A letter of demand could be sent to the other party in the terms set out below. A copy of the letter should be kept. It should be sufficient for the other party to send it on to their insurer.

Sample Letter

[Name]

[Address]

[Date]

Dear __________,

I am writing to you about the accident on (date)... (place of accident)...

I am the owner of a motor vehicle (registration number) which was damaged as a result of a collision with a vehicle driven by you (and owned by.. if the owner was not the driver) on the above date.

I am holding you responsible for the damage to my vehicle. The damage has been assessed at $..... and a copy of the quotation is enclosed. If your vehicle is insured, please forward this letter to your insurers as soon as possible.

Unless you contact me within 10 days from the date of this letter, legal proceedings will be taken against you

(Signature)

Click here to download the sample letter in a word document that you can customise for your own use.

If a reply is received, and the matter is agreed, the monies should be paid over. If the other party disputes the repair quote, contact them and invite them to arrange for another quote.

Second Letter of Demand

If the other party still denies liability, a claimant may proceed to issue a court summons, although it may be worth notifying the other party first of the intention to take court action.

A second letter of demand could be written in the following terms:

[Name]

[Address]

[Date]

Dear __________,

I am writing to you about the accident on (date)...

I refer you to my letter dated ... in which I gave you until .. (10 days from the first letter) to contact me regarding the damage to my vehicle suffered as a result of the accident referred to above.

As I have received no offer or money in satisfaction of my claim, I now inform you that unless I receive payment of my damages of $_____ within 7 days of today's date, I will commence court proceedings without further notice.

Please forward this letter to your insurance company if you are insured for such a claim.

(Signature)

Click here to download the sample letter in a word document that you can customise for your own use.

If this second letter of demand produces no result, court proceedings can be started.

Letter of Demand - Insurance Excess

If you have made a claim on your insurance and have had to pay excess, you may be able to recover this sum from the other party. Alternatively, your insurance may do so for you - you will need to check this with your insurance company.

If you wish to proceed to recover this sum, the following letter could be sent:

[Name]

[Address]

[Date]

Dear __________,

I am the owner of vehicle (registration number...) which was damaged as a result of a collision with a vehicle driven by you (and owned by ... If the driver was not the owner of the vehicle) on (date.) at (place of the accident..).

I am holding you liable for the costs of repair. Under my comprehensive insurance policy, I am required to pay the first $..... (amount of excess) of my claim for the cost of repairs to my vehicle.

I hereby claim payment of the sum of $..... (amount of excess) within 10 days of today's date. If I do not hear from you within this period, I will commence court proceedings without further notice.

Yours Faithfully

(Signature)

Click here to download the sample letter in a word document that you can customise for your own use.

If no reply is received, a decision should be made whether to commence proceedings in court, bearing in mind the costs that will be involved. If the excess is small, it may be advisable not to proceed further.