Compare(0) firms picked
Guide · Car accidents · All states

How to file a car accident injury claim yourself, through the demand letter

Updated By the Counselworthy teamGeneral information, not legal advice

Short answer

  • Open a claim with the other driver's insurer, keep every bill and record, and send a demand letter once your treatment ends.
  • In New Jersey, your own PIP pays your medical bills first, so the claim against the other driver covers what PIP doesn't, like pain and suffering when the law allows it.

Checked October 26, 2026.

Sources: Illinois Department of Insurance, Filing a Claim with Another Driver's Insurance Company; Utah Insurance Department, Filing an Auto Claim; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.3; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-5(g); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8(a); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2(i); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8.1(b). Every fact cites a source

Checker

Where is your claim now?

Pick the closest one. It shows the step people usually take next, and the rule behind it. It can't tell you what your claim is worth, whether you were at fault, or what to do in yours.

The crash just happenedYour own insurer, and theirs
What it is
Report the crash to your insurer, and open a claim with the other driver's.
Why it matters
In New Jersey, your own PIP pays your medical bills first, whoever caused the crash. The claim against the other driver comes on top of that.
The rule
When you claim against another driver's insurer, you don't pay a deductible.
What you can do now

Ask each insurer what it needs from you, and get the police report.

Source: Illinois Department of Insurance, Filing a Claim with Another Driver's Insurance Company; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.3; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-5(g)
I'm still being treatedThe other driver's insurer
What it is
The injury part of the claim usually waits until your treatment ends.
Why it matters
An offer made before then can't include care you still need.
The rule
Insurers usually won't settle an injury claim until you've completed all your medical treatment. In New Jersey, an injury lawsuit generally must be filed within 2 years.
What you can do now

Keep a copy of every bill, record and receipt, and write down every call.

Source: Utah Insurance Department, Filing an Auto Claim; N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2(a)
My treatment is doneYou, in writing
What it is
A demand letter: what happened, your injuries, what you lost and what you're asking for.
Why it matters
A demand letter starts the negotiation that can settle a claim without a lawsuit.
The rule
No law sets what you must send. The insurer has to decide whether its driver is responsible, the amount of your injury, and whether it came from the crash.
What you can do now

Send copies of your records with the letter, and keep the originals.

Source: Wex, Demand letter; Illinois Department of Insurance, Filing a Claim with Another Driver's Insurance Company
They answered with an offerThe other driver's insurer
What it is
An amount to close the injury claim, paid once you sign a release.
Why it matters
Once you sign, the amount offered is the only amount you'll ever receive from it.
The rule
In New Jersey, once a settlement is agreed, the insurer must pay within 10 working days of getting the agreement or your meeting its conditions, whichever is later.
What you can do now

Ask for the offer in writing with what it's based on, and read every line of the release.

Source: Illinois Department of Insurance, Filing a Claim with Another Driver's Insurance Company; Utah Insurance Department, Filing an Auto Claim; N.J.A.C. 11:2-17.6(b), (e); N.J.A.C. 11:2-17.7(a), (b), (c)(2), (c)(3), (e), (f)
They denied it, or went quietThe other driver's insurer, and the state
What it is
A written reply, and if it doesn't come, a complaint to the state's insurance regulator.
Why it matters
States set deadlines for insurers to answer and to pay or explain a claim.
The rule
In New Jersey, the other driver's insurer must pay or explain an injury claim within 90 days, and if it needs longer, say why in writing every 45 days.
What you can do now

Write to the adjuster and ask for the reason in writing. Complaints to New Jersey's Department of Banking and Insurance go in writing.

Source: N.J.A.C. 11:2-17.6(b), (e); N.J.A.C. 11:2-17.7(a), (b), (c)(2), (c)(3), (e), (f); New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance, How to Request Assistance; N.J.S.A. 17:29B-4(9)(f)
My policy has the limit on lawsuitsYour own policy's choice
What it is
A limit on claims for pain and suffering, not on claims for money you lost.
Why it matters
Unless a driver chose otherwise in writing, New Jersey policies have it.
The rule
Pain and suffering needs one of the injuries the law lists, like a displaced fracture or a permanent injury. Medical bills and lost income nothing else paid can still be claimed from the person at fault.
What you can do now

Check your policy's declarations page for which option you have.

Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8(a); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2(i); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8.1(b); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-12; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2(k)

How to file an injury claim against the other driver

An injury claim against the other driver goes to that driver's insurer. These are the usual steps, in order.

  1. Get the police reportIt lists each vehicle's insurer by a code, so it tells you whose insurer to file with. In New Jersey, police crash reports are public.Source: N.J.S.A. 39:4-131; New Jersey State Police and New Jersey Turnpike Authority, Crash Report Requests; New Jersey Turnpike Authority, Accident Report Request
  2. Open a claim with the other driver's insurerYou don't pay a deductible on a claim against another driver's insurer. Write down the adjuster's name and the claim number.Source: Illinois Department of Insurance, Filing a Claim with Another Driver's Insurance Company
  3. Use your own coverage where your state says toIn New Jersey, your own PIP pays your medical bills first, no matter who caused the crash.Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.3; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-5(g)
  4. Treat, and keep every recordGive the insurer as much as you can to support the claim, and keep a copy of everything you send.Source: Utah Insurance Department, Filing an Auto Claim
  5. Send a demand letter when treatment endsInsurers usually won't settle an injury claim until you've completed all your medical treatment.Source: Utah Insurance Department, Filing an Auto Claim
  6. Read the release before you signThe insurer usually won't settle until you sign a release. Then the amount offered is the only amount you'll ever receive.Source: Illinois Department of Insurance, Filing a Claim with Another Driver's Insurance Company; Utah Insurance Department, Filing an Auto Claim
  7. Keep the deadline in viewIn New Jersey, an injury lawsuit generally must be filed within 2 years. Other states set their own.Source: N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2(a)

What goes in a demand letter

A demand letter lays out the dispute and asks the other side to act. Its purpose is to start a negotiation that settles the claim. No law sets what you must send with it, but the insurer has to answer three questions, and the letter answers them.

  1. What happened, and why their driver is responsibleThe insurer has to decide whether its driver is legally responsible for the crash, and how far. The police report and photos are where most letters start.Source: Illinois Department of Insurance, Filing a Claim with Another Driver's Insurance Company
  2. Your injuries, and that the crash caused themIt has to decide the amount of your injury, and whether it's directly related to the crash. Your medical records answer both.Source: Illinois Department of Insurance, Filing a Claim with Another Driver's Insurance Company
  3. What you lostThe bills, the pay you missed and the receipts, as copies. Keep the originals, and a copy of the letter.Source: Utah Insurance Department, Filing an Auto Claim
  4. What you're asking forThe letter names an amount and asks for a written reply. We never give a number for anyone's claim; the settlement guides show what moves one.Source: Wex, Demand letter
Source: Wex, Demand letter; Illinois Department of Insurance, Filing a Claim with Another Driver's Insurance Company

NJWhat's different in New Jersey

New Jersey is a no-fault state, and its rules change what the claim against the other driver is for.

NJYour PIP pays your bills first

Personal injury protection pays your own medical bills without regard to fault, up to $250,000 per person unless a lower amount was chosen in writing.

Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.3; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-5(g)
NJWhat PIP paid isn't part of the claim

In a lawsuit, amounts your PIP paid or could pay can't be used as evidence. The claim against the other driver covers what PIP doesn't: bills above your PIP limits, your deductibles and copays, and lost income past what PIP pays.

Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-12; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2(k)
NJLost pay beyond PIP

A standard policy's PIP pays lost income up to $100 a week and $5,200 in all. Lost pay above that can be claimed from the person at fault.

Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4(b), (c), (e); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.3(b); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-10; New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance, Auto Insurance New Jersey Buyer's Guide; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-12; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2(k)
NJPain and suffering, and the lawsuit limit

Unless a driver chose otherwise in writing, a policy limits pain and suffering claims to injuries the law lists, like a displaced fracture or a permanent injury. The limit doesn't reach medical bills and lost income nothing else paid.

Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8(a); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2(i); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8.1(b); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-12; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2(k)
NJHow fast the insurer must answer

The other driver's insurer must acknowledge your claim within 10 working days, and pay or explain an injury claim within 90 days unless a clear justification exists.

