Fillable Form Official Demand Letter

What is an Official Demand Letter?

An Official Demand Letter is a formal letter used to request a person or entity that owes money or possession of assets to settle it with the creditor. It serves as the last notice before the creditor takes legal action. It contains the details of the debt, demand for restitution, response deadline, and consequences for not resolving the dispute.

A creditor must send the Official Demand Letter after efforts and attempts made from good faith have been carried out. This can be done through phone calls and messages, emails, postal mails, and the likes to remind the debtor of his obligation to settle payments.

Who can write an Official Demand Letter?

A person or company that intends to collect money from a debtor can write an Official Demand Letter. Here are some examples of when to send this letter:

• Insurance companies that failed to follow policy terms.
• Business partners who did not fulfill professional obligations.
• Freelancers who did not deliver confirmed and paid projects on time.

How to write an Official Demand Letter?

In writing an important letter like the Official Demand Letter, you must be straightforward and serious to keep it professional. This will let the recipient know that you are really considering a lawsuit if your demand was not met.

Be calm and polite in choosing the words that you will include in your demand letter. By doing this, you will probably receive the same treatment and both parties can avoid further misunderstanding or argument.

For your convenience, PDFRun has an official demand letter template that you can use. The demand letter template should be filled out with the following information:

Heading

Enter your full name, full address, city, state, and ZIP code

This section includes who and where did the demand letter come from.

Date

Enter the date that you are writing this letter

This section includes the date when the demand letter was written.

Salutation

Enter the name of the recipient

This section includes to whom did you send the demand letter.

Body

Enter your full name

Enter the details of your demand

Enter the response deadline

This section includes the detailed purpose and facts of the creditor’s demands. If the debtor failed to follow the conditions stated in the demand letter, the creditor can take legal action to resolve the dispute.

Conclusion

Attach your signature

Wrap up the demand letter by signing it.

Tips:

If you wish to edit or personalize the body of the letter, here are a few suggestions that might help you in doing so:

Be specific with your purpose and include facts.

State the reason why you are writing a demand letter. Even though the sender and the recipient are already well aware of the situation, you still need to put your side of the story into the legal document. Provide a clear description of all the damages caused by the recipient’s breach of the agreement. Insert the exact date and time of the incident to add credibility to your claim.

If you end up in a courtroom, this letter will reveal what really happened during the initial dispute and subsequent efforts you made to resolve the case.

Be clear with your demand(s).

Right from the start, you should know what you’ll be requesting from the debtor. Do not beat around the bush; be straightforward. If money is involved, include a specific amount to settle. Explain thoroughly to the recipient how you arrived at that amount such as lost income, property damage, and the other relevant costs.

Set a deadline.

Insert a specific date in your letter to let the recipient know that he or she should deal with it as soon as possible. Seven to fourteen days is usually the best and recommended duration for the response deadline. Do not fail to mention, in a non-threatening way, that consequences will follow if the said date will not be met.

Consult an attorney.

You must consider the possibility that this matter might need to be discussed with a judge in a courtroom. Before sending your demand letter, you might want to consult an attorney and get it checked. This precaution is being advised in order to prevent the information from the demand letter be used against you.

Keep a personal copy of the letter.

Make a copy of your letter before actually sending it to the recipient. You should also keep all correspondence from your adversary. If you sent it via email, do not delete anything and take screenshots if possible.

Send the letter through certified mail.

Sending the letter through certified mail with a return receipt is the best way possible. If by any chance that you actually end up in court, you can present the return receipt as a piece of evidence to dismiss the excuse of the debtor that he or she did not receive any mail.

What should you do when you received an Official Demand Letter?

1. Take the time to read and go through the letter carefully. Check the information stated in the letter and verify if it is indeed true and correct based on your understanding and knowledge of the incident.
2. Decide what plan of action you are going to take. It is up to you whether you’ll settle, propose a counteroffer, or hold on to your position and go to court. Whatever decision you will make, remember to send a response to the sender of the demand letter to avoid further accusations that can be used against you. Make sure to send it through certified mail to get a return receipt that will verify that it was received.
3. If you decided to agree with the sender, you must follow through with the demands and agreement stated in the demand letter. Communicate with the sender and make sure to fulfill all the conditions outlined in the letter.
4. If you decided to propose a counteroffer to settle the dispute, you may respond to the letter of the sender by directly stating your offer. Insert a detailed proposal in your letter and make sure to use friendly words.
5. If you decided to hold on to your position and go to court, you still need to respond to the demand letter of the sender. Explain your stance and let him or her know that you are willing to go through a legal process to resolve this matter.

Once you receive an Official Demand Letter, make sure to not ignore it regardless of whatever you decided to do with it.