When you write a strong demand letter, you set the tone for your client’s personal injury claim. The letter outlines what happened, who is responsible, and how much money your client deserves as fair compensation for the physical, emotional, and financial harm they have suffered. It also demonstrates that you take the matter seriously and expect the other party to do the same.
If your law firm sends a rushed or boilerplate demand letter, you risk delaying the claims process and weakening your position during negotiations with the other party’s insurer. On the other hand, if you prepare a clear, well-supported letter, it could lead to productive settlement negotiations and a highly favorable outcome.
What Is a Personal Injury Demand Letter?
A well-crafted demand letter to the opposing party or their insurance carrier sets the tone for the negotiation process and serves many other purposes. The demand letter:
- Formally presents the client’s claim for damages
- Outlines the facts based on the evidence
- Explains the legal grounds for the other party’s liability
- Documents the client’s losses
- Describes the client’s physical pain and suffering and their emotional harm
- Makes an explicit request for the other party to provide compensation.
The demand letter can demonstrate the strength of your client’s case and support their demand with detailed evidence. It serves as the first opportunity in the personal injury claims process to lay out the full scope of your client’s claim, including their injuries, medical bills, income losses, and non-economic damages.
Ultimately, a well-structured demand letter helps you frame the issues, clarify expectations, and help you avoid unnecessary litigation if the other side takes it seriously.
An experienced personal injury lawyer treats every demand letter as a strategic tool rather than a formality. The goal of the letter is to facilitate a fair settlement on the client’s terms. It may lead to a more timely resolution and a favorable settlement in the client’s case.
What Are the Key Elements of an Effective Personal Injury Demand Letter?
An effective demand letter includes more than a dollar amount. It presents a straightforward, fact-based narrative of what happened in the accident resulting in your client’s injuries, along with supporting evidence, and it explains why the other party should be held legally responsible.
Even though you must tailor the settlement demand letter to the unique facts and circumstances of your client’s case, you should ensure it contains the following basic elements of a demand letter:
- A summary of the facts, without any commentary, which provides names of all parties involved, a description of the accident, the extent of the client’s injuries, potential witness statements, and a timeline of the events, including communications with the insurance company
- A thorough description of your client’s injuries, treatments, and prognosis, with medical records and provider documentation
- A list of all necessary, accident-related expenses, including past medical costs and projected future medical expenses, wage losses, and loss of future earning ability
- The basis for non-economic damages you may seek, such as physical pain and suffering or emotional distress (for example, a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder)
- A specific settlement demand dollar amount and a deadline for the other side’s response.
If you structure the demand letter correctly, it will help the insurance adjuster or opposing counsel review the claim, recognize its strengths, and understand the consequences if they fail to reply with a full and fair settlement offer within a reasonable time.
Why Do Demand Letters Matter in Personal Injury Cases?
Demand letters serve as a starting point and a filter in personal injury cases. A strong, well-documented demand letter can accomplish many goals.
Specifically, the demand letter can:
- Push the insurer or defense lawyer to take your client’s case seriously
- Define the claim’s value
- Set expectations for the opposing side
- Outline a clear path to resolution
- Preserve the record if your case proceeds to litigation
- Support later arguments for bad-faith insurance practices.
A weak or vague demand letter, on the other hand, will likely invite delays, lowball offers, or outright rejections. As a result, the letter may fail to promote a favorable or timely outcome.
Attorneys should draft well-supported, persuasive demand letters to control the narrative, demonstrate preparation, and signal their willingness to litigate if necessary. When drafted correctly, a demand letter can shorten the timeline to resolution and increase the value of a claim.
What Happens After the Demand Letter?
The steps that come after you send a personal injury demand letter depend on how the other side responds. However, most claims follow a familiar pattern from that point forward. Here are the four main stages of the process that typically take place after a demand letter goes out:
- Settlement offer – The insurance company or opposing party may respond to the demand letter with an offer to resolve the claim. However, the offer rarely matches the original demand. The other side is simply testing whether you’re willing to settle quickly. Review every settlement offer carefully and compare it to the damages you’ve documented. If the amount falls short of covering your losses, be prepared to push back with evidence that supports your position.
- Counteroffer – If your client received a low initial offer, you will likely make a counteroffer after consultation with the client. The counteroffer gives you a chance to show that you’re prepared, informed, and not settling for less than what your client’s claim is worth. Your counteroffer should include a specific dollar amount and a brief explanation of how you arrived at it. You can revise your demand slightly to reflect new information, like ongoing treatment or additional costs for your client.
- Denial – In some cases, the other side may reject the claim entirely. They may dispute liability, question the cause of your client’s injuries, or argue that the damages don’t justify the amount of compensation your client demands.
A denial doesn’t end the process. However, it does raise the stakes. If you believe the claim has merit, your next steps may involve sending additional evidence or preparing to file a lawsuit. Still, a denial often signals that informal talks may not lead to a fair result.
- Litigation – If negotiation doesn’t lead to a fair agreement, you may decide to take the case to court. Filing a lawsuit leads to discovery and depositions. Some cases still settle before trial. However, once litigation begins, both sides must comply with court rules and meet deadlines. Litigation also increases pressure, which can help stalled claims move forward.
What Should You Avoid When Writing a Personal Injury Demand Letter?
Every day, adjusters and defense counsel read demand letters. If your letter reads like a generic template or lacks documentation, they may ignore it. However, if you prepare your letter carefully and deliberately, you can control the discussion from the start.
When you prepare the demand letter, you should avoid the following pitfalls:
- Submitting the letter without a firm understanding of your client’s full medical treatment history and costs. Guesswork undermines your credibility and weakens your position in future negotiations.
- Avoid vague claims, inflated figures, and unsupported statements. If you cannot support your allegations and the amount you claim in damages, the other side won’t take the case seriously.
- Stay away from emotional language, unnecessary commentary, or overstatements about liability. Skip long background narratives and focus on key facts. A demand letter should read like a legal communication, not a complaint.
- Do not demand an unrealistic amount just to leave room for negotiation. Anchoring too high can stall discussions and make the other side question your intent.
What Do You Do If You Do Not Get a Reply to Your Demand Letter?
Sometimes, insurers delay because they assume personal injury claimants will not follow through on the matter, even when a lawyer sent the demand letter. You should treat silence from the other side as a deliberate tactic and make sure you respond.
Do not rely on repeated calls or informal outreach. Instead, if you do not receive a response by the deadline, you should take steps that include:
- Following up in writing immediately. Confirm receipt of the letter and remind the recipient of the deadline. Keep the letter’s tone professional, but do not allow the delay to go unchecked.
- Consider setting a second deadline. Depending on the case and the insurer, a second deadline may help to move the case forward. However, if there is no meaningful response, begin preparing the case for litigation.
- If you suspect bad-faith dealing, document everything. Preserve email records, postal receipts, and internal notes. In some jurisdictions, proof of unreasonable delays may support a later claim for bad-faith damages.
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