Source: N.J.A.C. 11:2-17.6(b), (e); N.J.A.C. 11:2-17.7(a), (b), (c)(2), (c)(3), (e), (f)
NJYour share of the fault

You recover nothing if you were more than 50% at fault, and less the more you were at fault.

Source: N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1; N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.2

NJWhat Jersey City's police reports show

Counselworthy analysis of NJDOT's crash tables for Jersey City. Each report has an injury box for every person hurt, and an insurer code for every vehicle: the company a claim against that vehicle goes to.

  • 75%of people hurt in Jersey City crashes had pain as the most serious injury on the police report: 6,068 of 8,114.
  • 2%of people hurt in Jersey City crashes had a broken bone or dislocation as the most serious injury on the report: 183 of 8,114.
  • 68%of vehicles in Jersey City crashes that hurt someone had an insurer on the police report, by the state's insurer code: 7,816 of 11,479.
  • 1,257vehicles in Jersey City crashes that hurt someone had GEICO Indemnity Co as their insurer on the police report, more than any other insurer (of 7,678 with an insurer on the state's code list). Next: Government Employees Ins Co (1,079) and Progressive Garden State Ins (876).

What police wrote on each crash report (form NJTR-1), 2019 to 2023, the newest years NJDOT has published in full. It isn't a finding of fault. Source: NJDOT crash tables, checked October 16, 2026.

See every crash on Jersey City's crash map

The injury box is what an officer wrote at the scene. A claim rests on your medical records, which can show more than the report did.

When people handle it alone, and when they don't

Not every claim needs a lawyer. A lawyer can't change your policy's options or the facts of the crash, and the fee comes out of what you recover. Some situations still get harder to handle alone.

Often handled aloneShort treatment, and you healed

The claim is mostly what your own coverage didn't pay. With car damage only, New Jersey's small claims kit covers up to $5,000 owed from a motor vehicle accident.

Worth a free consultationA bigger injury, or a fight

A displaced fracture, a permanent injury or surgery; the insurer says you caused it; the other driver's coverage looks small; or your deadline is close. In New Jersey, a lawyer's fee is capped at 33⅓% of the first $750,000 recovered.

None of the 23 Jersey City injury firms we checked publish their fee on their website.

5 of 23 explain who pays case costs.

21 of 23 say the first consultation is free.

See which firms, on the Jersey City transparency scorecard

From each firm's own website, checked November 1, 2026.

Source: New Jersey Courts, How to Sue for Up To $5,000 in Small Claims Court, Motor Vehicle Case (CN 10148); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8(a); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2(i); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8.1(b); R. 1:21-7(c), (d)

Sources

General information, not legal advice. We don't know the facts of your claim. A lawyer can review them, and most injury lawyers offer a free consultation.

What to do next

Questions people ask

Can I file a car accident injury claim without a lawyer?

Yes. Not every claim needs a lawyer. You open a claim with the other driver's insurer, keep every record, and send a demand letter once treatment ends. It gets harder alone with a permanent injury, a fight over fault, small coverage or a close deadline.

What is a demand letter after a car accident?

A letter that lays out the claim and asks the insurer to pay. Its purpose is to start the negotiation that settles the claim without a lawsuit.

When should I send a demand letter?

Usually once your treatment ends. Insurers usually won't settle an injury claim until you've completed all your medical treatment, and an offer before then can't include care you still need. Keep the deadline to sue in view: 2 years in New Jersey, in general.

What do I send with a demand letter?

No law sets it. The insurer has to decide whether its driver is responsible, the amount of your injury, and whether it came from the crash, so send copies of the police report, your medical records, bills and proof of missed pay.

How long does the insurer have to answer in New Jersey?

It must acknowledge your claim within 10 working days, and pay or explain an injury claim within 90 days. If it needs longer, it must say why in writing every 45 days.

Can I get my medical bills from the other driver in New Jersey?

Your own PIP pays them first, and what PIP paid or could pay can't be used as evidence in a lawsuit. Bills above your PIP limits, deductibles and copays can be claimed from the person at fault.

More on car accidents

Next stepsA guide, not a lawyer