Kyle Ryder | October 16, 2025 | Car Accident \ Missouri Law
Key Takeaways:
- A demand letter is the first step in settlement negotiations. It’s a formal document sent to the insurance company outlining your injuries, damages, and the compensation you’re seeking.
- Send it when treatment is complete. Don’t rush a demand letter. Send it when you finish medical care or when you have reached maximum medical improvement, so you don’t miss out on damages.
- What you include determines what you recover. A strong demand package includes medical bills and records, lost wage documentation, and a detailed explanation of how the accident affected your life.
Medical bills are stacking up, you’ve missed work, and you’re still recovering. You know the insurance company needs to pay, but you have no idea what your case is worth or how to get them to take you seriously.
This is where a demand letter comes in.
A demand letter is the formal document that kicks off settlement negotiations in a personal injury case. It lays out what happened and what you’re demanding in compensation.
Here’s everything you need to know about what a demand letter is, when to send it, what needs to be in it, and how it can shape your case
What Is a Demand Letter?
A demand letter is a written request for compensation sent to the at-fault party’s insurance company. It’s a crucial part of the pre-litigation process. Personal injury cases in Missouri often settle during this phase if the demand letter is persuasive enough.
A well-crafted personal injury settlement demand establishes the value of your claim with supporting documentation and shows the insurer that you understand your case and have the evidence to back it up. It also signals that you’re prepared to file a lawsuit if they don’t make a fair settlement offer.
Getting the demand letter right is essential. Insurance adjusters see hundreds of them, and weak ones get lowball responses. Strong demand letters typically get serious settlement offers.
Why Demand Letters Matter in Settlements
Most personal injury cases never see the inside of a courtroom, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. They settle before trial. And demand letters are essential, as settlement negotiations start with them.
Insurance companies don’t volunteer fair compensation. A strong demand letter to an insurer creates pressure by showing them what a jury would see if your case went to trial. That includes your medical bills and records documenting injuries, employer statements confirming lost income, and your own account of how the accident upended your life.
The demand letter also protects you from accepting too little too soon. Without a formal demand backed by documentation, you don’t know what your case is worth, and the insurance adjuster knows it. They’ll offer you pennies on the dollar, hoping you’ll take it because you need to pay your bills.
When Should You Send a Demand Letter?
Timing is critical. If you send your demand letter too early, you risk leaving money on the table and running out of funds while still requiring medical treatments. And if you send it too late, you risk hitting Missouri’s statute of limitations.
The right time to send a demand letter is when you’ve recovered or reached maximum medical improvement (MMI), which is the point where your doctor says you’ve recovered as much as possible. At MMI, you and your lawyer know the full extent of your damages, including past and future medical costs, permanent disability, and long-term wage loss.
If you send a demand before finishing treatment, you’re just guessing at your damages. The problem is that once you settle and sign a release, you can’t come back for more money when complications arise or medical treatment continues.
What a Strong Demand Letter Includes
A demand package is more than just a letter. It’s a complete presentation of your case, supported by documentation. Here’s what goes into a winning demand:
- A detailed account of the accident. This includes how it happened, where it happened, and who was at fault. It should also reference evidence, including the police report and any available photos or video.
- Comprehensive medical documentation. A strong demand letter includes every medical record from the date of injury through the end of treatment, such as emergency room reports, doctors’ notes, physical therapy records, diagnostic imaging, prescriptions, and more.
- Your itemized damages. The letter should state all your financial losses, such as medical bills, lost wages, and property damage estimates. If you’ll need ongoing care, include an estimate of future medical and care costs.
- Pain and suffering. Include non-economic damages, such as physical pain and emotional distress, and an account of how the injury affects your daily life. Pain and suffering can be a significant portion of your settlement.
- Legal analysis. A comprehensive demand letter should include why the insurance company is liable under Missouri law and references to similar cases and verdicts.
- Settlement demand. This is the specific dollar amount you’re requesting. Your lawyer might demand more than policy limits if the at-fault driver has personal assets, or they might send a policy-limits demand if the case is severe and coverage is capped.
The demand package can run 20 pages or more, with many more pages of supporting documents. It’s a carefully constructed argument, ideally drafted by an experienced personal injury lawyer, and it explains why you deserve every dollar you’re asking for.
