You can write a personal injury demand letter to kickstart settlement negotiations if you’ve been injured after an accident. Settlement negotiations can compensate you for the harm you suffered from the accident.
Use our personal injury demand sample letter to start creating personal injury demand letters. Feel free to change and edit the sample letter’s language as needed.
- What Is a Personal Injury Demand Letter?
- Personal Injury Demand Letter Sample
- When Do You Need a Personal Injury Demand Letter
- What to Include in a Personal Injury Demand Letter
- What Not to Include in a Personal Injury Demand Letter
- How to Write a Personal Injury Demand Letter
- Frequently Asked Questions
What Is a Personal Injury Demand Letter?
A personal injury demand letter attempts to end a lawsuit and avoid going to trial by asking the at-fault party and their insurance party to pay for a reasonable settlement amount. This document is also called a demand letter or settlement demand letter.
You can use demand letters to:
- Establish your opening settlement demand to the at-fault party
- Frame your best case when making a counteroffer during settlement negotiations.
Although it’s possible to write and file an effective personal injury demand letter yourself, we recommend getting an experienced attorney to file one on your behalf. That’s because insurance adjusters don’t have your best interests in mind. As such, they can easily convince you to accept a lowball settlement amount.
An experienced personal injury attorney can negotiate with insurance adjustors and secure a fair settlement amount.
Personal Injury Demand Letter Sample
Download our demand letter template to start a personal injury claim.
When Do You Need a Personal Injury Demand Letter
You need a personal injury demand letter whenever you are faced with recovering settlement damages after an accident. Here are some common scenarios that require you to write your demand letter:
- Car accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Slip and fall accidents
- Stair accidents
- Accidents caused by employees
- Dog bite injuries
What to Include in a Personal Injury Demand Letter
The contents of personal injury demand letters vary depending on your case. However, most personal injury demand letters include the following:
1. The Parties
All personal injury demand letters must specify the parties involved in the accident, insurers included. You should also have the at-fault party’s insurance policy number. After identifying the parties, you should summarize the letter’s purpose with one or two sentences.
Structured in this way, your letter will:
- Demonstrate that you know who was at fault
- Provide the other party or parties your contact information so they can respond
- Show the other party or parties that you are taking serious action to recover damages
Here’s what this part of the letter could look like:
[Date of the letter] FOR SETTLEMENT PURPOSES ONLY Dear [at-fault party’s claim adjuster’s name]: As you already know, on [date of the accident], I was seriously injured in a car crash caused by your insured, Bob Jones. The evidence below clearly shows that your insured’s negligence was the cause of my injuries and losses. These include economic damages like medical bills and out-of-pocket expenses and non-economic damages such as pain and suffering.
2. The Circumstances of the Injury
Once you’ve established the parties, outline the circumstances of your injuries. Explain how the accident happened and how you were injured.
Here’s what this section could look like in your letter:
On [date of the accident], at [time], I was driving my [car model] southbound on [street name]. I was wearing my seatbelt and paying attention to the traffic signals, the road, and other vehicles in my sight.
Suddenly, as I approached the intersection of [road name] and [road name], your insured’s [car model] violently collided with the front of my car as they made a left turn from [road name]. The immediate force of the impact spun my car around until it crashed into a nearby bus shelter.
3. An Account of the Damages and Injuries
Next, detail the injuries and damages you suffered due to the accident.
To maximize settlement amounts, you should describe the following:
- All of your emotional and physical injuries
- All of the treatments you’ve received
- Long-term or permanent injuries, such as arthritis, permanent stiffness, or disfigurement
Highlight the length and difficulty of your recovery, your pain and suffering, and any other adverse effects your injuries have had on your lifestyle, such as emotional distress. Remember to back up your claims with medical records from your doctor.
Here’s what this part of the letter could look like:
Right after the accident, I was rushed by ambulance to [hospital name] with initial complaints of head pain, back pain, and left wrist pain. When I arrived at [hospital name], it was two in the morning. According to the doctors, I had suffered the following injuries: Photos of my diagnoses and injuries are attached. It has been a challenging year since the accident happened. Since the crash, I have suffered the following: My medical expenses have totaled $30,000 since the date of the accident. All receipts and reports are attached to this demand letter.
4. Compensation Amount
Finally, it would be best to outline the compensation you deserve in your personal injury claim. You can determine your compensation amount by adding your economic and non-economic damages.
