Attorney-Drafted Demand Letters — Often the Whole Case.

Why a demand letter, and not a lawsuit?

Most personal injury and maritime injury claims do not go to trial. They settle. The question is when they settle and how much it costs you to get there. A demand letter is the cheapest, fastest, lowest-conflict way to start that conversation — and in many cases, it ends it.

An insurance adjuster or maritime employer evaluating a claim from an unrepresented person will often offer a fraction of fair value, on the assumption that the claimant won’t push back. The same adjuster looking at a clearly written, attorney-signed demand letter — one that lays out liability, damages, and a number — behaves differently. They escalate the file. They re-evaluate the offer. They settle.

What we draft demand letters for

We focus our demand letter practice on the same areas as the rest of our firm: personal injury and maritime / maritime personal injury matters. We do not draft demand letters for unrelated commercial, contract, employment, or consumer disputes — specialization is what lets us be fast and accurate.

Personal Injury Demand Letters

• Auto accident demand letters — to the at-fault driver’s insurance carrier (third-party liability) or to your own carrier (UM/UIM, PIP)
• Slip and fall / premises liability — to a property owner, commercial tenant, or their general liability carrier
• Pedestrian and bicycle injury — including dooring, crosswalk, and unprotected-turn collisions in Seattle and King County
• Rideshare injuries — to Uber/Lyft contingent coverage carriers and the at-fault driver’s personal carrier
• Dog bite and animal attack — to the owner’s homeowner or renter’s insurance carrier under WA RCW 16.08.040 strict liability
• Wrongful death notice and demand — on behalf of statutory beneficiaries under RCW 4.20.010 et seq.
• Underinsured / uninsured motorist (UIM/UM) demand — to your own carrier when the at-fault driver’s policy limits don’t cover your damages
• Property damage demand — bundled with your bodily injury claim or sent standalone

Maritime & Maritime Personal Injury Demand Letters

• Jones Act demand letters — to a vessel owner or operator on behalf of an injured seaman, citing 46 U.S.C. § 30104 (Jones Act negligence) and the general maritime law doctrine of unseaworthiness
• Maintenance and cure demand — when an employer cuts off, delays, or short-pays the daily living stipend or medical care a seaman is owed
• LHWCA (Longshore) demand and notice letters — to an employer or its carrier under 33 U.S.C. § 901 et seq., including the strict 30-day notice requirement
• Unseaworthiness demand — against a vessel owner for a defective condition that caused crew injury
• Cruise ship injury demand — including the 6-month notice / 1-year suit limitation that most cruise ticket contracts impose
• Ferry passenger injury demand — to Washington State Ferries or a private ferry operator on Puget Sound
• Fishing vessel injury demand — for crew injured aboard commercial fishing operations out of Seattle, Bellingham, or Alaska-bound fleets
• Recreational boating accident demand — to an at-fault operator or their watercraft liability carrier
• Dock and port worker injury demand — for harbor workers covered by LHWCA at the Port of Seattle, Tacoma, or other Puget Sound terminals

What goes into the letter

Every demand letter we draft includes:

1. Identification of the parties — you, the responsible party, and any insurance carrier or vessel owner involved
2. The factual narrative — what happened, when, where, and why the recipient is responsible. Built from your account and any records you provide.
3. The legal theory — negligence, strict liability, Jones Act, LHWCA, unseaworthiness, maintenance and cure, etc., with the relevant statute or doctrine cited
4. The damages itemization — medical specials, lost wages, future medical, pain and suffering, loss of consortium, maintenance arrears, etc., with documentation referenced
5. The demand — a specific dollar figure, with a deadline for response (typically 30 days)
6. The consequences of non-response — further legal action, including litigation, on the timeline the law allows
7. Attorney signature on firm letterhead — the part adjusters actually pay attention to

What it costs

We charge a flat fee, not a contingency, for a standalone demand letter. You know the price before we start, and the fee does not come out of any settlement.

Letter Type	Flat Fee	Typical Turnaround
Personal injury demand — straightforward auto, slip and fall, dog bite	$250 – $400	3–5 business days
Personal injury demand — complex (multiple defendants, UM/UIM, disputed liability)	$400 – $750	5–10 business days
Maintenance and cure demand to maritime employer	$350 – $600	3–7 business days
Jones Act demand letter (with documentation review)	$500 – $900	7–14 business days
LHWCA notice and demand	$400 – $750	5–10 business days (urgent rush available for 30-day notice)
Cruise ship injury notice / demand (6-month deadline)	$450 – $800	5–7 business days
Wrongful death demand letter	$650 – $1,200	10–14 business days

If the matter requires evidence collection beyond what you provide, expert review, or formal litigation after the demand is rejected, we’ll quote that separately and only after you ask us to take the next step.

How the process works

1. Free AI case assessment — about 5 minutes, online, no commitment. The AI reviews your facts and identifies whether a demand letter is the right move.
2. Attorney consultation ($75 / 30 min) — we go over the AI’s assessment, look at any paperwork you have (police report, medical records, employer correspondence), and confirm the letter is appropriate.
3. You sign a flat-fee engagement — the consultation fee is credited toward the demand letter cost.
4. We draft the letter — you review the draft, suggest changes, and approve before it goes out.
5. We send it — certified mail with return receipt, plus email and (where appropriate) carrier portal upload, so there’s a documented chain of delivery.
6. We field the response — the recipient’s reply comes to us. We forward it to you with a plain-English explanation of what they’re saying and what your options are.
7. You decide what’s next — accept, counter, escalate, or walk away. You’re never automatically committed to a lawsuit.

When a demand letter is not the right move

We’ll tell you if it isn’t. Examples:

• Your statute of limitations is days away — you may need to file suit immediately to preserve the claim, then negotiate from there
• The defendant has no insurance and no assets — even a perfect letter can’t collect from a defendant who can’t pay
• The claim is too small to justify the fee — below about $5,000, small claims court may be faster and cheaper
• The other side has already retained counsel and refused to discuss settlement — in that case, suit may be the only remaining lever
• The injury is so severe or the liability so disputed that a careful litigation workup must come first — we’ll route you to full representation under a contingency engagement

FAQ

Will sending a demand letter make the other side lawyer up?

Sometimes. Many adjusters will refer the file to defense counsel after receiving a substantive demand. That’s usually a good sign: it means the file is being taken seriously, and defense counsel can typically get authority to settle that an adjuster cannot. The downside — longer back-and-forth — is rarely worse than the upside of a fair offer.

What if they ignore the letter?

The deadline in the letter passes and you have a clean record showing you tried to resolve the claim out of court. From there, your options are: send a follow-up, escalate to litigation, or walk away. We’ll review the silence and recommend a path. Litigation is a separate engagement with separate fees; the demand letter does not commit you to it.

Can I write the demand letter myself?

You can. The reason adjusters and maritime employers respond differently to attorney letters is partly the legal substance and partly the implicit threat of competent litigation if the demand is ignored. A self-drafted letter signals neither. That said, if you have a small, clear-cut claim and you want to try, the $75 consultation will tell you whether it’s worth paying us to draft it.

Does the demand have to be in writing?

For most insurance and maritime employer claims, yes — carriers and employers respond to written demands. Some statutory deadlines (like LHWCA’s 30-day notice and cruise lines’ 6-month notice provisions) require written notice or your claim is barred.

Will you take a contingency case after the demand?

Yes, if it makes sense for both sides. If your demand letter is rejected and you want to escalate, we can convert the file to a full contingency engagement at our reduced 25–30% rate. The flat fee you already paid for the letter is not credited against contingency, but you’ll still come out ahead because of the lower contingency percentage.