It's possible for your demand letter in a personal injury case to be the first time that the other party hears about your injury. As such, it's imperative for the letter to have an impact. Your personal injury attorney will typically take care of writing this letter — with your input — but you can also help by preparing copies of several important documents that your attorney will include with the letter. These documents will add validity to your claim and help the other side hopefully be encouraged to comply with your settlement request. Here are three documents that should be part of a demand letter.

Police Report

If you called the police because of your injury, whether it was due to a car accident, a dog bite, an assault, or something else, you definitely need to include a copy of the police report. Without it, the other party and his or her attorneys may doubt some of the details of what you're claiming. The responding police officer will usually give you a copy of the police report while still on the scene. If you required a trip to the hospital and forgot to obtain a copy, contact the local police department to get in touch with the officer who wrote the report.

Medical Records

Your demand letter is a place to clearly explain the nature of your injuries that have resulted from your accident. In order to support what you're saying, you'll need copies of medical records. For example, it's not enough to simply state that you have a broken leg because of a fall — you'll also need the report from a doctor that specifies this injury. Medical records are thorough, which can be effective at clearly illustrating the extent of your injuries. Additionally, receipts for medical-related expenses, including medication and assistive devices, are also valuable.

Photos

While not technically a "document," photos are nonetheless a critical thing to attach with your demand letter. Photos bring your injury to life. It's easy to describe a dog bite, for example, but photos that clearly show the wound will have a dramatic impact on the other party and show him or her just how serious the injury is. You may have copies of photos that the police officer took on the scene, but you can count on your personal injury attorney having an investigator take a series of photos for this important purpose.

Contact a firm like Kavanagh & Kavanagh Law Ofc for more information.