Economic damages refer to compensation for monetary losses like current, past, and future medical expenses and loss of future earnings. Meanwhile, non-economic damages refer to non-monetary and subjective losses like inconvenience, pain, suffering, and loss of enjoyment of activities.
You can calculate economic damages by looking at your pay stubs, medical bills, and pharmacy charges. As for non-economic damages, there’s no single way to quantify them.
However, most personal injury attorneys and insurance adjusters use multiple medical expenses to determine non-economic damages. A typical noneconomic damages multiplier is two or three, but your attorney may use a higher multiple if your injuries are permanent and severe.
To continue from the previous example, your lawyer would probably multiply your medical expenses ($30,000) by three since your injuries were not particularly severe for a car crash. This would mean your non-economic damages are $90,000. Your total compensation amount would thus be $120,000.
What Not to Include in a Personal Injury Demand Letter
A personal injury demand letter is an official document. As a result, you must avoid the following when writing it:
Disparaging or Threatening Language
It’s normal to feel frustrated and wronged after an accident.
However, creating a negative mood will decrease your chances of reaching a reasonable settlement. Remember, the letter aims to show the at-fault party and their insurance company that you are serious about recovering damages.
It also gives them a chance to consider their legal choices.
Also, remember that the judge will read your personal injury demand letter if the dispute goes to trial. You are unlikely to recover total damages if the judge perceives you as antagonistic.
Details in the Accident Description That Imply or State Responsibility for the Accident
If you include these details, the at-fault party’s lawyer will focus on them and try to paint you as the responsible party. This will happen even if your role is minor.
Too Many Details
The description of the accident should not be too detailed. The more complex it is, your letter will likely conflict with the police report and your subsequent and earlier statements.
The opposing lawyer will use these inconsistencies to prove you cannot be trusted.
Unreasonable Compensation Demands
Insurance companies often consider unreasonable compensation demands unserious offers to settle personal injury cases. As a result, the insurance company may be less willing to negotiate out of court.
How to Write a Personal Injury Demand Letter
You now know what to include and what not to include in a personal injury demand letter. Follow these steps to write an effective personal injury demand letter:
1. Start from a Personal Injury Demand Letter Sample
The best way to write a personal injury demand settlement letter is to start from a sample letter or template. Alternatively, our document builder allows you to create your demand letter by simply answering a few questions.
2. Introduce and Date the Letter
Add your full name on the form and date the document. If your attorney writes this for you, they will write their name instead. They will mention your name and their relationship with you in the body of the letter.
3. Talk About Your Injuries
Next, explain how the accident caused your injuries and what injuries you sustained. As mentioned in the “What to Include on a Personal Injury Demand Letter” section above, you should be specific and concise.
Consider attaching and referencing photos and doctor’s reports to substantiate your claims.
4. Establish the Compensation Amount
List the current, past, and future economic and non-economic damages you deserve. Then, advise the recipient of the letter that there is an opportunity for the at-fault party to settle for your proposed settlement account.
5. Send the Letter Through Certified Mail
Finally, you should send the personal injury demand letter through certified mail and request a return receipt. That way, you will have proof that the letter was received and delivered.
Frequently Asked Questions
You should send your personal injury demand letter well before your state’s statute of limitations begins. In personal injury, a statute of limitations is a law that sets the maximum time that parties have to start legal proceedings. The statute of limitations varies depending on your state and the type of accident, but it is usually two years from the date of the accident that caused your injuries.When Should I Send My Personal Injury Demand Letter
There is no set timeline for settlement cases. Once you send your personal injury demand letter to the at-fault party, the party will control how fast the claim moves. If the at-fault party agrees with your settlement, which is unlikely, they may send you a settlement check within several days. However, if they disagree with the terms of your offer, which is much more likely, the at-fault party may take weeks or months to accept. They may also: That depends on the damages you’ve suffered. Generally, you should ask for 75% to 100% more than your total damages. If you start too low, the insurance company will probably respond with something even lower. If you do not receive a response to your demand letter, you should send one final demand letter. This is typically a short and sharp letter that includes your previous letter as an attachment, giving the party more time to comply with the demand. If the recipient does not respond to the final demand letter, your next action is to file a lawsuit. Your attorney will walk you through filing a personal injury lawsuit.How Long After a Demand Letter Does Settlement Take?
How Much Should I Ask for in a Demand Letter?
What If I Don’t Get a Response to My Demand Letter?
