Claiming insurance compensation for your injuries is no easy feat since insurance companies check the demands of claimants meticulously before issuing a compensation release. Things become exceedingly difficult for people who don’t contact the insured party immediately after suffering from an injury.
Late realization of damage can complicate matters for claimants by hindering their evidence compilation process. The most common types of insurance claims related to injuries are road accidents and harm that the claimant suffered due to the insured’s negligence.
Once you find yourself in an injury-compensation claim, you’ll have to write a personal injury demand letter to request compensation for the pain and inconvenience you went through unnecessarily because of the insured. If you want your claim’s satisfactory results, try to make your demand letter as effective as possible.
A demand letter opens negotiations between an insurance company and a claimant; therefore, it must be clear, concise, assertive, and impactful. We’ll teach practical methods to write an effective personal injury demand letter.
We spoke with Albuquerque’s personal injury attorney Marvin Romero to determine what makes a strong and effective personal injury demand letter. Here are some key points from our conversation.
Contents
Build your Arguments
Writing a demand letter for an injury compensation claim is different than writing to your boss. The nature of the correspondence is official, but it doesn’t follow the strict no-emotion rule that most professional letters adhered to. You must build your arguments logically and attach the necessary proof and evidence wherever they need. Here are the few rules that might help you make a better argument or case on your demand letter:
- Responsibility Justified
The purpose of your demand letter is already clear to you, but if you fail to communicate your wishes and thoughts to the other party, you’ll be on the losing side. When the insured party’s company receives your demand letter, they already have a clue about your intentions. However, they are more concerned with your reasonability. They will read the letter knowing you want compensation, but their interests lie in understanding why you think their client is responsible for your injuries.
This is where it becomes tricky, and if you don’t practice caution, you’ll give up your right to claim the insurance compensation even before the negotiation begins. Do not hesitate to reason with logic while calling out the insured to compensate for your losses. More importantly, if you have tangible proof, the insurance company will find it difficult to refute your claim.
- Explain your Injuries
It is imperative to write a compelling demand letter related to the nature of the injuries the claimant has suffered. Make sure to talk about all your injuries in detail, and don’t leave out even the smallest injuries. We do not condone making up a story to make things interesting. But if you can reiterate the events of the accident or incident in chronological order clearly and concisely, then you’ll be able to make your claim look more appealing.
For example, if you suffered from an injury because of the negligent party’s actions, mention the discomfort you feel when you move your hand. Elaborate that it’s inconvenient to sleep on one side at night. The other party should know how miserable you are feeling because of them when you’ve never asked for any of it.
- Details on Your Losses
Reasonability behind the claim and the claimant’s injuries are the primary focus of a personal injury demand letter, but you cannot ignore other kinds of losses that you are going through because of your injury. If you had to take unpaid leave from your job, cancel a trip, or a game because of a physical injury, it falls under your losses. Make sure to mention all of them in your letter. Don’t think of any of it as too insignificant compared to major injuries.
Moreover, if you’ve hired personal assistance to help you with your daily routine because of the injury, then your payment will be part of your settlement as well. You cannot bear any losses if someone is responsible for putting you in a compromising and helpless state.
- Some Complexities
In the case of certain losses, insurance cannot compensate easily. These losses include mental trauma and stress you experience while being bed-ridden or the inconvenience you feel because of a broken rib or a hand. Sometimes an injury can cause permanent damage to your body, affecting your relationships with your spouse and your kids and sometimes leading to divorce and custody trials.
Money cannot replace any of those losses, but money is what you’ll get in compensation for all your losses in an insurance settlement. Now, you must keep your emotions in check and decide on the settlement money, considering the extent of your losses.
- What you need to do to solidify your claim
Your demand letter will hold merit if it contains the following components:
Gather Evidence
This includes hospital bills, investigation reports, or incident reports if you haven’t filed a formal complaint. Providing official documents is the best way to get your claim in the negotiation phase immediately. If you have documentation of everything you went through as well as the receipts of all your medical expenses, your demand letter will have an immediate effect on the recipient.
- Practice Caution
Don’t outright say that you want this much money, or you “think” the settlement money is this much money. Use words like “approximately” or “roughly” while giving the estimation of your losses.
Be Precise and Clear
You are communicating with a legitimate and legal organization and demanding money as compensation; therefore, you must feel the weight of this responsibility and write as precisely and clearly as possible. Do not be vague about the facts you are specifying in the letter. Use proper grammar and suitable vocabulary, and leave no room for misunderstanding and miscommunication.
The Basic Format of a Personal Injury Demand Letter
The Heading: Your name and address, as well as the name and address of the other party, should be mentioned in the heading.
Main Body: This comprises of many components, and its length depends on your damage report. Everything mentioned here should only be facts and no fiction.
State your Side of Facts: Narrate your side of the story from the point of contact until the present moment. Make your narration detailed but do not exaggerate or mix fiction with it.
Talk in Details about your Losses: This is the center of your letter and should be dealt with, with utmost caution. Mention all your tangible and intangible losses even if you don’t know how you want compensation for these losses.
Attach Evidence: Attach all the liability proof with your letter. This includes medical reports, expenses, and other official documents that favor your claim.
Open Negotiation: Include a paragraph where you ask for compensation. This will serve as a point that will open doors for future communication between the claimant and the insured.
Mention the Response Time: While concluding your letter, make sure when you are expecting their response.
Conclusion
If you want your injury demand letter to be effective, then be precise while stating facts and don’t overlook any details while explaining your injuries. The evidence you attack with your letter can make all the difference in making or breaking your settlement negotiations!