Contractor dispute
$8,700
Recovered in
3 days
Homeowner paid a contractor up front for a kitchen remodel. Eleven months of silence. The letter arrived on a Monday — a full refund wired on Thursday.
Denver, CO
Demand Letters · From $129
The certified letter that gets you paid.
A formal, attorney-reviewed demand letter printed on formal dispute resolution letterhead and mailed via USPS Certified Mail. When a polite follow-up stops working, this is what moves the money.
- Attorney-reviewed
- USPS Certified Mail
- 24-hour guarantee
CERTIFIED · SENT
REF #SU-24-0481
APR 12, 2026
USPS 7019 2280 0001
APR 12, 2026
USPS 7019 2280 0001
Re: Demand for Payment — $4,220.00
Dear Mr. Halsey,
This letter constitutes formal notice that the sum of four thousand two hundred twenty dollars remains outstanding for services rendered on March 4, 2026.
You are hereby given ten (10) business days from receipt to remit the full amount. Failure to do so will result in the filing of a small claims action, including all applicable fees and interest.
Renata M.
Paid in full
6 days after delivery
As seen in
The New York Times
FORBES
TechCrunch
Bloomberg
The Atlantic
WIRED
Why demand letters work
Most people pay before court is even on the table.
A certified demand letter is the single most effective pre-court action an individual or small business can take. It costs a fraction of an attorney and resolves the majority of disputes in under two weeks.
It signals court is next.
A letter on formal dispute resolution letterhead tells the other side you are serious, organized, and one step from filing. That alone resolves most disputes.
It creates a paper trail.
USPS Certified Mail gives you a dated, signed record of delivery. If the case goes to small claims, you walk in with evidence the judge respects.
It sets a clean deadline.
A written response window (usually 10 to 14 days) forces a decision. Delay tactics lose their power when the clock is on paper.
85%
Paid before any court action
6d
Median letter-to-payment window
60k+
Demand letters sent by Sue.com
50/50
States covered, every statute cited
What you get for $129
Everything a law firm would send — minus the law-firm invoice.
Our demand letter package is the exact document a paralegal would spend an afternoon preparing, priced for the person actually owed the money.
- Attorney-reviewed letter for your state
- Printed on formal dispute resolution letterhead
- USPS Certified Mail with tracking
- Return Receipt (signature proof)
- Live delivery status in your dashboard
- Seven-year PDF archive
- Deadline tracking with email reminders
- Discounted upgrade path to Small Claims Prep
DEMAND LETTER · DL-02PAGE 1 / 2
Re: Outstanding Invoice No. 2026-0481
Dear Mr. Halsey,
Please consider this letter a final and formal demand for payment of the outstanding balance of $4,220.00, owed for contracted services rendered on March 4, 2026, pursuant to the agreement executed on February 12, 2026.
Despite multiple good-faith attempts to resolve this matter informally, including emails dated March 18 and April 2, 2026, payment has not been received.
You are hereby given ten (10) business days from the date of this letter's receipt to tender the full amount. Payment may be made by certified check or electronic transfer to the account on record.
Failure to remit payment within the specified timeframe will result in the filing of a civil action in the Hillsborough County Small Claims Court for the principal amount, plus all statutory interest, court costs, and any applicable attorney's fees.
How it works
Three steps, one business day.
You do the ten-minute intake. We handle the drafting, legal review, printing, certified mailing, and tracking. You get notified at every step.
Step 01
Tell us your story.
Four-minute intake. Names, dates, amounts, what was promised, what went wrong. We adapt the flow to your dispute type and catch gaps before they matter.
Typical time: 4 minutes
Step 02
An attorney reviews it.
A licensed attorney in the relevant state reads your letter, adjusts the statute citations, and approves the final version before it prints.
Review window: Same business day
Step 03
We mail it, certified.
Printed on formal dispute resolution letterhead, dropped at USPS with Certified Mail + Return Receipt. Tracking pings your dashboard the moment it is signed for.
Delivery: 2–4 business days
Real cases, real outcomes
A letter in the mail is usually all it takes.
A small sample of recent Sue.com demand-letter outcomes. Names are abbreviated for privacy. Amounts are actual recoveries.
Unpaid invoice
$4,220
Recovered in
2 days
A salon owner sent two polite follow-ups to a corporate client. Our letter cited Florida Civil Remedies § 772.11. Paid the next morning.
Tampa, FL
Security deposit
$2,300
Recovered in
9 days
Tenant left an apartment spotless. Landlord withheld the deposit. The letter cited CA Civil Code § 1950.5 and the statutory penalty. Full refund issued.
Oakland, CA
Consulting fees
$11,900
Recovered in
6 days
A freelance strategist had nine months of unpaid invoices. One certified letter restored the relationship — and the balance — in under a week.
Jersey City, NJ
Customer stories
The reviews tell the whole story.
Rated 4.9 out of 5 across 2,400+ verified reviews. Every review is from a real customer whose case has been resolved or is in active tracking.
★★★★★
“I sent the letter on a Wednesday. He paid me Friday. For $129, that is the best money I have ever spent on my small business.”
Marisol R.
Salon owner · Tampa, FL · Recovered $4,220
★★★★★
“My contractor ghosted me for eleven months. Sue's demand letter got a response the same day it was delivered.”
Jordan P.
Homeowner · Denver, CO · Recovered $8,700
★★★★★
“Chasing payments is the worst part of freelancing. Sue made it feel professional — and it worked the first try.”
Ava C.
Freelancer · Brooklyn, NY · Recovered $1,680
Common questions
Before you send it.
How effective is a demand letter, really?
Our internal data across 60,000+ cases shows 85% of recipients pay at least a partial settlement within 30 days of delivery. A certified letter drafted by a licensed attorney signals that court is the next step — and most parties would rather write a check than show up in front of a judge.
What makes your demand letter different from a template I could download?
We don't use templates. You give us the facts of your dispute in a 5-minute intake, and a licensed attorney in your state drafts the letter from scratch — tailored to your state's statutes and the specifics of your case. It goes out on formal dispute-resolution letterhead via USPS Certified Mail with Return Receipt.
Will I need to go to court after the letter?
Most customers do not. If the letter does not resolve the dispute, you can upgrade to our Small Claims Prep package and we will build the filing packet for your county. You keep every piece of evidence from the letter process.
How long does it take to go out?
Most letters are drafted by your attorney and in a mailbag within one business day of intake. USPS Certified Mail then delivers in 2–4 business days. You see tracking updates in your dashboard in real time.
What dispute types do you handle?
Unpaid invoices, security deposits, contractor disputes, auto repair claims, property damage, personal loans, professional services, neighbor disputes, and unpaid wages — in all 50 states. If your dispute is something else, our intake flags it and a paralegal will confirm fit.
Is Sue.com a law firm?
Sue isn't a traditional law firm and we won't represent you in court — but you're not on your own either. Licensed attorneys on our team draft your demand letter from scratch, tailored to your state's laws and the facts of your dispute, then we mail it certified and walk every case end-to-end until you get paid or you're ready to file in small claims.
What if it does not work?
We offer a 24-hour satisfaction guarantee before your letter is mailed. Because outcomes depend on the other party, we cannot guarantee payment. We can guarantee the letter is delivered, certified, and correctly worded.
Ready when you are
Put it in writing.
Start your demand letter in four minutes. Most customers have their case mailed the same day and resolved within the week.