How a Demand Letter Starts Negotiations
Once the insurance company receives your demand letter, they can either accept your demand, make a counteroffer, or deny the claim entirely.
Often, an insurance company counters. Let’s say your demand is $100,000. They may come back offering $40,000. Your lawyer then evaluates their offer and decides whether to accept or counter again. This back-and-forth can take weeks or months. Your attorney may also decide to reject the counteroffer outright and file a lawsuit.
What Is a Policy-Limits Demand?
A policy-limits demand, also called a time-limited demand under Mo. Rev. Stat. § 537.058, is different. If your injuries are catastrophic and the at-fault driver’s insurance coverage is inadequate, your lawyer might send a letter demanding the full policy amount immediately. Insurance companies take policy limits demands seriously because if they reject a reasonable demand and you later win more at trial, they can be held liable for insurance bad faith.
Sample Demand Letter Outline
While there can be variations, a typical demand letter follows this structure:
- Heading/Introduction: This is a brief section where the attorney identifies themselves and confirms representation of the injured party. They’ll also state the purpose of the letter.
- Liability section: The main section of the demand letter includes a detailed description of how the accident occurred and why the defendant is at fault. It should also reference the evidence (photos, witness statements, etc.).
- Injuries and treatment section: This section includes a detailed report of your injuries and medical treatments, including dates. Mention future expected medical treatments and ongoing care costs.
- Impact on your life: Explain how the impact of the accident has changed your work and family life.
- A breakdown of damages: The demand letter should include an itemized list of all economic damages, including medical bills, lost income, and property damage. It should also list any non-economic damages (pain and suffering, emotional distress, etc.).
- Demand for settlement: The demand letter must state the specific dollar amount requested for all the losses and impacts described in the previous demand letter sections.
- Closing. Request a prompt response and payment, and include a statement that if the demand is not met, the claimant is prepared to file a lawsuit.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Demand letters can at best be useless, and at worst, they’ll backfire if done wrong. Mistakes that could cost you money include sending it too early before treatment ends, leaving out evidence and documentation, exaggerating injuries, and demanding an unrealistic amount.
And while you can write your own demand letter, it’s recommended to hire an attorney to give yourself the best chance of recovering fair compensation. One wrongly worded paragraph could cost you tens of thousands of dollars.
How Bradley Law Builds Winning Demand Packages
At Bradley Law Personal Injury Lawyers, we don’t send generic demand letters. Every case gets a custom-built demand package designed to maximize our clients’ recovery. Here’s how we build winning demand packages:
- Meticulously gathering evidence. We’ll collect medical bills and records from every provider, wage loss statements from your employer, photos of your injuries and the accident scene, and police reports. Next, we work with your doctors to understand your prognosis and get it in writing for the demand package.
- Calculating your damages thoroughly. Economic damages like medical bills and lost wages are straightforward to calculate, while future medical costs require medical expert opinions. But pain and suffering damages are where our experience matters. We know what juries award for injuries like yours and what insurance companies pay to avoid trial.
- Writing the demand letter and assembling the package. We present your case the way we’d present it to a jury. Your demand letter will be well-researched, chronologically presented, and persuasive. And we’ll make sure the insurance company understands that we’re ready to go to trial if necessary.
FAQs About Demand Letters
How long does the insurance company have to respond to a demand letter?
There’s no legal deadline in Missouri, but demand letters typically request a response within 30 days. If the insurer doesn’t respond or makes an unreasonable offer, your lawyer can file a lawsuit.
Can I send a demand letter myself?
You can, but if you make a mistake or you don’t know how to value your case, you’ll likely settle for far less than it’s worth.
What if the insurance company rejects my demand?
Your lawyer can evaluate your next best step, which may be filing a lawsuit. Cases often settle even after initial rejection once the insurer realizes you’re serious.
Your Next Steps: Talk to Bradley Law
If you’ve been injured in an accident and you’re wondering what your case is worth, don’t negotiate with the insurance company on your own. A wrongly timed or poorly written demand letter can cost you thousands of dollars or even prevent you from recovering any compensation.
At Bradley Law Personal Injury Lawyers, we’ve spent over 20 years building demand packages that get results. We know how to value your claim and how to negotiate from a position of strength. Our track record speaks for itself: we’ve recovered over $100 million for clients in Missouri and Illinois.
Contact us today for a free consultation and let us clarify your best next steps.
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