying the iPhone and spending so much on it.

Model Answer 4

There is no denying this conviction that whenever we try to purchase anything, we put in the best efforts to grab the best deal. However, on some occasions, we end up paying more than the expected price.

One such situation came into my life last year.

What it is?

Last year I had purchased a laptop for my online classes.

How much did you spend on it?

I was under the impression that it would cost me 300 dollars, but I ended up paying 450 dollars.

Why you bought it?

Last year due to the Corona pandemic my city was in a state of lockdown. All educational institutions were closed during that period.

When the administration realized the lockdown could jeopardize the study and career of the students, they permitted our school to start the online classes.

During the classes, I was finding it difficult to study through my smartphone. So, I decided to buy a laptop.

And explain why you think you spent more than expected.?

I had to spend more than the expected cost, because, due to the lockdown, there was a sudden surge in the prices.

Before lockdown, people didn’t tend to buy laptops, and they used to prefer smartphones to perform their online tasks and transactions. However, post lockdown, the scenario had changed completely, and there was a paradigm shift in the way people would use the laptops.

Earlier, only the college students were using the computers for studies, but after lockdown, even school going children started using them.

Due to this reason, I had no option but to pay the extra price.

Model Answer 5

Introduction

In this contemporary epoch, there is fierce competition, and due to that, the companies often leave no stone unturned to provide the best deals to their customers for their products and services.

However, on a few occasions, these organisations get a chance to generate funds, they make the best use of that.

What it is?

Last year I came across such a situation when I paid more than the price of the product. During the corona pandemic, I had to pay ten times the cost of one injection named “Remdesivir“.

How much did you spend on it?

The actual cost was about 900 rupees. But due to the immoral and unethical practices of a few traders, I ended up paying Rs 50,000.

Why you bought it?

The 2nd wave of the coronavirus was deadly. It was spreading at a rapid pace, and the mortality rate was high. Unfortunately, my cousin had become Corona positive and his condition got worsened.

When his oxygen level dropped to the danger mark, the doctor advised us to arrange a “Ramdesivir” injection for him.

I immediately rushed to the market and purchased it.

And explain why you think you spent more than expected.?

During that time, I was under tremendous stress, and I was upset with the ailing condition of my cousin.

For me saving his life was the priority. Although I had tried to bargain, the concerned vendor did not pay any heed to my request.

Since I did not have much time at my disposal, I bought it immediately.

Conclusion

The extra cost did not bother me because I managed to save my brother’s life.

Model Answer 6

Introduction

Being a frugal person, I have this uncanny knack for bargaining before finalising a product or service. However, last year I came across a situation, where despite knowing the fact that I was paying more than the perceived value, I had spent more than the actual value of the product.

What it is?

Last year it was the wedding of my cousin. He is not only my beloved brother but also my bosom friend. For his special day, I bought a gold bracelet for gifting purposes and paid a high amount

How much did you spend on it?

When I had gone to buy it, I imagined that the price would be somewhere around Rs 50,000, but I ended up paying Rs 80,000 for that.

Why you bought it?

I bought the bracelet because my cousin’s wedding was significant for me. He has supported me always in my thick and thin, and once I had decided to gift him a bracelet, I did not have the will to change my decision.

So out of affection for my dear brother, I purchased it.

And explain why you think you spent more than expected.?

Last year due to the Corona pandemic, my city was in a state of lockdown. Due to that, there was a mass exodus of people to their native place from their place of work.

And because of this, all businesses were at a standstill. After a gap of six months, when the administration finally lifted the lockdown, people thronged to the markets to buy the products of their choice.

However, due to the mass movement of labourers, there was a scarcity of competent people to do the work. Due to this, there was a sudden surge in the prices of goods and services.

In my case, the concerned vendor was not at all ready to negotiate. He wanted to rake in big bucks by taking advantage of the more demand and less supply situation.

Although I had paid more than the price, the smile on my cousin’s face after receiving the gift made my day. And, I have no qualms about paying more than the actual cost.

Model Answer 7

Introduction

In this contemporary epoch, inflation has become a part of our lives. Despite our best, sometimes we end up paying more than the perceived value of a product.

Recently a situation came in my life where I ended up paying out more than the actual cost of the product.

What it is?

Last year I purchased an automobile named Mahindra Thar.

How much did you spend on it?

I was under the impression that it would cost me around 24,000 USD, but I bought it for 27,000 USD

Why did you buy it?

Since my childhood, I was having this dream of buying this machine. I had tried to convince my parents umpteen times to purchase it, but they were reluctant.

My persistence had finally conquered their resistance and, when I passed my 12th Standard with flying colours, they decided to gift me a Mahindra Thar.

Explain why you think you spent more than expected?

I had no option but to spend more than the expected price. Because last year due to the corona pandemic, most nations were in a state of lockdown. And most of the microchips used in the manufacturing of cars come from Taiwan.

As the supply of the essential parts from Taiwan had nosedived considerably, the car manufacturing companies started importing them from other countries at higher prices. And due to that, the prices of automobiles saw a significant incline.

I paid the high price because I wanted Mahindra Thar badly to enjoy my college life.

• IELTS Speaking Part 3 : Follow up Questions

  Here some examples of follow up questions that you may asked during your speaking part 3 by examiner related to cue card “describe an item on which you spent more than expected”.

  1. Do you often buy more than you expected?
  Yes, I often buy more than I expected, but it is normally in case of small household items or grocery items. For example, I would buy 2 pairs of jeans if they are on an offer, even if I need just one. The iPhone was the first time I spent so much more than I should have spent.

  2. What do you think young people spend most of their money on?
  I think young people spend their money on clothes and other fashion accessories like belts, shoes, etc. Also, I think a lot of youth spend their money on gadgets like mobile phones, laptops, and headphones.

  3. Do you think it is important to save money? Why?
  Yes, I think it is crucial as we can never be certain about the future. The recent Corona epidemic has made it even more clear that how uncertain life is. Many people died because they couldn’t afford the costly healthcare. Also, if people didn’t have savings, it would have been impossible to tide over these difficult times.

  4. Do people buy things that they don’t need?
  Yes, all the time. I think we buy things because buying things makes us happy. Even though we know we won’t be using the thing, we buy it for momentary happiness. A common example is an electric drill, which people barely use for 10 mins after buying and then collects dust sitting unused for years.

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