CELPIP Speaking Task 6 · Dealing with a Difficult Situation · question 5 of 10
A Cancelled Cake Order and a Deposit
A CELPIP Speaking Task 6 practice question (Dealing with a Difficult Situation), with a model answer below. No sign-up needed. Read the task, take 60 seconds to prepare, then speak for 60 seconds, out loud, as you would on the test.
The task
You own a small bakery in Moncton. A customer, Mrs. Haddad, who has ordered from you for ten years, paid a $150 deposit for a large cake for her retirement party. Two days before the party, she cancelled because of a family emergency and is now asking for her deposit back. Your policy, which she signed, says deposits are not refundable within seven days of the event, because the ingredients have already been bought. Your business partner says the policy must be followed.
- Choose ONE option.
- EITHER Talk to Mrs. Haddad. Explain why you cannot refund her deposit.
- OR Talk to your business partner. Explain why you have decided to refund the deposit.
Original CELPIP-style practice question, not an official CELPIP test item. This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by Paragon Testing Enterprises. The CLB level of each sample answer was reviewed by a TESOL-certified instructor. It is not an official CELPIP score.
- Preparation
- 60 seconds
- Speaking time
- 60 seconds
- Question
- 5 of 10
How to structure it
- To Mrs. Haddad: show sympathy for her family before you mention money. To your partner: agree that the policy matters before you explain the exception.
- Say clearly whether she gets her money back and give one business reason; do not repeat the same reason in different words.
- Finish with something practical: a goodwill offer such as credit for a future order, or a way to keep one exception from changing the policy for everyone.
Model answer · CLB 7
88 words · no sign-upHello Mrs. Haddad. I'm very sorry for your family, I hope everybody is okay now. About the deposit... I'm sorry, I can't give back the money. In the policy you signed, it say no refund in the last seven days. We buy already the ingredients for your cake, the butter, the cream, all. That money, we can't get it back. But I don't want you lose it. You can use it for other cake later, for a birthday maybe, any time. Just call me when you are ready.
Why this answer works
- Option chosen: talking to Mrs. Haddad. Content/Coherence: sympathy, refusal, reason and an offer appear in a sensible order; the offer is not tied to anything she has to do.
- Vocabulary: simple food words and "policy"; no precise business terms.
- Listenability: a pause before the bad news ("About the deposit...") and slips in word order and grammar ("We buy already", "I don't want you lose it", "for other cake"); still easy to follow.
- Task Fulfillment: the refusal is clear and polite, and the credit has no time limit; the follow-up is left to her.
Model answer · CLB 9
107 words · no sign-upI know you think we should stick to the policy, and normally I'd agree with you. But I've decided to refund Mrs. Haddad's deposit. She's ordered from us for ten years, and she didn't cancel on a whim; it was a family emergency. Keeping one hundred and fifty dollars could cost us every cake she'd order in the next ten years, and in a city this size, people talk. Most of the ingredients can go into other orders anyway. I'll tell her it's an exception, and the written policy stays as it is. Next time something like this comes up, let's decide together. Does that seem fair?
Why this answer works
- Option chosen: talking to your business partner. Content/Coherence: agrees with the partner's principle first, states the decision explicitly, and gives a reason the partner cares about (future orders), not just sympathy.
- Vocabulary: "on a whim", "people talk" and "an exception" are natural business language.
- Listenability: the money point is one clear sentence ("Keeping one hundred and fifty dollars could cost us every cake she'd order in the next ten years"), and the talk ends on a short question.
- Task Fulfillment: the decision is explicit, the policy is protected for other customers, and the partner is invited into future decisions.
Model answer · CLB 11
118 words · no sign-upMrs. Haddad, I was so sorry to hear about your family, and that the party had to be cancelled. I hope things are a little calmer at home now. I've looked at your order carefully, and I'm not able to refund the deposit. By the time you cancelled, we'd already ordered the fondant and decorations for a cake that size, and we can't sell them to anyone else. What I can do is turn the full hundred and fifty dollars into credit for anything in the shop, with no expiry. If you hold the party later, it could easily cover the cake. I'll note it on your file today, so there's nothing for you to keep track of.
Why this answer works
- Option chosen: talking to Mrs. Haddad. Content/Coherence: puts her family before the money, refuses in one sentence, gives one concrete reason, then turns the deposit into something she can still use.
- Vocabulary: "fondant", "no expiry" and "keep track of" are precise and natural.
- Listenability: the refusal ("I'm not able to refund the deposit") is short and plain, and "What I can do is" marks the turn to the offer.
- Task Fulfillment: a refusal that stays kind: credit with no time limit, recorded today, so she has nothing to chase.
Level reviewed by a TESOL-certified instructor. Not an official CELPIP score.
The most common mistake
Hiding behind "it's the policy" with no reason; CELPIP's published study pack advises giving effective reasons for your decision, and a bare rule sounds cold to a customer.
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